The Dunard Centre shares its 2023-24 Annual Report

The Dunard Centre, the cultural programme of the Edinburgh and South East City Region Deal, has shared its Annual Report for the 2023-24 financial year.  
 
Detailing a pivotal period for the project, key milestones covered in the report include the completion of enabling works that have prepared the site for construction; forging new cross-sector partnerships, including a new Further Education partner in Edinburgh College; securing a growing network of donors, trusts and corporate partners, with over £30M raised over the past financial year; and analysing insights from the first wave of citizens research.  
 
Jo Buckley, Chief Executive, said: "This project’s ambition, not just for its local community but for Edinburgh’s global reputation, signals a bold commitment to the importance of culture to our lives, our economy, and our society. We are now at a crucial turning point for the project, and we look forward to breaking ground in 2025." 
 The Dunard Centre, supported by Royal Bank of Scotland, will be Edinburgh’s first purpose-built venue of its kind in over 100 years, rivalling the best in the world in acoustic quality and audience experience. Designed by David Chipperfield Architects, it will also be the first Nagata hall in the UK. 
 
As well as providing a new home for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and a key performance venue each August for the Edinburgh International Festival, the Dunard Centre will be an inclusive cultural hub for all kinds of musical performance. Re-asserting Edinburgh's status as a Cultural Capital, the venue will also be an exciting new public space in the centre of Edinburgh, offering rehearsal and recording space as well as delivering an educational outreach programme that builds new audiences and brings new performers to the city. 

Download the report here.

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NEW DESIGN FOR DUNARD CENTRE

Images released today of the proposed new design for the Dunard Centre supported by Royal Bank of Scotland, reveal an opportunity to make an inspiring contribution to the city’s cultural rebuild.

DUNDAS HOUSE SETTING - VIEW FROM ST ANDREW SQUARE

One of the boldest ventures in the city’s recent past, Edinburgh’s first purpose-built music and performance venue in over one hundred years will rival the best in the world in acoustic quality and audience experience, bringing together architect Sir David Chipperfield, recognised throughout the world for high quality architecture in sensitive heritage sites and leading acousticians Nagata Acoustics, established international authorities in the field of concert hall design.

As the cultural flagship for the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, the Dunard Centre will fill a recognised gap in the region’s cultural infrastructure and provide a platform for local, national and international musicians to perform to audiences in the very best environment.

The 1000 capacity hall is designed with the flexibility to welcome the widest possible range of acoustic and amplified music and performance to a mid-sized venue. The simple elegance of the exterior reflects the surrounding neoclassical design of the Edinburgh New Town and opens up an undiscovered area of the city centre, linking the St James Quarter, St Andrew Square and the Register Lanes and contributing to the regeneration of the area.

IMPACT Scotland’s Co-Chairs Fergus Linehan and Gavin Reid commented:

AUDITORIUM - ORCHESTRAL PERFORMANCE

Fergus Linehan: “We are delighted to unveil the stunning design for the Dunard Centre which will be a truly transformational venue in the heart of Edinburgh. 

“The restrictions throughout the pandemic have highlighted the enormous contribution participating in the performing arts, whether as an audience member or a performer, makes to our wellbeing. It is a great honour to be leading a project which will make such a positive and inspiring contribution to the city’s cultural rebuild.”

Gavin Reid: “As well as being a creative hub hosting music and educational experiences of all kinds, the Dunard Centre will reach out beyond its own walls to be an inspirational springboard for outreach work across the city and beyond.

UK Government Minister for Scotland Iain Stewart said:

"The Dunard Centre is an exciting prospect for Edinburgh's cultural landscape. 

"These designs show the great potential for a new, dynamic creative space in the heart of the city.

"The UK Government is investing £10 million in this project as part of it's £1.5 billion commitment to Region Deals across Scotland, helping communities everywhere to build back better from the pandemic."

City of Edinburgh Council Leader Adam McVey said: 

“The Dunard Centre is an exciting and important new cultural venue for our Capital. This is the first purpose-built concert venue in Edinburgh in more than 100 years which will expand Edinburgh’s landscape for enjoying music and the arts.  It is in a prime central and sustainable location, with fantastic public transport connections and will complement the wider transformation of the east end of the city centre alongside the opening of the Edinburgh St James Quarter- ensuring that our City centre remains a vibrant and thriving destination.”

