Thousands of people sign petition against plans to close building which is home to dozens of small businesses in Leeds

Dozens of small businesses in Leeds say they fear for their future as the council defends plans to close the building they work in.

Aire Street Workshops is home to around 150 people working at more than 50 small businesses in the creative industry.

But Leeds City Council is planning to close the building in the new year, saying it needs millions of pounds worth of work which it can’t afford.

More than 5,000 people have now signed a petition against the plans, with several of the businesses telling us they want the council to work with them to look at other options.

“It is an important part of the city and it feels really good to be here and be part of that and encourage that growth,” says Louise, manager of Take It Easy film lab.

“I think that’s another reason why we were so disappointed and shocked by the decision because there’s lots of people in this building who help Leeds council sell the city through murals, through the workshops that they do.”

One of those people is photographer and set designer Camille:

“I would say at least half the people in this building have done work specifically for the council before. I myself have done a lot of work with them for Leeds City of Culture 2023. It is a bit of a kick in the teeth to need us one second then get rid of our spaces the next.

“I don’t know what the future of my career will be without this building. It’s very hard to find creative spaces in Leeds at the moment. And I think it will have such a knock-on effect with the whole of Leeds… if none of these businesses are here, then none of the tens of thousands of clients that use our creative services can also do that.”

Owen Seabrook is creative director at a production company which directed ‘Cut Short’, a film about knife crime which has been delivered into 260 schools and organisations across the country to help educate young people.

“Teachers feed back that it really gets kids opening up. But we couldn’t have made that film without this facility," he said.

“People obviously want these things and the feedback is that it’s so needed and people are so grateful for this thing being there. But it’s seemingly not within the council’s priority to support the places that facilitate these sort of campaigns.

“We don’t feel like there’s been any room for negotiation, you know from the council saying ‘here’s what we’re thinking of doing’…there’s been no offer of doing this collaboratively. So it feels like we’ve just been told to get lost basically.”

The businesses we spoke to say they weren’t told about the plans until the middle of last month and claim the council hasn’t directly engaged with them. But the council says it did tell the building’s leaseholder about its plans seven months before that.

Council defends closure plans

A spokesperson for Leeds City Council said: “We are determined to support the site’s tenants and help as many of them as possible find new premises within Leeds.

“They and their predecessors have made Aire Street Workshops a hub for cultural and creative activity. However, it is also an ageing building that needs major repairs and improvements.

“We estimate that, for its present use to continue, the building would require a seven-figure investment to ensure it meets regulatory and energy performance standards.

“The unprecedented budget pressures facing the council mean we are unfortunately not able to fund that level of investment.

“Furthermore, even if the necessary funds were to be found and the work carried out, we anticipate that the improvements to the building would have to be reflected by rent rises that would place an unfair burden on the current tenants.

“A meeting was therefore held between the council and the building’s leaseholder, LCVS Enterprises, in September last year.

“At the meeting, LCVS were made aware that the site had been identified as a likely asset for sale and that a commercial property firm had been engaged to prepare a valuation report.

"For clarity, it was our expectation that LCVS, as leaseholder, would pass this news on to their individual tenants as soon as possible.

“The council is the site’s freehold owner and it has no formal relationship with the tenants of LCVS. As such, it is LCVS’s responsibility to liaise with them on matters such as a potential sale of the building.

“At September’s meeting, we also agreed to a request from LCVS for their current lease to be extended through to January 2025 so that their tenants had more time to find alternative accommodation prior to any sale.

“However, it appears that the tenants were not informed of the plans for the site until last week. (Week commencing 15th April)

“This is clearly regrettable but we would once again stress that LCVS have known about our likely intentions since September.

“Indeed, it is hard to reconcile any suggestion of LCVS being unaware of the council’s intentions with their request for a lease extension that they linked to the need for tenants to find new premises.

“The council began discussions with LCVS as long ago as 2016 regarding the poor condition of the building and how it could impact its future operation.

“A letter was also sent to LCVS on February 19 this year confirming that the property was now scheduled for disposal during the 2024/25 financial year. This letter further confirmed that vacant possession would be required when the extended lease came to an end.

“At no point in the last seven months have LCVS given us any indication that tenants were not being kept fully informed of developments.

“As a council, we have been clear that, in light of our financial challenges, difficult decisions are having to be made across many service areas.

“Equally, we are keenly aware of the contribution made to life in Leeds by small businesses of the kind found in Aire Street Workshops.

“Our business support team will develop a targeted package of support for affected tenants over the coming weeks which, it is hoped, will help that contribution to continue and grow.

“The council can also confirm that, as part of the sale and bidder selection process, it will be willing to receive a range of offers, including ones that could allow the building to operate as a form of managed workspace.

“This approach reflects our wider ongoing commitment to culture and creativity in Leeds at a time when the council – like many other businesses and organisations across the city – is dealing with an extremely serious budget position.”

We have requested a statement from LCVS but haven’t heard back yet – but in a post on their website the firm says:

Response from LCVS

“LCVS Enterprises Ltd is a not-for-profit company set up to provide affordable business units. It is run by a Board of Directors who are not paid.

“Leeds City Council has leased the Aire Street building to LCVS for more than 40 years through a succession of short-term leases. We have never had security of tenure, meaning that we have never been able to consider the long-term future of the building.

“We met Leeds City Council on 29th September at which we were informed that the Council was considering options for the building, that an options appraisal would be prepared and that we would have sight of this document. Without a clear statement from Leeds City Council at this point that our lease would be terminated, it would have been inappropriate to inform tenants that our lease was coming to an end.

“We received notification that the lease was to be terminated on 19th February 2024. This followed a decision of the Council’s Executive Board on 7th February 2024. We were not informed that the matter was being brought to the Council’s Executive Board for decision in advance.

“After a short period of reflection by the Board about the implications of this decision and whether it could be contested, we released this information to the tenants. The information was communicated alongside a communication from representatives of the tenants who we consulted immediately prior to the release of the information to all tenants.

“We understand that Leeds City Council feels unable to invest the sort of money in the building that would bring it up to the standards required by legislation. We are equally unable to fund these works.

“However, the Aire Street Workshops provide a valuable and valued service to small business in Leeds. There are no guarantees that alternative accommodation can be found and there is every chance that some of these businesses may have to cease trading. In view of this, we feel that a pause in the sale of the building is required to ensure that all of the alternatives have been considered by all interested parties.”