The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport has today (19 November 2021) announced that 925 cultural and creative organisations nationally are to receive a share of £107 million in grants and loans as part of a vital financial boost from the Government’s unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund.
This includes more than £100 million, which has been awarded in grants through Arts Council England, Historic England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute.
As part of this announcement, funding of £34,702,422 has been awarded through the Arts Council to support 282 organisations in London. This vital funding through the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund will support theatres, galleries, performance groups, arts organisations and local venues to reopen and recover.
Arts Council England has been working on two funding programmes for this third round of the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund: Continuity Support and Emergency Resource Support.
£31,933,928 in Continuity Support grants will be awarded to 266 previous Culture Recovery Fund recipients in London, helping organisations survive and allowing them to resume programmes and events. This funding will mean people can get back to enjoying everything these organisations have to offer.
In addition to this, 17 organisations in London have been awarded grants totalling £2,768,494 from the Emergency Resource Support strand of funding so far, with more applications undergoing assessment over the coming weeks. Looking to help those facing imminent risks, and open to those who haven’t received funding in previous rounds, grants from this rolling programme are protecting jobs by saving important arts and cultural organisations.
Providing access to emergency funding throughout the winter period, the Emergency Resource Support programme will be reopened. This will give more applicants at imminent risk of financial failure an opportunity to bid for support, protecting even more organisations so that they can continue to create jobs and contribute to the economy. The application window will reopen next week.
Organisations receiving funding in London as part of today’s announcement include:
£71,379 for Little Angel Theatre
Little Angel Theatre is a puppet theatre for children and their families based in the London Borough of Islington. It produces shows that play in-house and tour nationally to venues across the UK., as well as delivering imaginative education and participatory activities in their venues, in schools and in community settings – with the aim of breaking down barriers to arts engagement.
£109,364 for Criterion Theatre Trust
The Criterion Theatre has been delivering productions and inspiring audiences in the West End for 147 years. It’s been known for award-winning performances such as The Comedy About A Bank Robbery and The 39 Steps. In addition to its cultural offer for audiences, the theatre is committed to nurturing creative careers and provides free access to the venue for writers, actors, directors and producers to develop and showcase their work.
£115,000 for Reprezent
Based in Brixton, Reprezent is a youth-culture platform whose flagship programme, Reprezent 107.3FM, broadcasts to over 2.3 million people a year. The Radio is committed to delivering award-winning artist development training for local young people – with alumni including Stormzy and J Hus.
£75,787 for Electric Ballroom
Electric Ballroom is an iconic music venue at the heart of Camden Town’s bustling community. For the last 80 years, the family-owned venue has attracted top musical talent from all over the world, such as The Vaccines, The Killers, Kaiser Chiefs and more.
£86,000 for Omnibus Theatre
Omnibus Theatre is an award-winning South London theatre founded in 2013 after a community-led campaign to save the Old Clapham Library, a public building since 1889. In addition to a thriving programme of theatre productions, the theatre runs free and accessible participatory opportunities for the local community.
£450,000 for London Transport Museum
London Transport Museum tells the history of the London transport network through its collection of quirky objects that promise a memorable day out for the whole family. Their collection tells the story of the world’s first mass produced motor bus, the first underground railway and the first electric Tube. It includes design icons: the Tube Map, Black Cab, and Routemaster bus, and a world leading collection of poster art and urban design.
Culture Secretary, Nadine Dorries, said:
“Culture is for everyone and should therefore be accessible to everyone, no matter who they are and where they’re from.
“Through unprecedented government financial support, the Culture Recovery Fund is supporting arts and cultural organisations so they can continue to bring culture to communities the length and breadth of the country, supporting jobs, boosting local economies and inspiring people.”
