The Corn Exchange

THE CORN EXCHANGE was built in 1870 on the site of the old post office where Abbey Road approaches the market place. It is an unpretentious Victorian building of red brick and stone dressings and a blue slate roof but lacking the sober grace of the Georgian Town Hall just round the corner. The original building was designed as a public hall and corn exchange in what was then Church Street and cost £2,000, a sum that included the cost of the land and the fittings. It had a large hall in which the corn exchange was held with stage and retiring rooms and capable of seating 500 people and so it has also been used for public meetings and musical entertainments.

In 1990, the Corn Exchange and its facilities were completely rebuilt, refurbished and enlarged on a much bigger site as part of a £900,000 project for the area although a stone tablet bearing the date 1870 and the town's coat of arms were incorporated in the wall of the new building which borders Abbey Road. The extensions at the rear of the property also created a new façade overlooking a new market square and car park using red brick facings associated with Bourne in the design.

In March 2013, a new Community Access Point  was opened at the Corn Exchange at a cost of £600,000 to bring all town, district and county council services under one roof together with the public library from South Street and the register office from West Street. The main hall, however, continues in use as a major venue for social occasions ranging from meetings of the Bourne Organ Club, regular productions by the local dramatic societies, pop concerts and other stage presentations.

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