Art and cultural projects in Merseyside have been boosted by more than £2 million in additional funding - with The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic among the biggest winners.
Arts Council England (ACE) has announced annual grants totalling £49.8m to 990 organisations across the nation to enable people to find art and culture on their own doorsteps. In Merseyside that means 27 organisations will receive a total of £11.2m in annual funding between 2023 and 2026 - an increase of £2.1m from the annual award that was made between 2018 and 2022.
The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic has been awarded the biggest grant in Merseyside, of nearly £2.5m, up from £2.3m between 2018 and 2022. That is followed by Liverpool and Merseyside Theatres Trust (£1.7m) and then FACT Liverpool, the cinema and art gallery that regularly shows art-house films.
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The Liverpool Philharmonic told the ECHO the funding allowed the venue to tranform lives. Michael Eakin, Chief Executive of Liverpool Philharmonic, said: "Liverpool Philharmonic is very grateful to Arts Council England for the funding awarded to the organisation as part of the 2023-26 Investment Programme.
"We are pleased that this includes standstill funding for our core work, as well as an additional £200,000 per year for new work in Levelling Up for Culture Places.
"The funding enables Liverpool Philharmonic to continue its mission to enhance and transform lives through the work of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, our broad and diverse concert programme, and an extensive learning programme, including Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Company.
"We are proud to be a key organisation in the world class cultural sector supported by Arts Council England, and to play our full part in broadening the diversity, reach and impact of the arts right across this country."
Meanwhile, the Shakespeare North Trust has been funded for the first time, to the tune of £400,000. Other organisations receiving funding for the first time included Sefton Libraries, Cinder House Publishing Limited, and the art and community centre, Liverpool Lighthouse.
The three organisations to receive the biggest individual funding grants are all in London - the Royal Opera House (£22.3m), the Southbank Centre (£16.8m) and the National Theatre (£16.2m). But all three have seen cuts to their grants this year, with funding for the Royal Opera House slashed by 10.0%, or £2.5m, while the Southbank Centre has lost £1.5m (8.3%) and the National Theatre, £543,084 (3.3%).
And while London is still the biggest beneficiary of Arts Council funding (£151.9m), its share has shrunk from 38.9% of the total amount handed out in 2018, to 34.1% - while the North is now receiving 28.7% of the total pot, up from 26.8% in 2018. An 18.7% share is now going to the Midlands (up from 18.1%), while the South East will receive 10.3% (up from 9.4%) and the South West 8.3% (up from 6.8%).
Opera featured heavily in the list of organisations that saw funding cuts. Funding for the Welsh National Opera was cut by £2.1m (34.7%) to £4.0m, while Lewes-based Glyndebourne Productions saw its grant halved from £1.7m to £800,000, the biggest proportional cut. The Arts Council says its research has shown people want "easy access to meaningful, impactful cultural events and creative activities in the places where they live".
It says its latest round of funding will benefit arts organisations, museums, and libraries in every corner of the country "with a clear focus on ensuring that investment is concentrated in those places that, historically, have been underserved". That includes £43.5m for each of the next three years to 78 towns and cities outside London designated as Arts Council’s "Levelling Up For Culture Places".
Arts Council England Chief Executive, Darren Henley, said: "This is our widest-ever spread of investment across the country, ensuring that many more people will have access to a wider choice of exceptional art, culture and creative opportunities on their doorsteps. We are in tough times but we must remember creativity brings with it extraordinary dividends, boosting our country’s economic growth, creating jobs, bringing communities closer together, and making us happier as individuals. Everyone deserves to enjoy the benefits it brings, and with this investment, we believe we’ve taken a decisive step towards making that vision a reality."
Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan added: "Thanks to this new government funding package, spreading more money to more communities than ever before, people living in areas from Wolverhampton to Wigan and Crawley to Chesterfield will now get to benefit from the deep economic and social rewards culture can bring."
Arts Council of England s uccessful Merseyside grant funding applicants
KEY: Applicant name // Average annual funding 2018-22 // Annual funding 2022-23 (extension year) // Annual funding 2023-2026 // Change in annual funding // Percentage change
- Royal Liverpool Philharmonic // £2,231,646.00 // £2,272,708.00 // £2,472,708.00 // £241,062.00 // 11%
- Liverpool & Merseyside Theatres Trust Ltd // £1,649,977.00 // £1,680,337.00 // £1,680,337.00 // £30,360.00 // 2%
- FACT // £1,005,909.00 // £1,024,418.00 // £1,024,418.00 // £18,509.00 // 2%
- Liverpool Biennial of Contemporary Art Ltd // £788,355.00 // £802,861.00 // £802,861.00 // £14,506.00 // 2%
- The Bluecoat // £486,887.00 // £495,846.00 // £495,846.00 // £8,959.00 // 2%
- Milap Festival Trust // £362,908.00 // £369,586.00 // £477,389.00 // £114,481.00 // 32%
- The Shakespeare North Trust // £0.00 // £0.00 // £400,000.00 // £400,000.00 // New
Merseyside // Heart of Glass // £350,000.00 // £356,440.00 // £356,440.00 // £6,440.00 // 2%
- Royal Court Liverpool Trust // £225,000.00 // £213,864.00 // £333,864.00 // £108,864.00 // 48%
- Unity Theatre // £272,000.00 // £277,005.00 // £277,005.00 // £5,005.00 // 2%
- Open Eye gallery // £242,301.00 // £246,759.00 // £246,759.00 // £4,458.00 // 2%
- DaDaFest // £193,052.00 // £196,604.00 // £246,104.00 // £53,052.00 // 27%
- St Helens Council Library Service // £110,000.00 // £112,024.00 // £236,309.00 // £126,309.00 // 115%
- Africa Oye Limited // £163,449.00 // £166,456.00 // £217,456.00 // £54,007.00 // 33%
- 20 Stories High // £211,905.00 // £215,804.00 // £215,804.00 // £3,899.00 // 2%
- SoundCity // £200,000.00 // £203,680.00 // £203,680.00 // £3,680.00 // 2%
- Liverpool Arab Arts Festival // £110,000.00 // £112,024.00 // £200,912.00 // £90,912.00 // 83%
- Sefton Libraries // £0.00 // £0.00 // £195,000.00 // £195,000.00 // New
- Great Georges Community Cultural Project Ltd // £110,000.00 // £112,024.00 // £194,691.00 // £84,691.00 // 77%
- The Reader // £175,000.00 // £178,220.00 // £178,220.00 // £3,220.00 // 2%
- Cinder House Publishing Limited // £0.00 // £0.00 // £150,000.00 // £150,000.00 // New-
- Future Yard CIC // £0.00 // £0.00 // £150,000.00 // £150,000.00 // New
- One Latin Culture Ltd // £0.00 // £0.00 // £150,000.00 // £150,000.00 // New
- Liverpool Lighthouse // £0.00 // £0.00 // £135,000.00 // £135,000.00 // New
- Homotopia Limited // £100,000.00 // £101,840.00 // £101,840.00 // £1,840.00 // 2%
- Writing on the Wall // £76,661.00 // £78,072.00 // £78,072.00 // £1,411.00 // 2%
- Pagoda Arts // £44,864.00 // £45,689.00 // £50,000.00 // £5,136.00 // 11%
*For more details regarding what the Liverpool Philharmonic does, visit https://www.liverpoolphil.com/about-us/who-we-are/
