BATTLE FOR THE BULL
Dear Supporter
We are conscious that we have not been in contact for some time. Events have moved very slowly and it always
seems that good news is just around the corner, However after nearly three years of battling with the Council we
still remain concerned that the theatre might be lost.If you follow the local press, especially the Barnet and Potters Bar Times, you will have seen numerous letters
and news stories about The Bull. It is evident to us that many people are confused regarding the current position,
so this may be a suitable moment to bring you up to date.When the original decision was made to move the activity at The Bull to the new Arts depot the Council left it as
an open question as to what would happen to The Bull. However in July 2004, just as the original occupants were
in the process of moving to the Arts depot, the Council resolved to put The Bull up for sale by means of a competitive tendering exercise. It was also agreed that The Susi Earnshaw Theatre School could occupy the building on a
short-term lease up to October 2005. The Council did not agree to our proposal that the disposal should be restricted
to inviting bids from community groups that would ensure the continued use of the theatre and workshops.The Council took until the late summer of 2005 to prepare the tender documentation and belatedly agreed to extend
the lease to Susi Earnshaw up to July 2006. The tendering exercise ran through the early autumn of 2005, and we understand that several bids were received. We have no information on the bids, but it appears that at least two
groups described by the Council as ‘community’ put in a bid, and we are certain that bids were also received from
housing developers.We lodged an objection to the tendering process on the grounds that the planning information contained in the
invitation to tender was incorrect. We do not know whether it was because of our interjection, but the Council
concluded that the process was indeed flawed and abandoned the sale.It is only conjecture on our part, but we suspect the Council realised that the planning difficulties surrounding
the site would make it very difficult for some bidders to proceed with their proposals. In November, the Council
decided to commission a ‘Planning Brief’ for the site, and once that was completed they would initiate a fresh
tendering exercise.
The question remains why they are doing this. The existing planning consent is fine for continuing use as a
theatre and workshops, but is very restrictive and would essentially prevent any alterative use for the site.
So we have to conclude that the Planning Brief is intended to smooth the path to allowing consent for other
uses. Needless to say we intend to fight all the way to oppose any change of planning use.In the meantime Susi Earnshaw continues to occupy the theatre, and has been told that her temporary lease
may be extended up to July 07. You may have seen the recent feature in the local Times which described the
many activities that she is promoting. She runs a full-time theatre school weekdays Monday to Friday, educating
over 50 children in theatre and dance, but does make the theatre available for community use very much in the
way that we envisaged, with a strong emphasis on children and young people. We are however concerned that
because she has no security of tenure, understandably she cannot justify major expenditure on the building.
The Council still has responsibility for the site but has not shown any inclination to spend money on maintenance.
There was a backlog of maintenance when the previous occupants left and the building continues to deteriorate, something which does give us cause for concern. All the more reason why we are anxious to reach an early
conclusion which secures the building for the long-term.Your Committee has decided to support Susi Earnshaw in her bid to secure a long-term lease, which we
anticipate will include the continuation of the workshops at the back. However we must emphasise that recent
statements from the Council and what you may have seen in the papers may be misleading.
The current position is:1) Susi Earnshaw has been offered an additional year on her temporary lease which will allow her to stay until
July 07 only, and
2) The Council has not changed from its decision to re-market the site, but the process in on hold pending the
outcome of a Planning Brief.So, we have not yet saved The Bull. The threat remains just as it was three years ago. The fight goes on!
The local elections will be held on May 4th and the three main parties have all mentioned The Bull in their local
literature. In view of the non-political nature of our campaign we will not comment on the statements made.
To achieve our objective we will continue to press whichever Party is in power.Pam Edwards Matthew Harris Mollie Harris Gordon Massey Helen Massey
FOR more information, contact the Susi Earnshaw Theatre School, 68 High Street, Barnet, call 020 8441 5010,
Many people have made the mistake of assuming the Susi Earnshaw Theatre School is some sort of part-time
drama club. In fact, it is an independent stage school with 20 staff and 60 full-time students aged 11 to 18.
They study for GCSE's and BTEC qualifications in performing arts. Classes run from 8.30am to 5pm Monday
to Friday.
The school, a self-funding business that has never had any subsidy, is so popular that one family has relocated
from Cornwall and another from Bristol so their children can attend.
Plus the school has almost 200 children in part-time drama classes and works in the wider community.
Students visit local schools to provide free dance workshops and work with various community projects
involving socially and economically disadvantaged teenagers.
The theatre school also has a talent agency with 50 adults actors and around 100 children on its books.
Pupil Max Barnes-Davy, 14, appeared in the recent BBC1 TV romantic comedy Love Soup starring Tamsin Greig.
Joshua Lawton, 16, is appearing in BBC's Little Britain and Kane Ricca, 12, has just finished in the West End show
The Far Pavillions.
The school also performs at East Barnet Community Festival and in Barnet Schools Dance Festival, holds
exhibitions at The Bull by local artists every Saturday and has open mic night in the studio.
The theatre school was founded 16 years ago by Susi Earnshaw, a trained actress who worked in repertory
theatre in the 1970s. It began under the Enterprise Allowance Scheme with 12 pupils at All Saints, Whetstone.
More recently it has been based at Brookside Methodist Church in East Barnet but plans to develop the site
failed to get planning permission and Barnet Council let the school move to The Bull last November.
Susi told BARNET4U: " Barnet Council does not dislike us and is not doing anything wrong. By law they have
to get the best value for the borough but that doesn't have to be just money.
"They say they will take into account the value to the community of Barnet.
"We're not in competition with the Arts Depot. We're not doing professional shows. We're doing shows that are
as professional as possible for kids wanting to go into the profession.
"We don't want to move out of Barnet. We've always been here. But there's nowhere else in Barnet I can think of
that is suitable. We desperately want to stay here."
or visit http://www.susiearnshaw.co.uk.
BARNET4U