Unions have expressed concerns over the permanent closure of a Glasgow arts charity, for which a liquidator has been appointed.
After a temporary closure last year, public body Creative Scotland announced on 30 January that Glasgow’s Centre for Community Arts (CCA) charity would be placed into administration.
Creative Scotland, which distributes Scottish government and National Lottery funding, said the CCA will no longer operate after it failed to show its “ongoing viability”.
In its announcement, Creative Scotland said it aimed to re-open the centre as a cultural resource.
On 6 February, a provisional liquidator was appointed to the CCA and on the same day the charity’s registered address of 350 Sauchiehall Street was changed.
The Scottish Artists Union (SAU), in a public statement, said it was “deeply concerned” by the “unexpected” liquidation of the CCA, which it said was “preceded by systemic failures in governance and risk management.”
“It is appalling that one of Creative Scotland’s leading multi-year funded organisations was so lacking in financial oversight,” it said.
“As Scotland’s national arts funder and the owner of the CCA building, Creative Scotland has both the power and the responsibility to determine what happens next.”
Meanwhile, Unite Hospitality union recently told the BBC that CCA’s staff were “deeply concerned” about how the decision to close was being handled.
“There is currently significant uncertainty around notice, pay, employment protections, and access to HR or pastoral support,” it said.
‘Significant financial risk’
In the CCA’s financial report for the year ending 31 March 2024, it stated that the charity applied for £4.5m in multi-year funding for 2025-2028 to meet its “increased running costs”.
Creative Scotland said the CCA was successful in its application for three years of funding and was awarded £832,000 in 2025-26.
Some £1.28m was planned for 2026-27 and 2027-28 to support its programme of creative activity, the organisation said.
CCA’s 2023-24 report, its most recent, states: “During the financial year, CCA faced significant financial risk and volatility.
“Due to increased and extraordinary costs, reserves were utilised in the year to ensure the viability of the organisation.”
It used its reserves built up through 2021-2022 from Covid recovery funds after a “controlled loss” in 2023-2024.
The report added that cash reserves were used to address the increased costs which resulted in “higher risk” to the CCA.
Its total income for 2023-24 was £1.37m, down from £1.43m the year prior, with its expenditure exceeding this at £1.64m.
As of 2023-24, CCA employed 39 staff. This includes eight freelance installation technicians and six freelance technical staff to provide sound and AV services for live events.
An additional six freelance front-of-house and box office staff were hired to assist with the delivery of festivals and events.
Petition launched
A day after the closure was announced, a petition was created to save the CCA and it has garnered over 2,000 signatures so far.
In it, author Ali Hassan called on Creative Scotland and the Scottish government to take urgent action to save the centre.
Hassan wrote: “Creative Scotland plays a crucial role in public cultural funding and responsibility.
“We strongly urge you to explore all possible alternatives to liquidation, including emergency intervention, restructuring or collaborative solutions.”
The author also commented on 3 February that he had sent a letter to members of the Scottish parliament and ministers to criticise the decision to close the CCA, which he claimed was made by just two board members.
