Up to 20,000 children from across Kent will benefit from a pioneering new £8.5 million creative learning centre – described as a “game changer” for young people.
The plan, led by the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury, is in place for the 12th-century Poor Priests Hospital in the city, which will undergo a three-year restoration and upgrade before reopening in 2029.
Half of the funding will come from a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £4.4 million.
The distinctive building in Stour Street, which has long been closed to the public, has a long and varied history. It was once almshouses, then a hospital for sick priests, before becoming the Museum of Canterbury, containing Roman artefacts.
Most recently, it was acquired by the Marlowe Trust and renamed The Kit, where a youth theatre company supports young people in the creative arts.
But the aim now is to significantly extend its reach, as well as open up the historic building to the public and create a new riverside cafe.
When it reopens, the building will be rebranded The Hive and provide a permanent home for the Marlowe’s work with children and young people, with a dedicated studio and breakout spaces designed to support creativity, participation and wellbeing.
Alongside The Hive, the uniquely important medieval elements of the building – from the Great Hall to the 13th-century St Mary’s Chapel – will be carefully restored and re-presented, with commissioned artworks and sensitively crafted interpretation telling the stories of the building and the people who inhabited it.
Marlowe Theatre bosses say it will be “a game-changer for Kent’s young people”.
Chief executive Deborah Shaw says the project has been almost a decade in the making and can now be kick-started due to the Heritage Lottery grant.
“This is an extraordinary medieval building with remarkable stories embedded in its walls,” she said.
“We’re looking forward to restoring and re-presenting those spaces with commissioned artworks and interpretation that help people connect with the building’s past in imaginative ways.
“As you’d expect from a theatre, we also want the building to feel alive with creativity – from immersive heritage experiences and performances in the Great Hall to projects with schools, community activity and the Writers’ Room in the Solar Room.”
Currently, the Marlowe works with more than 60 schools across the county each year, but demand for its youth company, bursary places and creative programmes already exceeds the capacity of its existing spaces.
The current building cannot accommodate a full school class of 30 students, limiting the theatre’s ability to grow its work.
The Hive will enable the Marlowe to increase participation from about 4,000 children and young people annually to more than 20,000.
The aim is to grow the Marlowe Academy of Performing Arts (MAPA) and develop further vocational training opportunities in partnership with East Kent Colleges Group and Canterbury Christ Church University.
It will also provide a dedicated studio space for Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures Cygnet School.
In addition, The Hive will become the base of the Marlowe’s Writers’ Room at the site, expanding creative writing opportunities in schools and giving young people the chance to write and perform their own work
An estimated 60,000 visitors will also be welcomed to visit the building and see its history.
Alongside The National Lottery Heritage Fund award, the theatre has already secured significant support from trusts, foundations, and private donors, but fundraising is continuing to secure the remaining £2.2m investment needed to fully realise the project.
The building will completely close in late 2026 for the works to take place.
