- Over £400,000 is being provided to help iconic cultural and heritage organisations in Burnley and Padiham reopen and recover.
- Across the country, more than 2,700 culture and heritage organisations and independent cinemas are being supported to survive and thrive with nearly £400 million.
- This is part of the unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund, worth almost £2 billion, the largest one-off investment in the arts in our history.
Antony Higginbotham MP has welcomed the announcement that Burnley and Padiham will receive a further £415,456 to support iconic cultural and heritage organisations as they reopen and recover from coronavirus. Organisations such as Burnley Youth Theatre, Burnley Leisure which runs the Mechanics and the Rachel Shuttleworth Textile Collection at Gawthorpe Hall are set to benefit along with others within the borough.
This is part of £400 million in grants and loans being delivered to over 2,700 organisations across England, to help cultural and heritage organisations reopen and thrive in the better times ahead.
Back in November last year over £600,000 was allocated to cultural assets within Burnley and Padiham so with this new tranche of funding the Government has invested over £1 million in iconic locations throughout the borough since the pandemic began.
Nearly all of the original £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund has now been allocated, and with the Chancellor announcing a further £300 million boost for the Fund at last month’s Budget, it takes direct government investment in the sector since the start of the pandemic to almost £2 billion across the Country.
Commenting, local MP Antony Higginbotham said:
The past year has had a devastating impact on cultural and heritage organisations in our borough, so it is fantastic news that over £400,000 is being provided to support our local cultural centres like Burnley Youth Theatre and the Mechanics.
I’m really excited that as we set out on our cautious roadmap to reopening up this sector, we’ll soon be able to enjoy these amazing institutions once again, and I’m delighted that the support is being put in place to help them thrive in the future.
I’ll continue to make the case that we protect these valued organisations as I have been doing over the past 12 months.
Oliver Dowden, Culture Secretary, said:
Our record breaking Culture Recovery Fund has already helped thousands of culture and heritage organisations across the country survive the biggest crisis they've ever faced.
Now we’re staying by their side as they prepare to welcome the public back through their doors - helping our cultural gems plan for reopening and thrive in the better times ahead.
