Blackwood Miners Institute opened in 1927 as a single-storey hall and snooker room maintained by a levy on workers' wages. Construction was made possible through a £7,000 grant from the Miners' Welfare Fund in addition to a sum of £850 raised from local miners themselves. The present building took form in 1936 when a further two storeys were added providing the theatre auditorium, reading room and library, committee rooms, and a ladies room. With the decline and eventual demise of the coal mining industry in Blackwood the Insitute fell into disrepair and it was sold to Islwyn Borough Council 1989 to ensure long-term survival. Refurbished, the Institute reopened in 1992 as an arts venue which remains its purpose today.

Daryl Leeworthy, RCAHMW, 16 September 2011.