ALDERLEY Edge Parish Council has announced it has approved plans to transform the Festival Hall.

In November councillors announced that it had been awarded a grant of £47,146 from funding body WREN to complete the work.

The council has now commissioned plans for the space, drawn up by Alderley Edge-based architects Kimble Roden, and with the help of Simon Fenton from the Festival Hall advisory group.

The development will allow the council to create two new meeting rooms at the back of the Festival Hall.

One of these looks out on to the interior of the hall and features a curved ceiling – once part of the main hall itself.

The architects have successfully retained the curve, as well as the decorative plasterwork on the ceiling, which dates back to the 1920s.

Clr Geoff Hall, leader of the council, told the Guardian he was ‘delighted’ with the result.

“It will create two additional meeting rooms – one of which will be quite impressive because it will look out over the existing hall,” he said.

“We are delighted that Emma Roden and Edwin Kimble have been able to retain these architectural features, whilst at the same time incorporating energy-efficient contemporary LED lighting.

“The facilities on the ground floor will be improved and we will be able to move the offices from the ground floor.”

Clr Hall added the second meeting room will incorporate a small kitchen area and the existing toilets will be refurbished and storage space created.

“We consulted with a lot of groups in the village and in particular with the Alderley Edge Music Festival,” Clr Hall said.

“The additional rooms will be very useful for them.

“Alderley History Group is interested in using the space plus lots of other groups.”

“Community groups will get a subsidised rate but potentially it can be used by companies as well.

“The hall will seat 300 people and they will be able to hold break out groups in the other rooms as well.

“We are going out to tender now and hoping to start the work in the middle of May or June.

“The parish council has set up a youth council and we showed them the existing space and discussed the plans with them.

“It’s in a poor condition at the moment but it will be relatively straight forward to do.”

The council will now go out to tender for the building work and hopes to start the building work in May or June, with completion by the end of summer.