Watford’s Town Hall and Colosseum Restoration for Future Energy

The Town Hall is undergoing a major restoration project as part of the council’s 10-year Town Hall Quarter programme. The project aims to transform the top of the town centre into a vibrant hub for people and businesses.

As part of the council’s key commitments towards carbon neutrality by 2030, other restoration work has also taken place at the Town Hall recently to make it more energy energy efficient.

The town hall will also benefit from energy-efficient lighting and new roof and wall cavity installation. These will save another 166 tonnes of carbon.

One of the key elements of the project is the restoration of the clock tower. The tower will be cleaned, prepared, and repainted, and any old silicone seals or jointing compounds will be replaced with new ones. The pineapple on top of the tower will also be restored.

The restoration of the windows is another important part of the project. The windows will be restored to their original condition, which will reduce the rate of heat transfer through the windows by 75%. This will make the Town Hall more energy efficient and help the council achieve its goal of carbon neutrality by 2030.

The restoration of the Town Hall is a significant project that will benefit the whole community. It will improve the appearance of the town centre, make the Town Hall more energy efficient, and create a vibrant hub for people and businesses.

Other works have included:

• Installation of 144 state-of-the-art photovoltaic (PV) panels on the roof of the Town Hall and 36 on the Colosseum to harness renewable energy, reducing the reliance on traditional power sources. It is expected to save 24 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year.
• Replacing all the lights with light-emitting diode (LED) equivalents, as well as installing new roof and cavity wall insulation within Colosseum and Town Hall. Estimations show that this should save 166 tonne annual saving in carbon.
• 99% of waste on site being redirected away from landfill, as well as an estimated combined reduction of 50% on the gas bill and 32% reduction on electricity across both buildings.

The Colosseum will be reopening next year after a major refurbishment. The new operator, world-leading live entertainment company AEG Presents, will bring a variety of events to the venue, including concerts, comedy shows, and dance performances.

The Town Hall is also undergoing a transformation. It will be repurposed to include the Museum, a hub to support local community organizations, and an innovation business hub. This will create a vibrant space for people of all ages to enjoy.

With the valuable support of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the council is holding a range of consultation events to share the proposals for the new Watford Museum, including the first look at CGI imagery of what the space might look like. These public consultations are on:

• 10 to 18 August, 10am – 5pm, Watford Museum
• 19 August, 12pm – 5pm, Herts Pride in Cassiobury Park
• 22 to 26 August, 10am – 4pm, Cassiobury Park Hub
• 29 August to 1 September Watford Borough Council, Contact Centre at the Town Hall.

The consultation is also available online if people cannot get to one of the events:

Click here to complete online survey

Visit Watford Museum’s Consultation page