Budget’s extra funding for arts and culture gives hope to Sheffield venues hit by pandemic: ‘We look forward to hearing more’

Rishi Sunak said today that £700 million would be made available for arts, culture and sports, as venues reopen later this year according to the dates set out in the Government’s roadmap to easing lockdown restrictions.

This involves adding more than £300 million to the £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund launched last year.

In addition, the furlough scheme will carry on paying 80 per cent of workers’ salaries until the end of September and grants for self-employed people have been extended for months too.

Kim Streets, chief executive of Museums Sheffield which runs Weston Park Museum, the Graves Gallery and the Millennium Gallery, said: “The pandemic has had a huge impact on cultural organisations across the UK and beyond. With our doors closed for months at a time, museums and galleries have lost vital income from the sales in our shops and cafes, the commercial hire of our spaces and the generous donations of our visitors.

"The support from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Arts Council England through the Culture Recovery Fund has been critical in helping us navigate this incredibly challenging period and we look forward to hearing more about the additional support outlined by the Chancellor in his budget announcement.”

Dan Bates, chief executive of Sheffield Theatres which operates the Crucible, the Studio and the Lyceum, said: “I’m pleased to hear that there’s further provision in the budget for arts, culture and heritage, as well as an extension to the support for freelancers who make up such a huge proportion of the sector’s workforce.

"This support is vital as we navigate the coming months and, we hope, begin welcoming audiences back.

“The Government's road map is helpful, but it remains unclear when we'll be able to welcome full audiences back across all three theatres, and until that time we’ll need to draw on all possible sources of support. This means that extension of the furlough scheme and business rate support will make a crucial difference to us.”

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