Absolutely gutted.
Last week we found out that we were unsuccessful in securing a pledge from the Mayor of London. It was clear from the feedback we received, and have been receiving from other funders we’ve talked to, that competition for funding is much higher due to the fallout from the pandemic and arts community organisation’s loss of revenue.
It was clear from the feedback we received, and have been receiving from other funders we’ve talked to, that competition for funding is much higher due to the fallout from the pandemic and arts community organisation’s loss of revenue.
This funding was the cornerstone of our fundraising plan and it leaves a significant gap.
We remain extremely grateful to all who helped us secure an initial £5,600 in personal pledges and to those businesses and trusts who had provisionally outlined donations of c.£20,000.
An all or nothing crowdfunding model does require confidence that the final gap can be achieved. Unfortunately, after subsequent conversations over the past week, we do not have confidence we can fill that gap and have had to make some hard decisions.
Tottenham Pavilion will not be happening, as we intended, in 2021. We are now looking to the future to find other opportunities.
With love and passion,
Carolina, James & Joe
Tottenham Pavilion
c/o Factory of Wonder CIC
What Next
There’s been a huge amount of energy and effort put into Tottenham Pavilion and we’ve formed a burgeoning community of volunteers and backers. We want to ensure this group and the ideas generated live on in some shape or form. We’re continuing with Factory of Wonder CIC, the social enterprise that was formed last year to deliver Tottenham Pavilion. We hope to find new opportunities to utilise our co-design model and realise more self-build projects.
The Design
& Architectural Partnership
We remain very committed to both architects Nine and their design ‘A Shared Hall & the Festival of Making’. As a trio of architects, Hamish, Barney & Will, were everything we’d hoped for and more; accommodating, inventive and highly committed.
While the pavilion may not be built exactly how it was initially envisaged or at the speed first predicted, we are driven to find new opportunities with the same ambition and community spirit that fuelled this design.
Once they took in the news, we were delighted to hear Nine’s response and determination for the future:
“We would love to be involved in any future plans you may have, however big or small. We have thoroughly enjoyed the process of working with you and hopefully this will evolve and contuniue in the future.”
The Volunteers & Advocates
We’ve developed so many new connections through the journey, which started in 2019 with a pilot of summer workshops held on the site. From local volunteers hoping to make the Pavilion happen, to the assistance of specialist advisers and the governance of the initial competition from our judges. Everyone played a part in creating Tottenham Pavilion.
We have spoken to everyone closely involved already. For our volunteers we are having one last online meet up, mainly to allow people to exchange contact details and keep the connections they’d started to form. We’re also actively seeking alternative opportunities for them to get involved with other local projects.
Our advocates remain just that – advocates. The support they have offered over the past week in particular has meant a lot. Knowing the depth of the relationships formed will continue into the future, keeps our resolve for finding new opportunities alive.
The Site
From later on next year the landlord had always planned to reoccupy the site in preparation for development works. Between now and then it will remain unoccupied. We did discuss whether we could run a smaller version of the project, as we did in 2019. However, a combination of costs associated with making the site usable (our marquee was destroyed in the storms of early 2020) and ongoing concerns about coronavirus make it less viable at present.
If someone has a more oven-ready idea, we’re sure the landlord is open to ideas. Contact via Spaces for Creatives website.
Staying in Touch
Tottenham Pavilion, as it was initially intended, has reached an end.
Our belief that communities who create their own moments of wonder find a deeper sense of pride in their location, has only just started.
Over the next few months we will update all our accounts, our website and this mailing list to Factory of Wonder CIC – factoryofwonder.info
We hope you’ll want to stay connected and join us on the next phase of our journey.