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‘The natural end to our five-year project has arrived’, say the directors of Hockley Social Club (HSC), who will now focus on new initiatives and Digbeth Dining Club (DDC) touring.

Owners of popular Birmingham food and music hangout have announced decision to close HSC’s doors at the end of 2025, with a six-month ‘farewell’ programme of events.

The majority of HSC jobs will be protected, with roles redeployed to other parts of the business, as part of the DDC vision to expand across the Midlands.

Announcement comes after HSC marks its 500,000th visitor in half a decade for over 5,000 events leading to a significant contribution to hospitality and NTE .

After five glorious years of delivering award-winning street food dining, world-class culture and music experiences, and community events, pioneering Birmingham venue Hockley Social Club (HSC) is to close its doors at the end of 2025, the business behind it have announced.

The 10,000 square foot post-industrial site in the city’s Jewellery Quarter, conceived and managed by Digbeth Dining Club (DDC), was the first project of its kind in the region to offer a constantly new choice of food to visitors and a busy and diverse programme of events under one roof.

HSC has welcomed over 500,000 people from across the UK through its doors over the half decade, worked with 175 traders offering hundreds of types of cuisines to food fans and hosted over 5,000 events, including performances from a diverse list of artists and talent such as Birmingham Royal Ballet and The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

The venue, which at its peak has employed around 100 specialists across commercial, events, food and beverages, production and sound, as well as creating thousands of short and fixed term roles, has contributed a significant amount to Birmingham’s hospitality and NTE ecosystem inspiring a number of similar ventures in the city since opening.

A statement from Digbeth Dining Club, the business behind Hockley Social Club, said:

‘The natural end to our five-year project in this beautiful warehouse in the ‘wrong part of town’ has arrived.

‘We close the doors to Hockley Social Club (HSC) on Wednesday 31 December 2025, and take with us memories of events, nights, meals, and performances that will last a lifetime.

‘Back in 2020, we set out to create an immersive, diverse and inclusive event space for Birmingham.

‘In many ways, we achieved just that.

‘From the animation and beauty of Birmingham Royal Ballet and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, to the sound of steel and jerk pans during a reggae carnival, HSC became a space for everyone. 

‘It’s been an incredible journey, starting off with our ‘Click and Collect’ concept during COVID-19 lockdowns.

‘This phase effectively saved DDC’s business when we lost our Digbeth home, and were deemed not suitable for public crisis funding during the pandemic.

‘We dug deep and pivoted many times, finally landing on a hybrid food hall and event space, a brand-new concept for the city. 

‘HSC has been an incubator for many new and wonderful cultural brands in the past five years. 

“Close Up Comedy has grown to a weekly multi-venue promotion, supporting touring comedians and making stand up available to a wider audience in the city. 

‘We’ve brought some of the most exciting chefs and operations like Low n Slow and Buddha Belly in the city through our doors, notably Chef Dan Lee, fresh from winning Masterchef Professionals, who took over one of our kitchens for 18 months and presented so much unforgettable food.’

‘We’ll miss the weekly live performances from the brilliant best of grassroots musicians and a DJ collective that has been with us from the original Digbeth Dining Club days. 

‘The friends, regulars and staff who have been the lifeblood and energy of the venue are cherished, and we look forward to taking them all with us on our next adventure.

‘However, all good things must come to an end.

‘Our decision to ‘call time’ on HSC and step away from the location was made safe in the knowledge that our new initiatives (watch this space!) and touring models will break new ground for the communities of the Midlands.

‘Between now and our last day on New Year’s Eve 2025, we will be delivering six months of events, music, vibes and signing off with an epic Christmas and NYE send off. 

‘Keep in touch with us via our socials to find out more. We look forward to welcoming you to enjoy this beautiful HSC space before we move on to the next chapter.”

As part of the closure, the majority of HSC jobs will be protected, with roles redeployed to other parts of the business.

DDC will make an imminent announcement of a new venue in the Black Country – unconnected to the closure of HSC – as part of expansion plans.

The Midlands businesses operates Birmingham Longbridge food and events venue Herbert’s Yard, is a partner in Comedy at the Castle, and will visit up to 40 locations across the Midlands with its Summer Tour 2025.

For more information on the Hockley Social Club closing programme, visit https://hockleysocialclub.com.

For more information on DDC, visit https://digbethdiningclub.com 

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