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Arts Council cuts funding to more than 200 organisations

Fundraising | Celina Ribeiro | 31 Mar 2011

The impact of the government’s cuts to the Arts Council budget has now been felt by arts organisations themselves, with 206 previously-funded organisations losing out in the funders’ latest round.

In total there will be 154 fewer organisations funded as part of the Arts Council national portfolio in the coming funding year, down to 695 from 849 previously, as the Council says it is trying to build a resilient arts sector as opposed to invoking “equal cuts for all”.

One hundred and ten organisations will be receiving Arts Council national portfolio funding for the first time while some organisations have seen their funding double or more.

For many organisations which have been retained as national portfolio partners, they have been forced to suffer cuts – in one case of up to 69 per cent. The impact of these reductions is likely to be significant. Even for successful London-based theatre companies Council funding represented a significant income stream, such as in the case of the Almeida Theatre Company which received a 39 per cent cut in its Arts Council grant, which had accounted for a quarter of its annual income.

Last year the government announced a 29.6 per cent drop in funding to the Arts Council; with this funding round the Council has reduced its grants budget by 14.9 per cent.

Dame Liz Forgan, chair of Arts Council England, said: “This is about a resilient future for the arts in England. We have taken the brave path of strategic choices not salami slices which has meant some painful decisions, and it is with great regret that we have had to cease funding some good organisations.

Dame Forgan said that the funder’s “ten-year shared vision for the arts” was critical in making the funding decisions.

But while the Arts Council is coping with government cuts, it is looking forward to a marked increase in Lottery income (which cannot substitute its national portfolio funding). Via the Lottery funding, which will grow from £149m in the financial year just ending to £223m in 2014/2015, theCouncil has designated £18m to assist touring organisations, created a £10.5m programme to target children and young people and assigned £12m for small organisations.

Alan Davey, chief executive of the Council, said: “With the help of Lottery income, for which we are grateful, we're alive and kicking. But we do regret that we have been unable to fund perfectly good organisations, and I know this will be taken hard by those affected.

“After a thorough process, we believe we have achieved a balance of continuity and change, and of local and national.”  
The Council will be trying to get more impact for their pounds; over the next six months it will be meeting with national portfolio partners to identify ‘Leadership’ organisations which will be tasked with sharing expertise – such as fundraising etc – with other smaller organisations to help build capacity. 

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