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The Paul Hamlyn Foundation increased the value of its grant-giving by 46% to £12.6m in 2005/06. During the course of that year, 294 awards were made, with £4.9m being awarded to the arts  an increase of 60% over the previous year.

Newcastle Playhouse has re-opened as the new Northern Stage, following a £9m re-development. The old main house and studio have been joined together to create a space which can be used in-the-round or in traverse, but can also be separated into two independent stages. All performances in Stage 2 will be free of charge, with audiences encouraged to make a donation.

An artist-led professional development agency has launched a portrait lottery where, using a text costing £1.50, the public can enter a draw to win a portrait by BP Portrait Artist of the Year Nominee Helen Masacz. The initiative has been supported by Unltd, the Foundation for Social Entrepreneurs, as a mechanism for the organisation, Arts Corp International, to prove a market model and develop unrestricted income. 50% of all income will be paid into an artists commissioning fund and the maximum number of tickets that can be sold is 20,000.
w: http://www.artscorpinternational.com

An organisational development agency for the cultural sector is being launched in the East Midlands to give support to not-for-profit organisations and act as a bridge with the commercial and public sectors. Known as Cultivate, the new organisation will be funded in the first instance by Arts Council England, and Vanessa Rawlings-Jackson has been appointed as its Chief Executive.
w: http://www.cultivate-em.com

Makers in Focus, a report exploring the needs of makers in the West Midlands region, has been co-published by Arts Council England, West Midlands and the University of Wolverhampton. The report shares the findings of a survey into the working environment of designer makers, craftspeople and applied artists at different stages in their careers, and aims to provide evidence in support of a regional strategy for professional development.
w: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/publications

A new guide is being developed in a collaboration between Staffordshires Councils and Staffordshire University, to help organisations and individuals thinking of using the arts as a method of gathering consultation data. The Toolkit Project will highlight two case studies to provide models of good practice, demonstrating how the arts can be used as a tool for consulting with hard-to-reach groups and tackling social exclusion issues. For more details, contact: Nancy Gillio-Terry.
e: [email protected]

A study to research the profile of arts attenders has found that those who attend with others but do not purchase their own tickets are very similar in profile to those who make the bookings, and that walk-up bookers account for only 2% of all box office transactions. The study was undertaken as part of the ADUK programme of work exploring data and its use in the arts sector.
w: http://www.aduk.org/report_detail.asp?reportno=6

An initiative to integrate culture into the regeneration and growth of the Thames Gateway in North Kent has been launched with the publication of a Cultural Framework and Toolkit. The project is a Government-backed pilot for cultural planning in growth areas such as the Thames Gateway, and aims to provide inspiration to planners facing the challenges of providing up to 50,000 new homes and 80,000 extra jobs in the area. The Framework will be hosted online at the South East Cultural Observatory.
w: http://www.seco.org.uk

Setbacks in the £12m capital development programme at Coventrys Belgrade Theatre have led to a decision to cancel this years pantomime and postpone the re-opening of the theatre. Discussions are ongoing with suppliers involved in the project, with the aim of re-opening in 2007.

Business West and Culture South West have launched a Creative Enterprise Gateway which will bring together different agencies to offer a single contact point for any creative business looking for information, support and business advice tailored to their needs. The work will be delivered by Business West across the South West, and the South West of England Regional Development Agency is investing £230,000 in it over two years.
t: 0845 077 0728; w: http://www.creativesouthwest.info; e: [email protected]

A £180,000 fund has been launched by the Welsh Assembly Government to promote music activities in the 142 most disadvantaged communities in Wales. Community and voluntary organisations will be able to bid for the extra cash to support extra-curricular music activities in Communities First areas, and the one-year pilot fund will be administered by the Welsh Council for Voluntary Action. For further information contact the Community First Helpline.
t: 0800 587 8898; e: [email protected];
w: http://www.comunitiesfirst.info