Woolwich Works has gained two new trustees – one from its landlord at Berkeley Homes, and the boss of the O2.
The chairman of Berkeley Capital, Karl Whiteman, and Steve Sayer, the senior vice-president and general manager of the O2, have joined the trustees of the Woolwich Creative District Trust, which runs the arts hub in the Royal Arsenal.
Berkeley Homes owns the freehold to the Royal Arsenal estate, including the buildings used by Woolwich Works. Whiteman oversaw its transformation from a closed-down Ministry of Defence facility into a community with thousands of residents.
Before joining the O2, Sayer was operations director at Manchester City.
Both Berkeley and the O2 have close links with Greenwich Council, which spent £45 million on refurbishing buildings in the Arsenal to house Woolwich Works and provide homes for other cultural groups such as Punchdrunk.
The council billed the project as the borough’s answer to the Southbank Centre. But the venue, which opened in 2021, had a troubled start and was bailed out with a £2 million council loan two years ago, topped up by a second payment of £300,000 from a council subsidiary company last year.
The original management was criticised for trying to follow a “west London” business model and for not working with other organisations.
Nick Williams, Woolwich Works’ director, called the two appointments “incredibly exciting for everyone here at Woolwich Works”.
”Steve brings experience from an iconic entertainment brand while Karl has the local expertise and business acumen that will really help us to make an impact,” he said. “We’re really looking forward to their contributions, supporting Woolwich Works’ rise as a major London venue and an important part of the local fabric.”
Whiteman said he was delighted to join the trustees. “Berkeley has been supporting this fantastic venue since it first opened its doors, and it has been wonderful to see so many local people benefit from its community programmes over the last three years,” he said. “I’m keen that we reach as many Woolwich residents as possible, and that this beautiful building continues to be treasured by the community.”
Sayer said: “The venue is truly amazing and provides the local community with an incredible asset for all to use and engage in. Having worked in major iconic and world leading venues throughout my career I’m excited to now work with Nick and his brilliant team as they build out their programming, enhance the guest experience and embed operational excellence into the venue.”
The appointments mean there are now nine men and two women on the board of trustees, with the town hall represented by two Labour councillors: Asli Mohammed and Dave Sullivan.
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