PM+M’s Helen Clayton named new chair of The Met

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A year after she was appointed as the treasurer of The Met, Helen Clayton, partner at PM+M, has been named chair of the Bury arts venue.

The Met houses two theatres, its own recording studio and rehearsal spaces as well as a popular restaurant and bar. It’s operated by Bury Metropolitan Arts Association and part funded by Arts Council England and Bury Council.

Helen’s focus will be on supporting the board and wider team including growing the variety of events staged both at The Met and in the wider community, and helping as many people of all different ages, abilities and backgrounds to access the arts and music in Bury.

Helen said: “I passionately believe in the work we do at The Met so I’m delighted to have been appointed chair of such a fantastic organisation. I want to ensure that we to continue to focus on building for the future by securing more funding, expanding both our corporate and individual sponsorship programme, maintaining the fantastic venue that we are all so proud of as well as being a central part of our community.

Helen added: 2020 is going to a big year for Bury as we are Greater Manchester’s inaugural Town of Culture so we are aiming to really capitalise on that profile and create as many opportunities as possible in 2020.”

Victoria Robinson – CEO of The Met – said: “Helen has added so much value since she joined the board last year so we are thrilled that she agreed to become our new chair – especially as her love for Bury and making the arts and music accessible to everyone really fit with our core values.

Victoria added: The Met has been involved in Both Sides Now, which is a ground-breaking initiative to support, inspire and showcase female music creators and industry professionals across the North of England, so we are incredibly proud to now be an all female-led organisation