BLANDFORD is set to get its very first arts centre.

The venue will include a multifunctional theatre space, which will accommodate 180 seats, 80 of which will be removable, a box office and a public café/bar with an external seating area.

Blandford is currently the only market town in Dorset which does not have its own dedicated arts centre.

Western Design Architects (WDA) teamed up with a number of organisations to gain the approval to bring a new community venue to the town.

The concept scheme began back in 2010 and has been developed, refined and made into a more traditional scheme.

The planning process was long and complex due to the involvement of Historic England and the sensitivity of the Burgage plot location.

Due to the project relying on charities and grants, the brief required that the building had to be constructed out of natural and sustainable resources.

At the beginning of the project, a local charitable trust which owns Blandford Museum and Victorian Garden generously donated land to be used for the new centre.

WDA developed the original scheme resulting in the building using a unique construction method, with a mix of straw bale walls within a theatrical rigging structure.

The project was used as a design competition from the Arts University Bournemouth, allowing WDA to offer design guidance and mentoring while giving the students’ ideas an opportunity to be used in a live project during their studies.

The new art centre will make use of traditional heritage area materials such as brick, timber and slate, but with the addition of large glazed panels to the front.

This will allow natural light to flood the entrance, whilst adding a modern twist to the traditional building.

The timber cladding will be reclaimed from around Dorset and the bricks will be reclaimed from the site itself where new openings are being made in the existing boundary wall.

The scheme is currently at the fundraising stage to raise money for the remaining aspects of the construction and running costs of the building, which will be known as The Fording Point.