Petersfield Festival Hall

We are delighted to announce that Ben Stickler has joined the team at The Festival Hall as General Manager.

Ben comes from a background of working on events of all shapes and sizes, from Glastonbury Festival to small gigs in community halls. He is bringing his wealth of experience into The Festival Hall and its next chapter after becoming an established community venue. He is passionate about all kinds of live performance and about community so looks to bring the two together as much as possible in this role.

Ben started his professional career as a youth worker, which instilled in him a value to help young people fulfill their potential and he aims to bring that same attitude into The Festival Hall and how he manages the team.

As General Manager, Ben’s focus will be to ensure the smooth running of all Front of House event operations, with staff, volunteers, stock and safety protocols including regulations that impact on the venue – such as Martyn’s Law which is due to come into force around April 2027.

He will be the Deputy for Venue Manager Sean Ridley, and takes the lead on the Front of House, Hospitality, Marketing side of the organisation. The role will compliment and work opposite the Buildings and Technical Manager, which is currently available to apply for via the Vacancies page.

Due to significant operational pressures on what is a very small team at Petersfield Town Council, along with the difficulties obtaining cash when we run low due to the closure of our local bank branch, that it has been agreed following discussions with the Finance Team and Town Clerk that Festival Hall will now be operating a Cashless bar at events going forward.

We accept Visa and Mastercard, including Apple Pay/Google Pay etc however we do not accept AMEX.

This will, following the completion of The Musical Festival, also extend to The Box Office – which will still be operating with a small amount of cash where necessary this year, in addition to card as normal.

Ice Creams and Programmes for The Musical Festival, however, will continue to be purchasable in cash as well as card – as these are being managed by The Musical Festival directly, and we do encourage you to buy (and enjoy) both as sales of these directly support The Musical Festival which celebrates 125 fantastic years.

Many thanks, and apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

The General Manager role has been created at an exciting time in the Festival Hall’s history, as planning permission for redevelopment has recently been granted to turn the venue from a ‘Hall for Hire’ into a ‘Professional Community and Events Venue’. We are looking for an experienced individual who will play a pivotal part in supporting the operations and maintenance of Venues and Events within Petersfield Town Council and The Festival Hall, ensuring our standards of presentation and customer service both on stage and in the rest of the buildings are of exceptional levels.

Think you have what it takes? Apply today!

Closing Date: 20 March 2026
Application Pack – Application Form – Job Specification (Word Version)

In light of the weather warnings, we understand patrons may be concerned that this weeks shows may be postponed or cancelled.

Unless the Venue posts an announcement on Social Media or on the Website, the venue remains open and all performances will continue as scheduled.

In the event of a postponement, all patrons who have provided a valid e-mail address will be contacted immediately and all tickets will be immediately valid for the new performance time. If patrons are unable to attend the rearranged date, please contact the Box Office on boxoffice@petersfield-tc.gov.uk with your ticket reference number (not your transaction number as the systems do not allow us access to view these in relation to bookings) and we will be able to process a refund.

In the event of a cancellation, all patrons who have provided a valid e-mail address will be contacted immediately, and the Venue will post an announcement on the website and via its social media pages. All tickets to any events cancelled will be refunded automatically. Those who have purchased through a valid third-party (such as One Tree Books or the visiting company directly) will need to contact their vendor directly for a refund.

If patrons have not provided a valid e-mail address on booking, we will be unable to contact them directly, and we do not take responsibility for this. We are unable to telephone patrons individually, as we do not have this information as it is not required to supply upon booking.

Patrons who are unable to attend a show that goes ahead for any reason are unable to receive a refund unless they have purchased Refund Protection via TicketSource payable upon booking.

We ask that all patrons take extra care on the slippery surfaces. Unfortunately, we are not in control of the Pay & Display car park or surrounding road areas therefore are unable to grit these for safety.