the roadmender has been an excellent resource for a seriously under resourced group of people. The suggestion that funding may be withdrawn is indicative of the lack of insight of the county council and the evident undervaluing of said people. I would have thought that the most short sighted decision would be to be responsible for the closing of a venue which promotes unity and harmony amongst young and old. Rethink please before you make such an ill thought out decision.
I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on the background of this issue but let me add my thoughts to the collective. I do not believe cutting the funding of this venue to be a good or wise decision. It may be a decision made with the best intentions but it is not the right decision. I know money is always in short supply and that we must always bow before the all powerful Budget but I know budgets. They flow, they move, so I believe revenue can be found if the cause is right. And I don't want to hear about tought choices: if something has to go to help the Roundmender then give me the choice. Find the money. Be wise. Don't give me reasons why you can't, give me reasons why you will or regret forever your part in the destruction of this town's soul, which no amount of cultural cosmetics will ever disguise.
Its one of the most important supporters of youth culture in Northampton and the area: I travel in to go. Please don't get rid of it. It would be a terrible catastrophe.
There is no venue like the roadmender for miles and has been a platform for so many new bands over the years. i have some many great memories of the roadmender amd i would love to have some more please keep it open and keep british music alive and kicking
I use the Roadmender myself and would be devastated to see it close. More importantly, I have a 12 year old son. My expectation is that he will use the Roadmender as so many of my friends' children have done and that, like them, he will benefit from a diverse range of cultural influences and grow up into a musically aware and culturally engaged person. If you withdraw funding from this venue, you are sentencing the next generation of young people in Northampton to the narrow and dubious diet of entertainments in the rest of the town centre. You know how much civic effort and money goes into mopping up the outpourings of most of the town's venues. If you force the closure this facility, maybe you will get in both behavioural and cultural terms what you deserve. But that isn't what we and the next generation of young people in Northampton deserve. Surely, when surveys are telling you that almost half the people in Northampton want to leave the town, you would not be short sighted enough to preside over the demise of one of the best things the town has to offer.
I can't belive closing this venue is even an option! There should always be investment in creativity & diversity of culture. Venues like this help deliver enjoyment & inspire many others to create music for themselves. It would be a crying shame if it were to close. It is very short sighted for the council to consider it's closure. Good luck with the campaign.
Withdrawal of funding from Roadmender would be a short-sighted act of cultural vandalism.
Roadmender receives a relatively small sum from NCC to help it provide a wide range of services to many thousands of people across the age range. It provides value that simply cannot be measured on a balance sheet
The cabinet member responsible for community services apparently believes that the money can better be used in other areas of arts and youth services: I would like to hear a specific proposal of how £58,000 put into other projects will give more benefit to a greater number of people than Roadmender.
The venue has experienced financial and management difficulties in the past. So has NCC. The evidence suggests that one of them is improving its service under its present management, and it isn't the council.
Seemingly the council is determined to destroy every piece of Northampton's Popular culture. They'll be the first to complain when the streets are littered with teenagers who have nothing to do on a friday night. To withdraw the funding would be a further dent to this town's already flagging music scene.
The Roadmender is an institution. It brings joy and inspiration to many people, especially the young people of Nothants. Do the politicians want a town/county devoid of any inspiration and new talent? Nowhere to showcase Northamptonshire as a place to be for students, young professionals and the like? An opportunity to see a live act at the Roadmender could shape one person's life in a positive way. Withdrawing funding for the Roadmender is a disgrace. Perhaps we should lose a councillor or two, and their expenses, instead if they need to save the money so badly?
NCC don’t be tight fisted, continue to give the Roadmender the funding it needs. Venues like this are irreplaceable. It would be a real lose to Northampton if it closes.
What is it with people, they will close a good venue then c0omplain when the youth is hangoing about on streets with nothing to do. KEEP IT OPEN!!!!
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Roadmender is a unique venue for ALL the people of this county - and should be supported by the unitary bodies that are themselves paid for BY the people of this county. Corporate funders should also be doing their bit for the common good.
Roadmender is part of the fabric of the county & has added huge value. The Heritage Committee found it worthy of support - for the local councils to decide otherwise is to show a severe lack of interest in the future entertainment & artistic credibility of the county.
The Roadmender played more of a part in my upbringing than my parents. From Oasis all those years ago to Magic Numbers a few months ago. How can the council even consider this? This part of the country has always been a bit culturally devoid but now?????? W******.
Northampton nightlife is in danger of becoming a one-trick pony with stereotypical bar scenes. The loss of the alternative offering from the Roadmender would be a great shame. We don't all want to continuously be fed large brewery marketing.
The Roadmender has hosted so many up and coming bands over the year it would be an enormous loss to Northampton and Live Music in general if it closed. Please reconsider!
The Venue has only recently recieved a face lift. Where is the sense in closing a venue which is a good source of entertainment to the younger generations.
i mean..been to a fair few good gigs at rm!
where wil all the slags go..what about kaos.
i mean dont get me wrong i hate kaos..but it means they get out of the way.
keep it open iff only for club nme.
if the funds stop it will fail.. and where else is there to go for a nyt out.
rm is a good venue when used with good bands. get the funding up and the indie in!
p.s....if it stays openi think u need to advitise more, abover or below the line.doesnt matter.
cheers
!xxx
i thinks its a disgrace.. as a 16 year old.. whta does the council want us to do?.. cause hovoc on the streets outside mcdonalds every friday..
thers noowehere in this town to help people have a life. and its one of the only things in northmapton to actually do!
why the F*ck are they stoping funduing? becuse they want to spend more money on roads that dont even need work1! its a ridiculous idea.. and im willing to take this petition as far as it needs to go.. to keep roadmender open.!
The council needs to think very hard before making a decision to shut down a venue like this one in a place like Northampton. If you take away the small venues then you cut a valuable link between youth and the possibility of a future in music. If there are no venues for underground music then you don't have that first line of hope and ambition for the youth to aspire to become a performer and in most cases it is performing arts and mainly underground music that can be used to entice youngsters away from the slipperly slope that can eventually lead to a life of disorderly behaviour and criminal activity. To put it another way the more young people you have going to music events and enjoying themselves the less likely they will become bored and look for entertainment from a less legal means i.e. joyriding or other such anti-social activities. I dread to think where I would be now had I not found a life in underground music, were it not from the ambition to achieve within music I would be in a much worse place than I am today.
Please do not close down this venue if not for the entertainment purposes it holds then keep it open for the youth of tomorrow who already face a grim enough future as it is with the state of this country and the wider world.
Don't close it down, just promote it better. There's always stuff that i miss there because i don't get to hear about it until after the event.Just hire a better promotions team or work with local promoters to put on good club nights that young people want to attend.
The 'Mender can't be allowed to close. Been to many a gig and club night there since my first visit in 1994 to see Terrorvision. It's an asesome venue! The people of Northants can't be denied the opportunity to see quality bands on their doorstep.
All smaller music venues need to exist so that up and coming bands have a chance.I'm sick of huge,soulessplaces that just deliver music to the masses who can't make up their own minds and need to be told what music to like.
don't be so daft, if the roadmender goes there will be nothing to do!! county council should think about what happens to adolescents when they are bored......!!!!
