The College had no plans to use the Warren Club and it had become a store for old chairs and exam tables while the rest of the College was developed into a magnificent building with top facilities.
Around March 2014, local dance teachers, Andy and Sue McGregor spotted a banner on Grove Lodge roundabout saying that the College dance studio is for hire - they went and looked and at the same time they peeked though the windows of the Warren and spotted what looked like a huge wooden dance floor.
An email was sent to the College "What are your plans for the old Warren Club?". The answer was "we have no plans, would you like to take it on?". Would Andy and Sue have said "yes" if they'd known how much work it would take to bring the "Warren Ballroom" alive again? Thankfully, Andy and Sue are dance teachers and had no idea what they were taking on!
Finally, on Andy's birthday, 2nd October 2014 the Warren Ballroom opened with the Jive Aces, semi-finalists in Britain's Got Talent and Worthing had a new dance and entertainments venue.
The Warren Club is still a work in progress with lots of decoration plans and the loos are a bit basic. But everything works and the 10 metre by 20 metre sprung dance floor is fantastic!
During the week there are dance lessons in many styles of dance and at the weekend there's plenty of music and dance events with live bands as well as "record hops" and other dance nights.
Scroll down to view clips of some of the other events at the Warren.
And this is how it looked on Andy & Sue's first visit after most of the old furniture had been cleared from the floor. Lot's of potential - but a LOT of nails and screws to extract from the dance floor - followed by weeks of sanding, sealing and buffing, buffing, buffing! And there's a stage with a starcloth backdrop in front of those two doors - those doors were the exits from the changing rooms for people who used to swim in the pool!
Old Excess football team photos from the late 70s & early 80s we found in a changing room locker during refurbishment - click on the picture to see a larger version.
Email Andy@rocsters.com if you're in one of the pictures and would like the original!
