Arts funding

Professional artists will work in classrooms at 11 schools in Northern Ireland as part of two-year programme serving urban areas in Belfast and Londonderry.

Under the scheme, backed with £15,000 of funding from Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Executive Office’s Urban Villages Initiative, each school will devise its own individual project, working with professional artists to help students develop skills such as script writing, musical composition and performance. 

Roisín McDonough, Chief Executive of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, commented: “Since the Creative Schools Partnership Programme was first piloted in 2017, we have seen the enormous impact it has had on participating schools and the individual students who have had the opportunity to take part in projects.

"For many, this creative approach in the classroom has had a long-term educational and social impact, opening up their minds to new creative ways of thinking and learning, as well as building confidence and self-belief."

Seven music projects will receive funding for collaborative commissions that will tour the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

The support comes from the PRS Foundation’s Beyond Borders programme, run in partnership with Creative Scotland, Arts Council of Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Arts Council of Ireland.

Established in 2010, Beyond Borders aims to support co-commissions and tours that “stimulate collaboration between composers, performance groups and music organisations” across the UK and Ireland.

Funded projects in the latest round include a commission for new music performed by brass bands all over the UK commemorating 40 years since the miners' strikes. 

Elizabeth Sills, Grants & Programmes Manager at PRS Foundation, said: “It's great to see the fantastic collaborations between organisations across England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to bring these exciting new music projects from talented music creators to audiences across five nations.  

“I know all the Beyond Borders partners are very much looking forward to each project coming to life next year and seeing the impact these supported projects will have on the music creators, musicians and organisations involved.”

Three towns in North Yorkshire have been awarded £350,000 in funding from Arts Council England (ACE) to stage cultural events over two years.

The BBC reports that the Now Then! project will see arts events and activities staged in Selby, Tadcaster and Sherburn-in-Elmet between April 2024 and March 2026.

North Yorkshire Council's Executive Member for Culture and Leisure Simon Myers said it was an "exciting and ambitious" project that would focus on people's pride in where they live.

"Visitors will see our towns as places of singular cultural experiences, and local people will see where they live through fresh eyes," he said.

In Selby, new commissions will be based in the town's abbey and its surroundings, including music, dance, writing and performance.

In Tadcaster, members of the community arts company ARCADE will work with children and young people to create a programme of new work, while in Sherburn-in-Elmet, the community will select creative practitioners they would like to work with to co-devise and deliver activities there.

The programme has been given a Place Partnership award from ACE through the National Lottery.

Pete Massey, ACE's Director for Northern Economy and Partnerships, said they were delighted to fund the project.

"It's great to see so many partners working collaboratively on a project that will tell the stories of places and people as well as offer children and young people in Selby, Tadcaster and Sherburn the opportunity to get involved and develop their artistic skills," he said.

Almost half of local authorities have made cuts to culture, events and tourism since 2010, according to data gathered by the New Statesman.

Polling of councillors in English local authorities found 45% had made cuts to culture, events and tourism over the period.

That's in addition to the four in 10 that said their council had made cuts to library services in the same period. 

The survey also revealed a quarter of councillors think their council will soon go bankrupt.

The figures come in the wake of several local authorities, including Nottingham, Birmingham and Woking, issuing Section 114 notices, halting non-essential spending.

Last week, Nottingham City Council proposed cutting its entire cultural budget from next year as part of efforts to plug a £50m deficit.

Facing stretched budgets, other councils such as Coventry and Bristol have also proposed reduced cultural spending.

A campaign group hoping to reopen a theatre in Somerset says it has been given backing from the local community.

The BBC reports that Let's Buy The Amulet campaign recently carried out a survey to gauge public opinion on purchasing the Shepton Mallet venues, revealing that the response was "overwhelmingly positive".

The building was used as a theatre after being built in 1974 but went into private ownership in 2011. The campaign group wants it to operate as a museum, theatre, and cinema, as well as host craft markets and art workshops.

Martin Berkeley, from the campaign, said: "We would hope that some shows could still go on there, but its value is as a community centre."

The group is working on an application for funding from the government's Community Ownership Fund, which it hopes to submit in spring 2024.