£1 MILLION “GOES MISSING” AT THE PUBLIC

 27-06-2007

The controversial Public Arts Centre in West Bromwich had such poor financial management that £1 million in professional fees went unaccounted for – ultimately bringing the project down.  That’s the damning verdict of Sandwell councillors who reported last night.

By now, it should have been up and running as a major community asset and a catalyst for regeneration; as it is The Public still has no clear opening date, and at a cost of more than £55 million stands as an embarrassing millstone around the neck of a proud Black Country town.

For all that, the report by the Council’s Scrutiny committee chaired by Pete Allen, praises “the vision and the pioneering spirit” of the project, which was led by local arts champion Sylvia King. 

Even now, they say it has the potential to provide “significant uplift to the economic regeneration and…urban renaissance of Sandwell”.

But there’s a warning, too, that The Public could become “another victim of the burst arts bubble” which million pumped into declining industrial towns in an attempt to change their image.

So what exactly went wrong? 

The committee concludes that “the scheme was undermined from the outset by a flawed business case” and says “it was not clear exactly what The Public had to offer”.

There’s criticism of the architect Will Allsop whose idea of creating a “box of delights” wasn’t clearly understood by the townsfolk of West Brom.

And for all Sylvia King’s dynamism in bringing funders on board, it suggests that she became too emotionally involved, and concludes that “the qualities and the skills required to initiate a project of this nature are not the same ones that are essential to see it through”.

The poor project management is reflected in that fact that “despite the fact that detailed accounts were required to be submitted to a range of agencies, until 2005, none of them picked up on the fact that £1m was not accounted for.”

It was this financial liability which eventually forced the project into administration and leaves us with the mess we have today.

Clearly The Public was a bold attempt to re-invigorate a decaying part of the region and give it a bright new identity – and few would quibble with that ambition.

But as the report makes clear, “hands on” control was lacking and the major funders including Arts Council England and Sandwell Council - as well as The Public’s own board - were asleep at the wheel as the problems mounted.

Who do you hold responsible for The Public’s failure?  Can it still thrive as an Arts Centre?  What should happen to it now?  Leave a comment on our Message Board.