More vital support given to over 300 cultural organisations to survive beyond pandemic and protect jobs

• Grants are supporting organisations as they emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic
• £1.57 billion funding package has protected jobs across music venues, theatres, galleries, museums and cinemas

Hundreds of cultural organisations have received a share of the final £35 million emergency support package from the Culture Recovery Fund, to help overcome the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since August 2020, the Culture Recovery Fund has distributed £1.57 billion to around 5,000 organisations and sites across the country, giving a lifeline to theatres, museums, independent cinemas and many more cherished organisations around the country through the pandemic.

The final round of funding has supported organisations through the latest challenges, in particular those affected by the Omicron variant this winter. It has kept organisations up and running so that they can continue to support jobs and contribute to local economies.

The record-breaking fund has helped the country’s precious arts, heritage and culture through the pandemic, backing world-renowned names such as Blackpool’s Tower Ballroom, Glastonbury Festival and the National Theatre.

Arts Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay said:

Being cut off from them during lockdown has underlined what a vital role cultural organisations play in their community up and down the country. The Government stood by them in the pandemic, and is determined that they should remain open and accessible to everyone – now and for generations to come.

I am very proud of the Culture Recovery Fund and the lifeline it has provided for cherished organisations in every part of the country.

Support for festivals and live events

The government has been working flat out to support our world-class performing arts and live events sector through challenging times. Now, thanks to this funding, festival-goers and gig-lovers will be able to get back to the brilliant live, in-person events that have been on hold over the past two years. Harrogate International Festivals, for example, have received a grant of £80,000 to continue delivering engaging cultural festivals, such as the Harrogate Music Festival.

A £185,000 grant for Corsica Studios in central London has helped the night club welcome grassroots DJs and household names alike and £60,000 has supported the Wedgewood Rooms, an independent music venue in Southsea, Portsmouth offering an important grassroots music space, and comedy and spoken word events since opening in 1992.

Support for arts

To make sure that everyone continues to have access to arts and culture, this funding will support creative, community-driven arts organisations and creative projects to help nurture and sustain local talent. £70,000 has been awarded to the oldest working men’s club in Britain, Holbeck Working Men’s Club based in Leeds, making sure this community-owned venue can continue with its rich cultural programme.

West End Stage in central London has also received a grant of over £80,000 to continue inspiring and supporting young people to begin their careers on stage. More than £95,000 in funding has gone to Birmingham-based Deaf Explorer to help their important work with Deaf artists to access opportunities across the arts. Almost £50,000 is going to support Golden Tree Productions in Cornwall so that it can continue to develop iconic cultural projects that celebrate Cornwall’s distinctiveness and diversity.

The Bluecoat, Liverpool’s iconic contemporary arts centre, has also been granted over £170,000 to continue their important work engaging the community with art and culture. Home to over 27 artists, arts organisations, craftspeople and retailers in one of Liverpool’s most historic buildings, the funding has protected jobs and kept the centre running.

Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair, Arts Council England said:

This additional round of the Emergency Resource Support Fund has provided a vital lifeline to creative and cultural organisations who have faced further challenges whilst recovering from the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

We once again thank the government for its unprecedented support for our creative and cultural industries. The £35 million awarded in Cultural Recovery Funding is helping to support the sector as it continues to welcome back visitors, reinvigorate communities, champion local talent, and ensure every one of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences wherever they are in the country.

Support for heritage

These final awards are also safeguarding precious heritage and regional museums so they can be enjoyed by local communities and visitors long into the future. £1.35 million has protected jobs at The Piece Hall in Halifax, the only remaining Grade I-listed Georgian cloth hall in the world, and funded conservation repairs so the heritage destination can continue welcoming visitors.

£130,000 has also been awarded to Aerospace Bristol, a family-friendly museum and learning centre whose exhibitions tell the remarkable story of Filton Airfield, and almost £200,000 has gone to The Sussex Archaeological Society to support their work researching and preserving local history and archaeology.

Duncan Wilson, Chief Executive, Historic England, said:

This final round of government funding has supported a range of important heritage organisations across the country, including The Piece Hall in Yorkshire. These places offer people with unparalleled ways of understanding the past, the history of their area, and the great outdoors and are of great importance for our post-pandemic recovery. Helping them to continue to recover and thrive into the future will provide long-lasting benefits to communities across the country.

Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:

This third and final round of the Culture Recovery Fund for Heritage has provided a vital lifeline to heritage organisations, sites and attractions who have found it challenging to recover from the ongoing impact of the Covid pandemic. The £3.1 million awarded by DCMS has helped support the heritage sector as it continues to move forward with plans to open doors to visitors, reinvigorating local areas and contributing to local and national tourism and economy.

Support for cinemas

Emergency funding has also kept projectors rolling in independent cinemas across the country. Thanks to a £45,000 emergency grant from the Culture Recovery Fund, Plymouth Arts Cinema, Plymouth’s only independent cinema, has been able to continue its rich programme of international and UK independent films and offer cheaper tickets to those out of employment, students, those attending Relaxed screenings, and asylum seekers and refugees.

Almost £130,000 has also supported The Regal at Stowmarket to complete its long-planned refurbishment and offer an expanded programme to local communities, including “pocket-money screenings” with £3 tickets for children and work with local disability groups.

