West Bromwich Town Hall may take on The Public events role

It was revealed yesterday that Sandwell College is in talks with council bosses to turn the £72 million centre into a sixth-form for 500 A-Level students.

And it is now proposed to move events to the larger town hall building if the takeover goes ahead. Council bosses said earlier this year they want to turn the Grade II listed building into a venue to rival Wolverhampton Civic Hall, investing millions of pounds on installing music and lighting systems.

Deputy council leader Councillor Mahboob Hussain, said: "If the deal goes through with the college we are looking at holding similar sorts of events that The Public used to hold to bring life back into West Bromwich Town Hall. Early indications are that some of the events that are being held at The Public, and even some bigger ones could be held at the town hall because the capacity is bigger.

"This is an opportunity to find a long term future for The Public and there are various options we have been considering. The college was the best option, not just for The Public, but for the college as well."

Sandwell Council took over the management of the centre in 2009 – a year after it opened – after the Arts Council walked away, and continues to pump £1.5 million a year into the building. Building work on the iconic pink and black structure, designed by architect Will Alsop, started in 1995 and after a number of delays the centre finally opened in 2008.

The centre opened 12 months after its original due date, millions of pounds over budget, and was condemned by the Commons Culture Select Committee as a 'gross waste of public money'.

In 2011 the Arts Council was accused of funding a building that was 'not fit for purpose' in a damning report into the organisation's role in building the centre. The report by Anthony Blackstock, which was commissioned by Arts Council England in response to a critical parliamentary report by MPs, issued a damning verdict on the role the Arts Council played as the project's principal capital financier.

The report concluded that The Public represents limited value for money. The Arts Council contributed £31.8m to the project, increased from an original allocation of £19m. However, after a troubled first few years, in recent months, visitor numbers have boomed at the £72 million New Street site.

Arts Council England's area director, Peter Knott, said today: "We are aware of the proposed change of use of The Public and we will be meeting with Sandwell MBC to discuss their proposal in more detail." Sandwelll Council leader Councillor Darren Cooper has admitted the arts centre was a mistake from the start.

He said: "I would say at the beginning it was a mistake, in those days I personally spoke out about it. We have gone as far as we can with it and with the cuts that we face as a local authority we are looking at the long term future and whether we can continue to afford to put money into it."