STERTS Theatre has been handed a £20,000 lifeline, giving the embattled Bodmin Moor venue a five-month stay of execution as efforts continue to secure its future.

The offer, made by charity member Vickie Bishop, came as trustees considered whether the Sterts Charity itself should follow its operational arm into administration.

The Sterts Community Interest Company, which ran the theatre, went into voluntary liquidation at the end of September, leaving a number of creditors unpaid and bringing its activities to an abrupt halt.

The separate Sterts Charity, which owns and is responsible for the theatre and studio buildings, remains operational but was facing a £12,000 deficit.

Ms Bishop's loan offer means theatre groups can continue using the facilities for the next five months, buying the organisation valuable time to find a way forward.

She said: “I've kept the doors open and what it means is that for the next five months they [theatre groups] can use the facilities there.”

At the charity’s recent annual meeting, trustees revealed that three investors were in discussions about taking on the theatre and operating it as a limited company.

Their identities have not been disclosed for confidentiality reasons.

Members were also told the charity’s 2025 accounts showed a deficit of £130,000, with income down by 62 per cent and donations falling by 92 per cent.

Ms Bishop said she had been concerned about the direction of the organisation since a new administration took over operations two years ago.

“When the new administration took over, we were categorically told that am-dram wasn't part of their plans,” she said.

She had been particularly keen to see youth theatre return to Sterts, but said the proposals had never materialised.

Despite the difficulties, she believes there is still considerable community support for the venue, pointing to the enthusiasm and willingness to volunteer shown at the AGM.

“Nobody wants it to fail, even if they're cross about what happened in the past. Nobody wants Sterts to close forever; nobody wants to bring the curtain down, so to speak. We all want it to succeed,” she said.

Charity chair Nick Buckland said Sterts was technically balance-sheet solvent because it owned the site, but admitted its ability to fund day-to-day operations remained precarious.

“We're running very close to the limit in terms of our operational funding and that's really what we're concerned about as trustees,” he said.

He attributed the CIC’s collapse to a combination of falling ticket sales and funding bids that failed to come through – and said rebuilding community engagement would be crucial to the venue’s recovery.

Sterts Theatre has been enriching the lives of its community since it was established in 1986 by Anne and Ewert Sturrock on a converted pig farm near Upton Cross.

Having reached the milestone of 40 years since its launch, the venue’s future is now uncertain following the collapse of its operating company at the end of September.

Mr Buckland added: “I hope it can be saved. I wouldn’t be here if I didn't think that. I’ve been involved in quite a number of things where we have turned it around and I hate losing.”