Venue Restoration Levy
For all paid shows* going on sale at The Y Theatre from 1 April 2025, we are charging a venue restoration levy of £1 per ticket.
What is a venue restoration levy and why is it needed?
A venue restoration levy is an additional charge incorporated into the price of a ticket, which is reserved exclusively for maintenance and investment in the physical building.
The Y Theatre was built in 1900, originally as a lecture hall for YMCA members but swiftly opening the doors to the public and growing into the bustling theatre venue it is today. Now at our 125th year the charity has worked hard to preserve this beautiful historic building while being an arts venue for community groups, artists and audiences. While all care has been taken to maintain it, many key infrastructural elements are in need of upgrade and repair. This is in addition to the constant TLC an old building like ours needs, and with over 215 events per year welcoming more than 22,250 people, wear and tear is inevitable.
As an independent venue we do not receive any funding, with the charity being responsible for all upkeep and restoration of the Grade II listed building. Being 125 years old, many core elements of the building are incredibly inefficient by modern standards, and as such our regular running costs are high. We spend over £400 per day just to open the doors, with business rates and insurances bringing it closer to £874 per day, all this before emergencies (like a leaking roof) are accounted for.
The key areas we plan to address first come directly from your feedback. These include:
– Upgrading the theatre heating from the Victorian system to a more energy efficient and responsive one, reducing costs for the charity and improving comfort for audiences.
– Renewing the toilet facilities to better accommodate audiences on busy shows, reducing wait times and providing a better experience.
– Maintain and restore historical features of the building so we can continue to share the history of the building and our community.
It is important to us that we remain a fair and accessible venue for our community, so we have been resistant to this change for some time. But with rising costs and the ever-pressing need to address some of these challenges, we need to take steps to ensure the theatre is still here for our community in another 125 years’ time.
We all know that a night out at a comedy show or musical performance isn’t cheap. You might not know that the majority of ticket money does not go to the Theatre. In fact, for every £10 a customer spent on a ticket last year, the venue would typically have retained less than £2.00 of that once artists, tax, royalties, PRS, and various other charges were all paid.
With a venue restoration levy, our average 22,000 ticket sales per year will equate to £22,000 that can be funnelled directly back into maintaining and protecting this much beloved venue. In the short-term, these funds will help make vital repairs. In the long-term, they will help us future-proof our infrastructure and work towards being a more accessible and environmentally friendly venue.
We won’t be making a profit from this new ticketing charge, but your contribution will be making a genuine difference to the future of The Y Theatre and everyone who visits. Thank you for continuing to support your local independent venues.
If this insight into the challenges we face makes you feel inclined to donate, please do!
The Y Theatre is operated by YMCA Leicestershire, a charity supporting young people in our community experiencing homelessness. Any additional donations will also be invested directly into venue upkeep and improvement.
*we will not be charging the restoration levy on tickets to our free or Pay What You Feel events, or on any shows that went on sale prior to 1 April 2025.
