The widespread closure of small- and medium-sized concert halls across the UK has left the grassroots music industry in a critical condition – but DIY, community-led spaces are leading a fightback. How are they adapting their offerings to get punters through the door and keep the lights on?

With dramatic numbers of venue closures and a lack of interest from Gen Y in alcohol, drugs and hardcore partying, UK nightlife has seen a steep decline. So do UK clubbers now prefer more socially acceptable forms of leisure or are they simply responding to an increasingly regulated climate?

Berlin-based club Berghain is world-renowned for its fanatical reverence of techno and days-long parties. Yet while a night out elsewhere in the world may result in a booze-clouded recollection, Germans take a more serious approach to clubbing. How can brands appeal to these moderate tastes?

The CLF Art Cafe in Peckham, London, has become something of a nightlife institution since opening its doors in 2007. By giving back what the community has put in, the multi-purpose space has been able to provide creative sanctuary at a time when art is the first victim of austerity.