A public meeting is to be held with the aim of "securing the future" of a gallery and cinema in Ely.

The consultation follows a "difficult" decision to pause public events at Babylon Gallery and Cinema in Waterside from January next year.

A Babylon Gallery spokesperson said: "We invite local residents and interested parties to attend a public meeting about securing the future of these cherished cultural venues for Ely.

"We will share information about our decision to pause activity in January for a short period of time, and we will invite offers of support to ensure we can reopen both venues as soon as possible." 

READ MORE: Babylon Arts in Ely to pause gallery and cinema in 2025

When the decision was announced at the start of October, Babylon Arts said the "difficult decision" was made after "careful consideration" and that it is currently accepting donations through its website.

A spokesperson said: "This decision comes after significant challenges in securing core funding, which has made it increasingly difficult for us to maintain the necessary staffing levels and cover the operational costs required to run these vital elements of our work.

"This pause will give us the time to assess the long-term viability of these programmes and explore new and innovative ways to continue delivering cultural and artistic experiences to the region. 

"While our gallery exhibitions and cinema will be on hold after December 2024, Babylon Arts will continue to run key projects such as MarketPlace, The Library Presents, and our partnership work with Wicken Fen, all of which remain unaffected by these changes.

"We will also honour our current commitments to deliver exhibitions and cinema screenings until the end of December 2024.

"We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to the incredible staff, volunteers, artists, and local community members who have played a central role in the success of our gallery and cinema."

The public meeting will be hosted by Linda McCord, chair of Babylon Arts, the charity that operates the gallery and cinema. 

The meeting will take place on Monday November 11 from 6.30-7.15pm.

RSVP by November 4 to Karen Birch by emailing karen@babylonarts.org.uk