Sevenoaks, town council

Population 18,500.  Precept £715,000

Sevenoaks Town Council in Kent is responsible for a number of local facilities in the town. A large council with significant capacity, it is supporting local people during the recession with a job club aimed at providing an opportunity for people to meet, exchange ideas and get advice on careers, training, benefits and setting up businesses. The council also took steps to save the local Stag Theatre and Cinema, which it felt was crucial to the long-term economic sustainability of the town.

The venue went into receivership for the second time in two years in 2008, with many considering it financially unviable and considering the redevelopment value of the land it stood on. In partnership with the local community, local business, and the local media, the council put in a bid to run the venue and successfully secured a 25-year lease in 2009.

Since then, the Theatre has gone from strength to strength, not only hosting a wide range of events and performances, but creating 20 full time jobs in Sevenoaks. The Stag now welcomes more than 25,000 people every month and more than 40,000 people a month log on to the website.

Stag theatre and cinema