The Cowley Club needs your support
Brighton’s longest running, and only, independent autonomous community space and music venue is at risk
TL;DR: We're struggling for money, but you can help!
What is The Cowley Club?
We are a volunteer-run anarchist social centre in the centre of Brighton, and we’ve been open for over twenty years. During the day we’re a vegan cafe, bookshop, library, food bank, and meeting space for all; in the evening we’re a members bar and one of Brighton’s longest standing DIY music venues, hosting artists from around the world, as well as local performers and musicians; and at all times we’re a base for a variety of groups and projects dedicated to grassroots social change
Who runs The Cowley Club?
The club is a cooperative owned and run by it’s members. Every one of us is a volunteer - from the person behind the bar to the kitchen crew hidden upstairs; the people mopping at the end of the night to the person taking our boards down to let some light in the next morning. No one gets paid. No one is making any profit. We are creating a much needed alternative to everything else around us for the benefit of our community, based on the key anarchist principles of solidarity and mutual aid
Why do we need your support?
Volunteer-run projects like ours require a lot of effort, and unfortunately also require a lot of funds. We are entirely self-funded. We don’t get any grants or support from anywhere. However, the bills need to be paid with cold hard cash. We remained afloat during the pandemic thanks to the generous support of our community. With a cost-of-living crisis following right after that, things are tighter than they have ever been
What do we need support for?
Aside from the regular expenses of running a space, we’ve got a century old building to maintain and some outstanding historical debts. There’s a bunch of repairs needed (you should see the state of our front roof), equipment needing maintenance and repair. If we manage to exceed our targets and get out of debt, it is our ambition to build up a surplus so we don’t find ourselves in this financial hole again, and keep at it for years to come
How you can help
Set up a regular donation
Either via Direct Debit, or Ko-Fi, even the smallest but regular donation helps us build up a reliable source of income for the club. If a fraction of our members and supporters donated a pound or two a month it would add up to a considerable amount, and in turn cover a lot of our expenses
Make a one-off donation
Leaving some money in the donation box on the bar? Donating directly to our bank account? Every little bit helps
Organise a benefit for us in your area
Gigs, publications, benefit merchandise, records, solidarity meals - anything will make us happy and will help promote our social centre, and support us financially at the same time
Volunteer with us
We’re stronger together, the more people involved in the club, the more we can achieve, and the more events we’re able to organise - we’re always looking for new volunteers to get involved. It’s hard work, but a lot of fun, and there’s something for everyone
Participate in the club
Come to the cafe, get down to shows, buy some books in the bookshop and have a pint (or soft drink) at a bar night. This is what we’re here for
Share our events and this campaign on social media
The more people that know, the better our chances of getting through this are. You can find us on Facebook and Instagram (@cowleyclub), or our own website: www.cowley.club
Where is the money going at the moment?
Utilities
We spend at least £10,000 per-year on utilities: electric, gas, water, etc
Services and Licences
Our annual service charges and licence fees come to £2500
The Mortgage
We pay £24,000 towards the mortgage every year
Insurance
Our annual insurance costs over £2500, and is expected to rise