OLD CHAPEL MUSIC CIC

What OLD CHAPEL MUSIC CIC does

Old Chapel Music CIC is a Community Interest Company (a UK non-profit social enterprise structure) operating Old Chapel Studios, a music rehearsal facility located at The Old Chapel, Czar Street, Holbeck, Leeds (LS11 9PR). Founded in 1992, the company serves local musicians, bands, and adult learners in Leeds with three sound-dampened rehearsal rooms priced at £9–14 per hour on a pay-as-you-go basis. The core technical differentiator is purpose-built acoustic isolation achieved through 'room-inside-a-room' floating construction with dense rubber underfloor and thick doors, enabling complete sound containment between rooms.

The business operates a direct-to-consumer model combining self-serve online booking, phone/text reservations, and walk-ins. Equipment (Marshall and Ashdown amplifiers, drumkits, PA systems, upright piano) is provided free of charge to customers, funded by a partnership with Leeds Music Trust. Beyond core rehearsal space, the company offers on-site recording sessions, drum lessons, guitar repairs, and adult music clubs. As a CIC, all booking revenue is reinvested into community music programs, creating a social mission that aligns with values-driven customers.

Distribution is entirely single-site and domestic, with no geographic expansion, no parent company, no institutional funding, and no disclosed revenue. Marketing is executed through the company website, Google reviews (4.9/5, Trustindex Top Rated 2026), TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, and a MailChimp newsletter. The company's strategic posture reflects a stable, community-anchored non-profit rather than a scaling commercial enterprise, with recent activity focused on product diversification (recording, lessons, repairs) and a Crowdfunder community fundraising campaign to support operations.

Name

OLD CHAPEL MUSIC CIC

Legal name

Old Chapel Music CIC

Website

https://oldchapelleeds.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Old Chapel Music CIC is a non-profit Community Interest Company operating a sound-dampened music rehearsal facility in Leeds, UK, serving local musicians, bands, and adult learners with hourly room rentals, free equipment hire, and community music programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Music Rehearsal Studios

NAICS

Sound Recording Studios (51224), Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries (512)

akta.pro primary industry

Rehearsal & Pre-Production Studios (Rehearsal Rooms, Backline) (MPAIAHAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Instrument Rental & Backline Services (MPAIAJAI)

Keywords

• Music rehearsal studios
• Soundproofed practice rooms
• Community music programs
• Instrument and gear hire
• Music recording services

Headquarters

HQ city

Leeds

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Room Rental (Hourly): Hourly rental of sound-treated rehearsal rooms to musicians, bands, and individuals. Revenue is generated on a per-hour basis with tiered pricing based on room size and occupancy.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Old Chapel Music CIC operates a community music facility in Beeston, Leeds, renting sound-dampened, independently constructed "floating" rehearsal rooms of varying capacities by the hour to musicians and bands. Its packaged offering includes free use of instruments and gear with room hire, professional recording sessions, one-to-one drum lessons, adult music club activities, and in-house guitar repair services.

Product overview

Old Chapel Music CIC operates Old Chapel Studios, a community-focused music rehearsal facility in Leeds offering three sound-dampened rehearsal rooms (Room 1 for up to 8 people at £14/hr, Room 2 for up to 6 people at £13/hr, and Room 3). The core offering includes affordable practice space with free equipment hire thanks to Leeds Music Trust, featuring Marshall and Ashdown amplifiers, PA systems, drumkits, and upright piano. As a non-for-profit Community Interest Company established in 1992, the studio also provides supplementary services including drum lessons, recording sessions, guitar repairs, and adult music clubs, with revenue from bookings supporting community music programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Room 1 Rehearsal Space Sound-dampened floating rehearsal room with capacity for up to 8 people, available for hourly hire to bands, musicians, and groups in Beeston, Leeds.
• Room 2 Rehearsal Space Sound-dampened floating rehearsal room with capacity for up to 6 people, available for hourly hire to smaller bands and musicians in Beeston, Leeds.
• Recording Sessions Professional recording services offered at the facility, available as a dedicated offering via its own page on the Old Chapel Music website for musicians needing studio-quality capture.
• Drum Lessons One-to-one instrumental drum tuition delivered by Manni at the Leeds facility, targeted at local beginners and learners seeking structured drum instruction.
• Adult Music Clubs Organised community music-making sessions for adults at the Leeds facility, providing a social environment for hobby musicians to play together in a supportive setting.
• Guitar Repairs In-house guitar repair and maintenance service offered at the Leeds facility, providing local musicians with convenient instrument servicing alongside rehearsal and lesson services.

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature1 record

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• SAE Institute: Global creative media education institution with rehearsal and recording facilities across UK campuses. Comparable technical infrastructure (sound-treated rooms, recording equipment) but serves students rather than community musicians at significantly larger scale.
• BIMM University: UK music education institution operating rehearsal facilities across multiple UK cities. Adjacent in the music rehearsal/infrastructure space with institutional scale, broader curriculum and degree-granting capabilities — relevant for understanding education-adjacent rehearsal demand.
• Strongroom Studios: Long-established London recording and rehearsal complex offering sound-treated room hire. Comparable core offering but at a much larger commercial scale with a broader national/international clientele rather than local musicians.
• RAK Studios: Historic London recording and rehearsal studios with similar purpose-built sound-treated rooms. Comparable core offering (rehearsal and recording space hire) at substantially larger commercial scale with a more established professional clientele.
• The Premises Studios: Established London-based recording and rehearsal studios offering similar services to Old Chapel but operating at significantly larger commercial scale, with broader production capabilities and a more professional/label-oriented client base.
• Leeds Conservatoire: Leeds-based higher education music institution with rehearsal rooms, studios and performance spaces. Direct geographic peer addressing the same Leeds music community from an educational rather than commercial/CIC angle.

Direct peers

• Yellow Arch Studios: Sheffield-based rehearsal and recording studios serving local musicians with hourly room rental, equipment hire and on-site staff. Closest geographic peer with a comparable single-site, community-focused offering and similar pricing structure.
• Brighter Sound: Manchester-based music Community Interest Company running community programmes, rehearsal opportunities and artist development. Highly analogous CIC structure where community music activity is the explicit mission rather than a commercial afterthought.
• Pirate Studios: UK's largest 24/7 self-service rehearsal and recording studio network with locations across multiple cities. Direct competitor in the affordable hourly rehearsal room niche — same target customers (bands and individual musicians), same pay-per-hour model, but operating at much greater scale and with a commercial rather than CIC structure.

Regional players

• Rockfield Studios: Legendary residential recording and rehearsal facility in rural Wales offering similar sound-treated room services but operating primarily as a residential destination for established acts rather than serving a hyper-local community of working musicians.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/oldchapelleeds
• TikToktiktok.com/@oldchapelmusic
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/old-chapel-music-cic

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about OLD CHAPEL MUSIC CIC