Fight to save concert venue

12:00pm Saturday 12th July 2008

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More than 1,200 people have joined a group campaigning to safeguard the future of one of Oxford's biggest live music venues.

Plans for a £110m redevelopment of Oxford Brookes University's Headington campus would see the Students' Union facilities demolished and the loss of a large concert venue, which has seen the likes of Ash, Travis and The Klaxons.

The university has pledged to rebuild student facilities in Gipsy Lane, but it was not clear whether the new building will include a replacement concert hall.

Students' Union vice president Orla Rodgers said: "The current feeling is very strong."

A Facebook group has 1,254 members campaigning for the venue to stay and more than 800 students have responded to an online survey - with 96.5 per cent saying they want to keep the facility.

At a university open day, 800 potential students said they would not come to Brookes if it did not have such a venue, Miss Rodgers said.

She said: "Even though students are currently scattered across the globe, they are still contacting us via email and Facebook to express their despair."

She said thousands of students had contacted the union with their concerns and warned the university it was only the beginning of their campaign.

Miss Rodgers said: "We are going to up our game. The university should expect bigger and bigger things in terms of more students getting involved, particularly once Freshers' Week begins.

"This is one of the biggest issues Oxford Brookes Students' Union has faced in many years."

She said the union would continue its campaign throughout the summer and was keen to negotiate and work with the university on their plans to ensure students got the services they needed.

Brookes deputy vice-chancellor Rex Knight said the current venue was not due to close until 2012.

He said: " We are continuing discussions with the Students' Union on a range of options for the new building, which will also house the new library, teaching space, cafes, shops and student services."

He said the Students' Union was an "essential" part of the campus redevelopment.

Mr Knight added: "I'm confident that with continuing discussions and good will on both sides we can reach agreement on what exactly the union's facilities will be.

"If we do agree that a large music venue is an essential part of the university, we have other sites on our campuses that would be more suitable than inside the new building which will be primarily used for teaching and learning.

"It makes no sense to locate a nightclub facility in the same building as the library and teaching rooms."