Chapter Arts Centre in Canton, Cardiff, has been officially relaunched, following the completion of a major £3.8m refurbishment scheme designed by London-based architects Ash Sakula.

Llanelli-based WRW Group acted as main contractor on the 16-month revamp, which included the transformation of the venue's front and rear entrances and the refurbishment of the cinema, theatre and gallery area. A new 60ft (18.3m) lightbox now spans the main entrance and the café bar has been expanded into the old outdoor terrace to increase internal space by 40 per cent as part of the scheme, which has drawn on three main influences.

Chapter Arts Centre's school heritage, its 1970s roots and sustainability have all been placed at the heart of the refurbished venue, which now boasts the Dutch table area - for meetings and debates - and the Cwtch, a smaller work space. Furniture designer Angela Gidden and performer Marc Rees were also involved with the interior design as part of the revamp, which received a £1.75m capital Lottery award from the Arts Council of Wales (ACW) to help finance the work.

Charitable foundations, grants and public contributions also provided funding for the project - including £71,000 from the Big Lottery Fund, £172,000 from the European Regional Devleopment Fund and £850,000 from the Welsh Assembly Government. Chapter Arts Centre director Janek Alexander said: "Over the past few months visitors have seen the centre take shape from the outside and we are delighted to be able to show off the new facilities to their full extent.

"We also wanted to thank all our supporters who have stuck with us over the last 16 months and we hope that they are proud of their new centre." ACW chief executive Nick Capaldi added: "Chapter is not only a much-loved community venue but is also one of Europe's leading art centres, offering a diverse mixture of performance, visual arts, drama, film and participation."