Caroline has welcomed the Government announcement that 341 organisations across England will receive a share of £35 million in vital support from the Culture Recovery Fund.
This will provide a lifeline for creative and cultural organisations who have found it challenging to recover from the impact of the pandemic including Portsmouth venues the Wedgewood Rooms and Groundlings Theatre who are set to receive £60,253 and £47,000 respectively.
The Culture Recovery Fund package, which Caroline helped secure as Minister of State for Digital and Culture at DCMS from February 2020 until last September, has already provided £1.57 billion to more than 5,000 organisations and sites across the country, protecting an estimated 75,000 jobs and supporting almost 100,000 freelancers.
This funding will help make sure that festival - goers and gig-lovers will be able to once more enjoy the live events that have been on hold over the past two years. This funding will also support community focused creative organisations and projects to continue operating and recovering from the pandemic.
Commenting Caroline said:
“The pandemic has been incredibly difficult for cultural and heritage organisations, and this is just the latest round of funding from the Government to support them to survive.
As a former Minister for Culture, I helped to secure this funding and I am thrilled to see this scheme benefitting so many fantastic organisations.”
Commenting, Arts Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay said:
“Being cut off from them during lockdown has underlined what a vital role cultural organisations play in their community up and down the country. The Government stood by them in the pandemic, and is determined that they should remain open and accessible to everyone - now and for generations to come.”
“I am very proud of the Culture Recovery Fund and the lifeline it has provided for cherished organisations in every part of the country.”
