Arts Council England confirm additional £1.5m for grassroots music
Arts Council England have confirmed another £1.5million in funding for the grassroots live music industry. The faction of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will protract its Supporting Grassroots Live Music Fund until September 2023.
The fund, courtesy of National Lottery Project Grants, was established in 2019 and has so far invested £7.23 million in 378 projects across England. The fund was initially set to end after the 2022/23 financial year, but ACE has now confirmed a “ring-fenced fund” of £1.5 million made available until September.
After September, National Lottery Project Grants will continue to support the live music sector from a dedicated “ring-fenced priority” fund, which is currently available until September 2025. Arts Council England have reported that, from September, they will monitor National Lottery Project Grants to ensure that at least £1.5 million is spent on venues and promoters until March 2025.
The council has also recently given a grant of £500,000 to Music Venue Properties, created by Music Venue Trust, which will be used to support the administrative costs to the organisation and the acquirement of freehold venues.
Claire Mera-Nelson, director of music at ACE, said: “We recognise the many challenges facing grassroots live music venues in the complexity of the environment in which we invest. I’m full of admiration for the dedicated venue management teams who are working flat out to stay afloat while continuing to bring incredible live music experiences to their communities and providing platforms for emerging artists.
“For independent grassroots music venues and the promoters who work in them, Arts Council England’s Supporting Grassroots Live Music Fund has enabled everything from upgrades to light and sound equipment and the ability to offer free rehearsal spaces and mentoring to artists, to refurbishing bathrooms, improving disabled access and staging family-friendly gigs. We know our support has been especially important as the country has re-emerged from lockdown, allowing venues and promoters to deliver socially distanced and live-streamed performances, connecting artists with their fans at home and providing a lifeline to those who work behind the scenes.
“We had initially indicated that the Supporting Grassroots Live Music Fund would be ending after the 2022/23 financial year; however, the feedback we heard indicated concern that grassroots music venues were no longer a priority for the Arts Council. That just isn’t true: we are committed to supporting the grassroots music sector for the long term”.
“This extension of the Supporting Grassroots Live Music Fund, along with our investment in vital sector-led projects such as Music Venue Trust’s Own Our Venues initiative, will hopefully go some way to securing these cultural assets for future generations and helping rebuild the confidence of the sector.”
Mark Davyd, chief executive and founder of Music Venue Trust, added: “We are delighted that Arts Council England have stepped in to support the Own Our Venues project with such a sizeable grant. Their support means we have not only been able to successfully conclude this project and create a ground-breaking new ownership model, it was also a vital vote of confidence in the initiative at a crucial time.”
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