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The New Ritz Collective

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The New Ritz Collective

Bringing The Ritz back to life! For Ilkeston, by the community. Website coming soon.

The New Ritz Collective is a community-led group working to turn The Ritz into a vibrant multi-purpose space for music, arts, events, creativity and community.

24/08/2026

A huge milestone for The Ritz and for Ilkeston 🌟

We're delighted to share that The Ritz has officially been listed as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) by Erewash Borough Council!

This is a huge step forward for our group, and recognises something we've believed from the very beginning.

So, what does this actually mean?

An ACV doesn't mean we own the building, and it doesn't stop it from being sold.

However, if the owner decides to sell, eligible community groups have the opportunity to prepare a bid to buy the building, giving them time to bring together the funding and plans needed.

Most importantly, it's recognition that The Ritz matters to our community.

Thank you to everyone who has supported us so far. Whether you've followed our journey, shared our post, or simply believed in what we're trying to achieve, it all counts!

Here's to the next steps! ❤️

13/08/2026

One of our directors, Charlie, was at The HUB Ilkeston earlier this week to meet with Andy Burnham, Angela Rayner and Claire Ward, who were visiting to speak with local people and community groups from across Ilkeston.

It was a great chance to talk about Ilkeston, The Ritz, and why bringing buildings like this back into use is about so much more than saving a building - it’s about breathing new life into our high street and giving people a reason to come into our town centre! ❤️

The PM seemed genuinely interested in the project and came and sat down with a few of our other directors to hear more about what we’re trying to achieve.

We’re always grateful for opportunities like this to put Ilkeston on the map and make sure our community’s voice is heard. Thanks to everyone who took the time to chat with us!

26/07/2026

📸 A glimpse back at The Ritz in the early 1960s...How great would it be to see queues like this outside The Ritz once again?

Although things may have seemed a little quiet on here, we've been busy behind the scenes keeping the project moving forward. We've recently submitted applications and Expressions of Interest for major funding. If we're successful, we'll be able to carry out surveys to assess the condition of the building and identify what needs attention first to help secure its future.

We're also still waiting to hear back about our Asset of Community Value application, and we'll be sure to let you all know as soon as we have an update!

Projects like this take time, but we're continuing to steam ahead to try to bring something new and exciting to Ilkeston 💚

We'll keep you updated as soon as we have more news!

📸 Photo credit: David Roddis Collection, provided by the Cta archive.

01/06/2026

We want to hear your Ritz memories! 🎬❤️

We’re fascinated by the stories people have shared so far, and we’d love to hear more.

Did you, or a relative, spend evenings at the bingo? Watch your first film there? Or perhaps you worked there and have memories from behind the scenes…

The photograph we're sharing today is of Richard Henshaw, Commissionaire at The Ritz. Commissionaires were a familiar sight at many cinemas, stationed at the entrance in their smart uniforms to welcome customers and manage queues. They were often the first person people saw when arriving at the cinema and helped make a night at The Ritz feel that little bit special.

If you have any old photos, tickets, programmes, newspaper cuttings or other memorabilia, we’d love to see them!

As we continue our work to secure a future for this iconic building, we’re keen to celebrate and preserve its past too. Every memory helps us build a picture of what The Ritz has meant to generations of local people.

Share your memories and photos in the comments or send us a message!

📸 Photo credit: David Roddis Collection, provided by the CTA Archive.

22/05/2026

Community campaigners who are keen to repurpose a town’s old bingo hall say that its removal from auction has given them hope.

20/05/2026

Wow, what a week it’s been…

In such a short space of time, over 600 people have followed our page, with hundreds more commenting, sharing and messaging us with ideas and support.

Thank you to every single person who has supported the project so far. The response from Ilkeston has truly been amazing to see ♥️

Today was due to be auction day for The Ritz, but the building was withdrawn from sale this morning. Whilst there’s still lots of unknowns, we are feeling hopeful about what comes next.

Behind the scenes, we’ve been working hard having conversations with the right people to build support for what we’re trying to achieve. We’re going to keep pushing forward and will share updates as things move along!

Just imagine people coming into town for indoor markets, live music, workshops, theatre, comedy nights and family events all under one roof…That’s the kind of future we want to explore for The Ritz.

Thank you again for all your support so far.

- The New Ritz Collective

13/05/2026

Hello Ilkeston!

Today marks a huge moment for The New Ritz Collective, and for Ilkeston.

For those who don’t know us, we are a newly formed local community group brought together by one shared belief: that The Ritz deserves a future at the heart of our town once again.

The building is currently due to go up for auction on 20th May, and whilst the auction may still go ahead, today we have officially submitted an application for The Ritz to be listed as an Asset of Community Value (ACV).

This is a massive step forward!

If granted, ACV status would formally recognise the importance of The Ritz to the community and help protect its future. It also means any future sale of the building would need to take that status into account, and the people of Ilkeston would have the chance to bring the building back to life once again.

This is only the beginning, but it’s an exciting one.

Our vision is to see The Ritz restored and brought back into community use as a multi-purpose community space for Ilkeston. A place capable of supporting a wide range of activity, including:
- Live performances and theatre
- Music and comedy
- Film screenings
- Workshops and exhibitions
- Indoor markets and community events
- Private and community hire

We want to create a space that belongs to Ilkeston again.

The next steps will involve building community support, fundraising, exploring funding opportunities, and developing a sustainable future for the building. There is still a way to go, but today felt like the first real step towards something special.

Thank you to everyone who has supported, encouraged and believed in this idea already. And a huge thank you to Derbyshire Historic Buildings Trust for their support with our mission.

Please follow the page, share this post, and help us shout about just how good the New Ritz could be for our town. ❤️

A website is currently in the works and more updates will follow very soon!

— The New Ritz Collective

Address

The Ritz, South Street
Ilkeston
DE75QT

Website

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