Dear Supporters,

👉 Ulster University has confirmed today to the media that the Riverside Theatre will officially close on Friday 1st August 2025.

🌟 But with £20 million of new investment coming to Coleraine, we now have a real chance to build a new space, one that could inspire and serve our whole region for generations to come

📢Despite nearly 4,500 petition signatures, peaceful protests, huge media coverage nationally and regionally, a fully costed alternative plan, and cross-party political support.

Ulster University refused to engage meaningfully with any solution that could have kept the Riverside Theatre open.

Instead, they passed the burden to the Council, knowing full well it couldn’t afford to take it on.

No consultation. No feasibility study. Just the quiet closure of a theatre that served Coleraine’s cultural, educational, and community life for 50 years.

👉 Ulster University has failed this community.

But this isn’t the end of the story.

🌟 Coleraine Future Town Fund – Your Voice Is Needed Now🌟 
Right now, £20 million is being invested into Coleraine over the next 10 years through the UK Government’s Future Town Fund.

This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to ask for what Coleraine truly needs:
👉 A new, fully accessible, multi-purpose arts space that serves:

• Youth theatre & schools
• Music, dance & drama groups
• Dementia choirs, toddler sessions, older people’s projects
• Community rehearsals, exhibitions, weddings & public events

🖊️ Please fill out the survey ASAP and write clearly that Coleraine needs a new arts space:
📋 Coleraine Fund Survey 🎭

🗣️ This is how we keep the momentum alive. Every response counts.

 
🗓️ Coleraine Fund Meeting – Come Be Heard:

📍 Thursday 4th September 2025
🕙 10am – 1pm
📌 Coleraine Regional College Campus

I’ll be there, and I hope you can too.
If you're part of a youth theatre, dance school, drama group, music club, or community project, please send a representative.
We need to show the demand for an inclusive cultural space has never been stronger.

 
💬 One Final Word
We didn’t lose. Ulster University walked away.
But we are still here. And now, we build something new.

I want to take a moment to thank each and every one of you who stood beside this campaign.

Whether you signed the petition, wrote letters, shared posts, attended protests, or simply spoke about Riverside in your community, your support has made a difference.

You gave your time, your energy, and your voices to fight for something bigger than ourselves: a shared cultural space where generations have come together.

We showed what a real community looks like: united, creative, and full of heart.
You should be incredibly proud of that. I know I am.
Thank you SO much. 🫶