01/03/2010
The Arts Council today announced its annual allocation of grants to arts organisations across Northern Ireland, to fund their running costs in the year ahead. 97 arts organisations will receive a total of £9.9 million through the Arts Council’s ‘Annual Support for Organisations Programme’.
Applications to the Arts Council’s annual funding programme totalled £13.2 million, against an available fund of £9.9 million. 118 organisations applied for funding, of which 97 were successful. Most (70%) remain on standstill funding. All applicants are eligible to apply for support through the Arts Council’s lottery funded programme which opens in March.
These grants, which make up the bulk of Arts Council spending each year, are paid for through the Arts Council’s annual grant from the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL). Following Government spending cuts across all departments, DCAL, the second hardest-hit department, is expected to reduce the Arts Council’s anticipated budget by £1.1 million*. This leaves £13.7 million** across our funding programmes to support the network of artists, arts organisations and venues.
Arts Council Chairman, Rosemary Kelly, OBE, said:
“The £1.1 million reduction to the Arts Council leaves us with the task of spreading an already overstretched budget ever thinner. With demand significantly outstripping our available resources, we are left with a shortfall of £3.32 million between requests and available budget and an uphill struggle to provide a basic level of funding to our major arts organisations. The Arts Council is responsible for taking a strategic overview of the needs of the sector and in order to preserve a degree of stability across the sector as a whole, we have to make difficult strategic decisions. That means careful prioritising of funds to protect the most vulnerable organisations and asking those less dependent on the Arts Council to seek additional support from other sources.”
Arts organisations in Northern Ireland provide a wide range of services to the public, including important community regeneration projects and valuable work in schools, healthcare environments and areas of social and economic deprivation. The value of this commitment cannot be underestimated, particularly set against Northern Ireland’s long-held position at the bottom of the league of arts funding in the UK and Ireland.
To view the 2010/2011 ASOP awards (Excel) click here. To view as PDF click here.
* On the basis of the Comprehensive Spending Review 2008-2011 the Arts Council had anticipated an uplift of £1.5million in 2010/11 to meet the addition pressures on the arts budget. The reduction of £1.1million reduces the 2010 uplift to £400,000.
** This budget figure excludes Lottery income which the Arts Council administers