Ben Roberts, Chief Executive, BFI said:

Every penny of the Culture Recovery Fund including over £500k in this final round of funding to independent cinemas across the country has been vital to their survival, enabling them to recover and welcome back their audiences. As well as bringing people together to experience the magic of experiencing film on the big screen, local cinemas are hubs for educational and film activities and provide thousands of jobs contributing to regeneration and local economies.

Additional quotes

TV presenter Angellica Bell, Board Member, Kingston Theatre Trust said:

As a Board member of Kingston Theatre Trust, I know how hard our team has worked to sustain the theatre during the pandemic. The Rose enjoys a reputation as both a well-respected producing house and a vibrant community arts hub for Kingston and South West London. We are committed to welcoming new, diverse audience members to the theatre, and this grant helps us to create work that will entice both first time and returning theatregoers to visit the Rose.

Dame Evelyn Glennie, solo percussionist said:

I am delighted that Deaf Explorer has this Culture Recovery Grant. This is a unique company with immense expertise amongst the artists that they collaborate with and support. They access producers that facilitate deaf artists to pioneer inclusive new work. The grant will help key staff return to work, fund-raise and rebuild confidence in their network of deaf artists, who have been devastated by the impact of Covid-19 on the cultural sector. New marketing and promotion will profile the company and help them find new cultural partners, wanting to improve access. I hope for them to quickly return the CIC to a successful not for profit, inspiring the deaf community to be creative and involved in the arts.

Nicky Chance-Thompson DL, Chief Executive, The Piece Hall Trust, said:

We are incredibly grateful the Government recognises the pivotal role The Piece Hall will continue to play in supporting the region’s recovery post pandemic. This generous grant will ensure that this internationally significant heritage site loved by so many, can continue to be sustained and remain free to enter, enabling many different visitors and communities to enjoy and benefit from this precious historic and cultural asset at a time when it’s perhaps needed more than ever. It has become increasingly clear that heritage and culture both play a vital role in supporting our emotional and economic well-being, and we look forward to bringing some much-needed fun and joy back to visitors with a great line up of events in 2022.

Mary Cloake, CEO, The Bluecoat, Liverpool said:

We’re absolutely thrilled that we have been thrown this financial lifeline from the Culture Recovery Fund. We’re grateful to DCMS and the Arts Council for their unwavering support for arts and culture throughout the pandemic. We have spent years building a mixed economy that isn’t solely reliant on public funding, and that was turned on its head during Covid. We will use this money to continue to provide a centre for art and artists in the heart of Liverpool city centre, rebuilding our business and securing its future.

Anna Byrne, Executive Director, Auxiliary Project Space, Stockton on Tees said:

This funding comes at a pivotal time as we emerge from the effects of Covid-19. It allows us to make the full transition of opening up to the public, and supports our team and building with essential resources. We can now face 2022 with a renewed sense of confidence as we build towards the future.

Joanna Resnick, Executive Producer, The Holbeck, Leeds said:

The Holbeck Club serves the community in so many ways- an everyday cultural palace- a place to learn, laugh and relax. This vital funding means that we can continue to do this in these trying times. We’re incredibly grateful for it.

Clare Sacco, Events Co-ordinator, The Creative Seed, South Shields said:

We are absolutely delighted to have received the Emergency Resource Support Fund. The Arts Council and DCMS’s support through the ERF fund has been essential to allowing us to continue our work in the community, with people from a variety of backgrounds and demographics, with a focus on those who traditionally do not find arts and culture accessible. We strongly believe that the arts should be fully inclusive, and this funding will be pivotal in allowing us to facilitate this inclusion.

Sharon Canavar, Chief Executive, Harrogate International Festivals said:

This funding will make a significant difference to our ongoing delivery and emergence from the pandemic. Festivals are cyclical by nature and despite delivering a mix of digital and smaller scale live events during 2021 we need to be fit for purpose for the future learning from our resilience, radically changed programmes and creative ambition over the last two years. This funding will allow us to make informed decisions on our future artistic and community outputs.

Peter Blackburn CBE, Honorary President, Harrogate International Festivals said:

Financial support for the Harrogate International Festivals will be a much needed boost to the organisation after an incredibly challenging two years. HIF has been an integral part of the community during the pandemic supporting residents, employing artists and radically changing the creative offer to animate the town. However, as an organisation with a heavy reliance on ticket sales and sponsorship these much needed funds will bridge the gap across the winter months enabling us to rebuild and reimagine our organisation as we look towards the summer season in 2022 and beyond.

Ellie Claughton, Co-Director, Barrel Organ Theatre, Sheffield said:

We believe that everybody should be afforded the opportunity to nourish their creativity and have a voice, whether they consider themselves to be an artist or not. Funding from the Emergency Resource Fund has been intrinsic in supporting this work and in ensuring Barrel Organ are in a robust position to serve the communities we work with.

Loren Slater, Co-Director, Signal Film and Media, Barrow and Cumbria said:

This funding has been a lifeline for us during the pandemic, allowing us to adapt and increase our services to support some of the most vulnerable and isolated members of our community here in Barrow and Cumbria. The money meant we were able to keep delivering high quality activities and adapting to the rapidly changing circumstances of COVID instead of being under constant worry over our survival. We’re incredibly grateful to the Arts Council for their dedication to helping organisations like ours and their responsiveness in providing the help we needed in such tough times.

Alison Gwynn, Chief Executive, Northern Film + Media said:

We [Northern Film + Media] are grateful to have received an award through the Cultural Recovery Fund at a really challenging time. The funding has enable

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