St Albans-based theatre production company OVO has submitted its plans to convert a Grade II-listed barn into a new performance venue, after being awarded a £300,000 grant for the project.

OVO has its sights set on St Germain’s barn, which is the sole surviving building from the historic farmstead of St Germain’s in the parish of St Michael’s from the mid-18th century.

In 2023, the company was awarded £300,000 for the project, as part of the Government's £150 million Community Ownership Fund

Located between Verulamium Park and Verulamium Museum, plans would retain the barn and convert it into a multifunctional performance and meeting space, as well as a winter home for OVO productions to complement their open-air performances at the Roman Theatre of Verulamium.

In a statement submitted with the application, Historic England said: “Maintaining and reusing farm buildings which no longer have a viable agricultural use is a sustainable option.”

The new performance space will potentially house a new courtyard, stage, and stackable seating to allow flexibility and different staging configurations for audiences to enjoy the performances.

The only alterations to the structure is the removal of the internal partition.

However, the removal of the partition would "likely restore the openness that would have originally characterised the barn" before the 19th and 20th centuries.

Heritage Information Ltd said in a report: “Providing a beneficial new use will facilitate future maintenance of the fabric of the building, conserving its significance and helping to safeguard its positive contribution to the character and appearance of the conservation area.

“By converting the empty barn into a place that will be accessed and enjoyed by many people, it will be valued more in the future and there will be more people with a stake in protecting it.”

The barn, which appears on maps from 1692, is a charming building that will provide an intimate space for atmospheric performances.

The application for St Germain’s barn conversion is currently under consultation which expires on October 19, 2024.

To view the plans in full go to https://planningapplications.stalbans.gov.uk/planning and search 5/2024/1478