Malcolm Buchanan, chair, Scotland Board, Royal Bank of Scotland, said:

“The Dunard Centre is an exciting proposition that will enrich the city’s education, music and arts communities and one that we are proud to be part of.

“Royal Bank of Scotland has supported Scotland’s arts sectors throughout its 300-year history, three centuries which have cemented Edinburgh and the country’s position as a capital for global culture.

“The Dunard Centre will play a role in continuing that tradition and create further opportunity for another generation of artists and performers.”

Sir David Chipperfield said:

“Tucked behind Dundas House and on axis with George Street, the Dunard Centre occupies a strategic site linking the formal qualities of St. Andrew Square and the New Town with the more intimate atmosphere of lanes around Register House towards the new St. James Quarter. The identity of the building is determined by its circular form, contributing to the silhouette of the city and enclosing a 1,000-seat hall. This flexible world-class facility is designed to adapt to a wide-ranging programme of performances and cultural activities, ensuring it will serve as a meaningful new addition to the life and fabric of Edinburgh.”

The redesigned building will house:

• 1000 capacity auditorium with the capacity for live streaming, digital capture and broadcasting  

• flexible multi-purpose rooms for education, conferencing and hospitality

• foyer with informal opportunity for performance

• café/bar with indoor and outdoor seating

The space has been skilfully re-imagined to create a world-class auditorium of exceptional acoustic quality in the heart of the city, retaining the 1000 capacity, while reducing the size of the proposed building.

The budget for the project remains at £75 million, with two-thirds of this being met by private philanthropy and fundraising.  £35 million is being donated by Dunard Fund, and a fundraising campaign for a further £15 million has already received significant pledges. As part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal the UK and Scottish Governments are each providing £10 million, and City of Edinburgh Council £5 million. 

A variation to the planning application is being submitted this week. If planning permission is granted, construction will begin in 2022, with an estimated build length of 3 years.

Dunard Centre Planning Application Approved

The City Region Deal’s cultural flagship project to create Edinburgh’s first purpose-built concert hall in over 100 years, got the green light to proceed last month when Councillors voted to grant planning permission. With the project now on its way to becoming a reality, we were delighted to reveal the venue’s name – Dunard Centre supported by Royal Bank of Scotland, in recognition of the huge contribution to this project from Dunard Fund.

introducing secretary of state for scotland david mundell MP, and cllr cammy day, depute leader of the city of edinburgh council to the dunard centre model

I feel passionately that Dunard Centre directly addresses what is needed for the city to flourish in the performing arts, to look to the future, not trying to replicate what other cities already have, but what other cities will come to want. It will be transformational in terms of the productions that can be programmed and in the audiences it can attract and is designed to be a venue for audiences of all ages, all backgrounds and for all kinds of music and performance.

With the creation of a 1,000-seat hall; complemented by a 200-seat studio; a large foyer for all-day informal performance; café/bar and a range of rooms for education, community outreach and conference activities – we aim to create a lively, cultural hub where everyone feels welcome. This is a big challenge, but not impossible for a city as vibrant and forward-looking as Edinburgh. The benefits it will bring to the whole region cannot be overstated - different kinds of music, audiences, performers, education, rehearsal and recording, all under one roof with the very best acoustics and technology and in a location easily accessible by both local and national public transport - this is a one off.

Over the last 100 years, many new performing arts venues and concert halls have been built around the globe, harnessing advancements in technology and in the acoustic excellence they can achieve. We are incredibly lucky to have the Usher Hall, but we are selling ourselves short as a capital city, not to offer a complementary venue of half its size, providing a completely different experience for both audience and performer. Through generous philanthropy, City Region Deal funding and a city centre location thanks to Royal Bank of Scotland, this lack of provision for Edinburgh and the South East of Scotland is something we can now put right. This is an opportunity for everyone to get behind the creation of the very best, most ambitious cultural project seen in Edinburgh for over a 100 years – what our growing region needs in its vision for 2050 and beyond.

Sir Ewan Brown, Chairman IMPACT Scotland.