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Business News Live Business Management & Funding
The Macbeth among the first to benefit from new funding for grassroots venues
By Chris Cooke | Published on Tuesday 17 September 2019
London venue The Macbeth has been confirmed as one of the first recipients of a grant under the grassroots venue centric funding scheme launched by Arts Council England at The Great Escape back in May.
That new funding scheme saw ACE ring-fence £1.5 million of the monies available via its National Lottery project grants scheme to support grassroots music venues. It has collaborated with the Music Venue Trust on the programme, which has in turn been offering advice and support to venues wanting to apply for the funds.
Confirming that his venue’s application for £15,000 in funding had been successful, The Macbeth’s Mark Robinson said: “The last ten years have been incredibly challenging. We know that hundreds of venues across the country were forced out of business and we really struggled to get through very tough times. This turns a corner for us, with a grant that will enable us to support and develop our programme”.
“Arts Council England funding really puts us on the map as not just a great night out, but also a culturally important space that really matters to artists and to audiences”, he noted. “We would like to thank ACE for the opportunity of this fund and to thank Music Venue Trust for all the support they have given us in the last few years. To all the other venues out there thinking about applying: if The Macbeth can do it, you can too”.
ACE’s Head Of Music, Claire Mera Nelson, added: “Arts Council England’s Supporting Grassroots Live Music Fund was created in response to the needs of small venues across the country just like the Macbeth, and we are delighted that they have been successful in obtaining a grant to support a developing and expanding programme”
Speaking for the Music Venue Trust, Mark Davyd said: “This is another huge step in recognising the cultural value of our grassroots music venues and we are so delighted it is the Macbeth that is leading the way. Mark and his team at the venue have been through every kind of challenge you can imagine, only recently having to engage again with our emergency response team for support on a licensing review. Their success demonstrates that this really is a fund grassroots music venues can apply to and get support from”.
The Music Venue Trust’s Venues Day event takes place in London next month and further support will be on offer there in relation to the new ACE funding. Davyd adds: “At Venues Day we want to make sure that every venue that wants to make an application has the skills and the opportunity to do so”.
