Third round of Culture Recovery fund to secure future of thousands of organisations
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has announced details on the final £300 million of the Government’s record-breaking £2 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) to support organisations in the run up to fuller reopening and beyond.
This third and final round of funding will provide further support as the cultural, heritage and creative sectors move towards reopening at full capacity, underlining the government’s commitment to help them build back better as life returns to normal.
Almost £220 million of this funding will be available to boost organisations that have received Culture Recovery Fund grants already - through the Culture Recovery Fund: Continuity Support programme - while also providing funding to those that haven’t, and are at imminent risk of failure, through the Culture Recovery Fund: Emergency Resource Support programme.
Funding will be distributed by Arms Length Bodies, including the Arts Council, protecting organisations around the country for future generations. The aim of the funding is to help organisations prepare to reopen and return to full capacity, while building a sustainable financial future by providing much needed support through to the end of the year.
The Culture Recovery Fund package has already provided £1.2 billion to more than 5,000 organisations and sites across the country, protecting an estimated 75,000 jobs and supporting almost 100,000 freelancers.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: “Our record breaking Culture Recovery Fund has already helped thousands of organisations across the country to survive and protected hundreds of thousands of jobs. Now, as we look forward to full reopening, this funding shows our commitment to stand behind culture and heritage all the way through the pandemic.
“This round of funding will provide a further boost to help organisations build back better and ensure we can support more of those in need - safeguarding our precious culture and heritage, and the jobs this supports.”
Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair, Arts Council England, said: “The Culture Recovery Fund has been a lifeline for the sector throughout the pandemic, and has saved hundreds of cultural organisations across the country from collapse. Creativity and culture will be an essential part of our efforts to rebuild after the pandemic, and we’re extremely grateful for the Government’s continued support to help organisations reopen and play their part in the national recovery.”
Tamara Rojo CBE, Artistic Director, English National Ballet said: “The Culture Recovery Fund has been a life saver for many arts organisations. As we finally approach the full reopening of our sector, the final tranche of Culture Recovery Fund support will be vital in getting us all back to creating and performing, and all this means for the creative workforce, our audiences and the role that we know the arts will play in bringing us all back together.”
Abigail Pogson, Managing Director, Sage Gateshead said: “Sage Gateshead has already gratefully received vital financial support from the Culture Recovery Fund. This support, alongside generous philanthropy, has helped us survive a crisis situation. We were delighted to welcome audiences back into our building this month, but while we and so many others still operate at hugely reduced capacity, it is clear that it will take many months, if not years, for the sector to recover. Music and culture can play a vital role in supporting social, education and economic recovery across the country and helping people and communities heal, and we warmly welcome further investment to make this happen.”
Tom Morris, Artistic Director, Bristol Old Vic said: “In what has been a devastating year for our sector and those that work within it, we are delighted to hear about the third round of the Culture Recovery Fund. Whatever your politics, there can be no doubt of the Government’s commitment to protect and invest in creativity and the creative industries which have so much to offer every community in the country. We at Bristol Old Vic are profoundly grateful for that support and look forward to an ongoing constructive dialogue with the Government about how we can build on that investment in future years, to rebuild our national economy, to help us all to understand the extraordinary impact of COVID and to build a fairer, more representative and more sustainable world in its wake.”
Guidance and information on how to apply to the Emergency Resource Support programme will be shared very soon, keep an eye on our feeds for updates.
Further details on the Continuity Support progamme will be shared later in the summer.
