Jasmin Vardimon Company

Jasmin Vardimon Company (JVC) is a dance theatre company, founded in 1998, that creates and tours new works nationally and internationally and develops dance and theatrical skills through workshops, masterclasses, residencies and projects for various levels, from children to professionals. 

Project facts 

• Client – Kent County Council
• End user – Jasmin Vardimon Company 
• Location – Ashford, Kent

Design team

• Architects - OSG Architecture
• Main contractor - WW MartinLtd
• Project Management - Spider Projects
• Quantity surveyor - McComb Partnership 
• Specialist electrics - Stage Electrics

Procurement strategy: design and build

Build time: 20 months; construction started on site in January 2021. A licence to occupy was granted in April 2022, with practical completion in September 2022. 

Overall cost: £9.23 million



 

Sources of funding:

• £3 million Arts Council England
• Kent County Council
• Ashford Borough Council
• £1.597 million Growing Places Fund from South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP). 

General description of the works

The project was to build a brand new bespoke 13,530 square feet company headquarters on a formerly disused site within the Henwood Industrial estate in the north-east of Ashford town. Described as a ‘creative laboratory’, the building houses a large dance studio (374m2 with 8.5m height clearance, with fully sprung floor, full lighting, sound and audio-visual facilities and capacity for 144 seats), two further creative spaces, a resource room and a meeting room, dressing rooms, showers and toilets, Pilates studio, café, office (for 16) and production office. With acoustic soundproofing, the building can accommodate simultaneous activities in training, rehearsal, presenting work for visiting companies, as well as an incubator space for emerging companies. It has been designed to advanced standards of sustainability and efficiency and has an ultramodern fit-out, including computer imaging networks.

On the same site, 29 other light industrial units for businesses (cultural and other) have also been built adjacent to JVHome, representing a new Creative Enterprise Quarter. 

Case study

For JVC, the 2012 move to Ashford and the subsequent decision to develop a purpose-built space stemmed from a desire to find a base that balanced national and international accessibility, with a sustainable cost base and a home within a community. 

Drivers

• The need to relocate from the Stour Centre, their first Ashford home and a community leisure centre, when a change in operator was sought by Ashford Borough Council.
• A long-held company ambition to develop a base for multi-disciplinary artistic study and creative research, that could meet bespoke requirements without material compromise.
• A sharpening desire to build closer ties with the local community, including local schools, since their move to Ashford in 2012.
• Having room to service growing demand for their training and education offer, having already expanded to temporary warehouses in 2016.
• The need for a financially sustainable base, with relatively low costs for rehearsal (often with sets which needed extra space, storage and access) and scope to grow earned income through training opportunities, hires and cafe trading in preference to a high reliance on grants from trusts and foundations. 
• The need for transport connectivity – for example for production teams and trainees often travelling from London or other parts of the UK and the continent (taking priority over a high footfall location).

Culture-led regeneration

Kent County Council (KCC) had experience of culture-led regeneration (for example in Margate anchored by the Turner Contemporary and in Folkestone backed by philanthropist Roger de Haan). They were instrumental backers of the JVC plan, readily understanding the potential offered by creating a home in Ashford for a world-renowned, international dance company with a focus on skills and talent development. The town has been engaged in a process of regeneration in its town centre as part of a ‘reset plan’, with the development of the Creative Enterprise Quarter (where JVC is now based) being one of the ‘Big 8’ local regeneration projects, which also includes the Newtown Works Film Studio development. 

A distinct financing model 

JVC explored many location options, including some requiring a traditional investment model. However, once the industrial estate and its ownership by KCC was identified, a distinct financing model quickly emerged as a possibility and was key to the business case for investment. The total site of 47,163 square feet could accommodate JVC as the anchor tenant, with the sale of the other 29 units providing the enabling finance for their bespoke headquarters.

The model was delivered through an effective relationship structure between KCC as the client, JVC as end user, and the project team through a four-person project board (with equal representation between KCC and JVC). JVC’s Executive Director was frequently on site and able to spot issues as they arose, as well as contributing to design considerations of the wider site. This involvement meant that not only did they have a bespoke building, but it was amid other businesses with manageable operating demands (noise, access, etc). KCC and JVC collaborated closely to attract other tenants such as Kent Music, who occupy four of the units merged in a single building.

Enabling sustainable growth

JVC is now based in a first-rate space for making work, with high quality facilities for talent development and the wellbeing of dancers and the community. The planned growth in activities and the market for skills and training is starting to come, with initiatives such as the Associate Schools programme expanding. Interest in hire opportunities since opening has been strong, creating confidence in plans to make this a key revenue stream. “We are delighted community groups and local businesses use the cafe and meeting rooms and we already have enquiries for hires throughout the coming year. In terms of our training courses, we are doubling up…We’re getting feedback that the facilities are brilliant.” Being able to utilise spaces concurrently is an important improvement for the financial model because the asset is exploited in a far more efficient way. There are also spill over benefits such as creating a community feel, making work more transparent and accessible, and raising aspirations.

The company expects the investment in digital capacity to be increasingly important, following the success of the immersive experience, Alice in VR Wonderland, which was toured to their temporary base during the construction works at the MacArthur Glen Retail site in Ashford, as well as further afield. Ross says, “Now digital is complementing our physical programme; we have clear evidence that it opens up the path to actual engagement on the part of audiences or on the part of show bookers and raises our profile.” 

In terms of their contribution to the local economy, the new buildings on the wider estate have been able to quickly attract tenants on the estate, notwithstanding the challenges of the wider economic picture and likely recession JVC’s contribution as a local employer is just building. Ross explains, “One thing we have learnt quickly – now that we have the building and business, we need to look for skills outside of the creative world to run it – so for example we’re currently employing eight local people and have invested time in helping them feel and be part of what we’re all about. This is how we can make a difference, one person at a time.”

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