The Enfield Town arts complex recently underwent a major refurbishment but continues to lose the council money

Enfield Council is “exploring options” over the future of Dugdale Arts Centre – as it aims to save tens of thousands of pounds in running costs.

The Enfield Town arts complex underwent a major £1.5million refurbishment only three years ago and contains a theatre, café, museum and other spaces that can be hired out to community groups.

However, the Dispatch understands that the facility as a whole continues to lose the council a significant amount of money, and the 2025/26 budget agreed by councillors last month contains hoped-for annual savings of more than £200,000.

It looks likely these savings will be achieved by outsourcing either the Dugdale’s café or the facility as a whole to an external operator, similar to what happened with Millfield Arts Centre in Edmonton last year, when Platinum Performing Arts won a contract to run it on behalf of the council.

The café at the Dugdale is run by a council-owned organisation, EN Food, which also runs the café at Enfield Town Library. The library’s café would also be included in the outsourcing move if it went ahead.

When approached for comment on the cuts to the Dugdale included in the budget, a council spokesperson said: “Dugdale Arts Centre (DAC) and the cafés at DAC and Enfield Town Library are great places for our communities. The DAC especially has an important role as a key cultural hub in our borough.

“As part of our responsibilities on managing costs, we are exploring options on how best to run DAC and the cafes. Any proposed changes will be carefully considered.

“There are a number of opportunities here, including working with the voluntary sector, community groups, and the private sector.

“It’s important that we explore all potential approaches to ensure the facilities serve our residents in the best way possible. No final decisions have been made, and we will continue to look at all options in line with our commitment to delivering the best value for residents.”

Beyond the need to make savings, no firm details have yet been published on what is planned for the Dugdale, and the Conservatives have reserved judgement until more information becomes available.

Edward Smith, the opposition group’s shadow spokesperson for arts and culture, said: “Any sort of commercial service has to cover its costs and it wouldn’t be right or appropriate for cafes run by the council to make a continual loss.

“The issue for the Dugdale is that it’s a community facility and there are groups like ‘knit and natter’ and toddler groups that use it and they want to have a cup of coffee at the same time.

“Any changes that are made to make it commercially viable need to be made in a way that does not reduce the attractiveness of the place, because that will only make it worse.

“We want people to continue using it, but the offer has to be appropriate to the number of people who do use it. I would like to see what the detailed proposals are.”

Regarding the fact that the Dugdale underwent a £1.5million refurbishment in 2022, Cllr Smith added: “It is a matter of concern that all this money has been spent on it and it is the council’s fault that they have not managed to turn it around in the way they intended.

“It is a waste of money, as the objective has not been achieved – but we need to see the proposals.”

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