80m handed out in penultimate recession awards
The Leicester Theatre Trust, which runs The Curve, opened 18 months ago at a cost of £61m, has got the largest award in the penultimate Arts Council Sustain awards, with £1.03m over the next two years to help the deal with cash flow probl,ms and maikntain quality dstandards after losses in box office and ghrants fropm tirsts and foundastions.
The Roundhouse in London, which re-opened in 2006 after a £30m refurbishment and redevelopment, is awarded £800.000.
Sustain was set up last year by ACE with lottery money to provide a quick and strategic response for arts organisations effected by the economic downturn, and ensure that artistic excellence does not decline. It was closed for new applications in October.
The seventh awards are worth around £8 million, with 27 arts organisations getting grants ranging down to £77,000. It brings the total handed out so far to £41m, and there are 13 more applications to be considered, asking for a total of £6m.
Other institutions and venues which have benefited this time include the Brighton Dome (£611,700); Nottingham Contemporary (£594,000); • Whitechapel Gallery, (£480,000); Royal Court Theatre (£454,000); West Yorkshire Playhouse (£424,710); Hall for Cornwall (£416,500); City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (£388,000), which has been hit by a lack of development and touring income; the Norfolk and Norwich Festival (£330,00); Derby Quad (£260,000); FACT, Liverpool (£233,500); Warwick Arts Centre (£215,000); Customs House Trust, South Shields (£179,600); Seven Stories, Newcastle upon Tyne (£175,000); Future Everything CIC, Manchester (£150,000); the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra (£150,000); the Lake District Summer Music (£140,000); the Britten Sinfonia (£126,000); the Academy of Ancient Music (£120,000); Milap Festival Trust, Liverpool (£120,000); and the National Centre for Early Music (£120,000); Forma, London (109,800); First Movement, Rowsley (£99,761); TIPP, Manchester (£81,450); Travelling Light Theatre Company, Bristol (£79,439); Natural Theatre Company, Bath (£77,000).
‘Sustain has been crucial in helping over 130 arts organisations weather the effects of the recession,’ said ACE chief executive Alan Davey. ‘It’s been a vital interim support, but now is the time to look to the next challenges and ensure that the right conditions are created to maintain artistic excellence in the long-term.
‘We’re determined to build on the successes of recent years to make sure arts organisations can continue to produce groundbreaking work and play a major role in our collective economic future.’
Just over £41 million has now been invested through Sustain, and there are a remaining 13 applications requesting a further £6 million still under consideration. The Arts Council announced in November that they would be committing additional Lottery funds for the Sustain programme so that all remaining applications are assessed fairly against criteria.
