New Park Centre, Chichester

Who are we and what do we do?

New Park Centre (NPC) is a Community and Arts Centre located on the eastern side of Chichester, West Sussex.  It has been in existence since 1974 and is housed in a converted Victorian School building and a separate new building constructed in 2011.  The accommodation and facilities are owned by Chichester District Council but are managed by an independent charity – the New Park Community and Arts Association (NPCAA).

The Centre has grown into a much-valued community venue in Chichester that provides a varied range of cultural, educational, recreational, and sporting activities that enrich, educate, and entertain the people of Chichester.

– Over 80 groups with, on average, over 2,500 people using facilities each week.
– Specialist support organisations: Richmond Fellowship for people with mild to moderate mental health conditions and ‘My Network’ services from Aldingbourne Trust, for residents with physical disabilities and special educational needs.
– Auditorium hire most days by Chichester Cinema at New Park to offer films.

The Centre offers a safe, accessible, and friendly place for people of all ages to share interests and meet new friends.  Somewhere to learn new things, get fit and stay healthy, to celebrate a special occasion with family and friends, or get help and support when needed.

What facilities are available to hire?

All our contemporary and historic spaces can be hired by individuals, organisations, and businesses to accommodate a whole range of activities and events:
– Dance, music, and performance
– Film screenings, leisure interests and hobbies
– Training courses and seminars
– Fitness and sports activities
– Community and fundraising events

Jubilee Hall: 
– A multi-purpose-built hall with a sprung wood floor, kitchen and bar
– Ideal for dance/sports activities, community fairs, conferences, training events, music and drama productions, exhibitions, receptions and other special occasions
– Fully accessible with disabled WC facilities
– Capacity is up to 120 people (depending on room layout)
– Room Size: 11.14 x 9.94 metres (37 x 33 feet) – Hire Rate: £26 per hour

The New Dojo:
– A spectacular hall designed to meet Olympic standards for Martial Arts activities and coaching courses, and competitions.
– Capacity is around 40 people on the matted area
– Tiered-viewing gallery, changing rooms and storage areas
– Room Size: 13.96 x 12.95 metres (46 x 43 feet)
– Hire Rate: £26 per hour

The Old Dojo:
– Newly decorated, multi-purpose hall with wooden shutters and viewing gallery
– A multi-purpose space ideal for training events, adult learning, dance/sports activities, community events and music/drama classes
– Capacity is up to 120 people (depending on room layout)
– Rollable mats for sports/fitness activities (capacity up to 40 people on matted area)
– Room Size: 16.88 x 6.68 metres (70 x 25 feet)
– Hire Rate: £23 per hour

The Studio:
– A favourite space for smaller groups with flexible layout for meetings and activities
– AV and projection equipment, black out curtains/blinds available
– Capacity is up to 30 people (depending on room layout)
– Room Size: 6.60 x 5.72 metres (21 x 20 feet)
– Hire Rate: £19 per hour

The Auditorium:
– Mainly used as a cinema, theatre and lecture hall
– Capacity is 115 on comfortable tiered seats and a lower wooden floor
– AV and projection facilities available
– Fully accessible with hearing loop system and disabled WC facilities
– Room Size: 39.62 x 7.62 metres (130 by 25 feet)
– Hire Rate:  £33 per hour
– Mostly morning availability due to hire by Chichester Cinema at New Park

Meeting rooms:
– For smaller, confidential activities such as staff meetings, interviews and counselling
– Dressing Room capacity is up to 10 people (depending on room layout) 
– Room size: 4.41 x 4.10 metres (12 x 12 feet)
– Meeting Room capacity is up to 3 people (depending on room layout)
– Room size: 12 x 9 feet / 3.20 x 3.02 metres approx.
– Hire Rate: £12 per hour for the Meeting Room or £13 per hour for the Dressing Room.

Roundhill Picture Palace
– A vintage, crafted Shepherds Hut adapted for a quality cinema experience
– Perfect for birthdays, family get-togethers and special occasions
– Capacity is up to 13 people
– Hire Rate: £100.00 (3-hour period / full terms and conditions apply)

More about New Park Centre

Café Bar – our café bar offers an excellent selection of wines, beers, hot/cold drinks and snacks – It’s an ideal place to relax before or after activities or a film and to meet friends! The Café bar is managed and run by volunteers from New Park Sports and Social Club which is an independent Society set up to provide refreshments for visitors to New Park Centre. 

Volunteering – New Park Centre would not exist without the many volunteers who today and in years past have given their time and energies to help make us a successful community venue.  People from all walks of life help in many ways including, bar cover, gardening, maintaining buildings, office work, fundraising and much more.  We are always looking for new volunteers, so if you have some time to spare and want to help us continue to do what we do, do get in touch.

Community – we offer rooms/halls for events by Artists that take part in the Festival of Chichester and Chichester Art Trail.  We’re also involved in cultural and educational partnership projects with Chichester Festival Theatre, Chichester University and other local businesses.  Many of our community projects are inspired by the people of Chichester so we would love to hear from individuals and organisations with suggestions for new cultural, fitness and community initiatives!

Donor Board – our Donor Board recognises organisations from the business community who have awarded grants and made donations throughout the decades to help to maintain services, trial new projects and update facilities.  Named alongside these are the many individuals who have each given over 1,000 hours of their time to benefit the Centre.

Funding – The Community Association receives no regular revenue funding so relies wholly on income generated by room hire and the surplus from bar sales which together provide funds to maintain and repair the buildings.  Improvements to the fabric and facilities have been paid for through grant funding, sponsorships and public fundraising campaigns including £1.8 million generated for the phase one building works for new community halls and offices. We are looking to the future with phase two plans to develop facilities in the Victorian school building!