Local organisations awarded culture funding

Darnhill Festival is organised by Cartwheel Arts

Two local organisations are amongst 40 organisations set to receive more than £13m from the latest round of Greater Manchester’s Culture Fund, boosting arts, culture and creativity across the region.

Locally, Cartwheel Arts and English Folk Expo have been awarded funding, alongside a range of organisations from world-renowned cultural institutions to small publishers, and from major festivals to local dance companies.

This year’s recipients reflect a growing recognition of the role that arts, culture and creativity can play in the vibrancy and economic prosperity of our places and the good health and wellbeing of people.

English Folk Expo supports the English folk, roots and acoustic music sector through showcases, artist and industry development, live events, commissions and other initiatives, whilst Cartwheel Arts promotes social inclusion, cohesion, diversity and regeneration through community participation in arts projects.

Cartwheel will receive £99,000 over three years, which will be primarily used to resource the Art for Wellbeing programme, providing tailored creative activities to children, young people and adults at all stages of life, from early-years creative sessions with refugee and asylum-seeking families, to enhancing creativity within schools and the local youth provision, to engaging adults who experience mental ill-health, poverty and racial inequalities.

Hebe Reilly, director at Cartwheel Arts, said: “We are delighted to have received this funding from GMCA, and excited about the creative work it will enable us to deliver with local communities, support local artists and work with our partners to develop high-quality creative activity that contributes to improved health and wellbeing in the region.”

Tom Besford, of English Folk Expo, said: “We're incredibly grateful to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority for continuing to support us with cultural funding.

“It's tougher than ever for small arts charities like ours and this support directly sustains jobs and promotes economic growth across the city region. This grant has been essential to delivering our programmes across Greater Manchester for the past few years and we look forward to continuing our programmes which support people to build sustainable careers in our independent and specialist genre.”

Councillor Neil Emmott, Greater Manchester’s culture lead and leader of Rochdale Borough Council, said: “This year’s Culture Fund grants will be supporting a whole host of inspiring and impactful cultural organisations across Greater Manchester.

“The 40 groups and organisations receiving funding range from the globally renowned to the locally treasured, but they all play a crucial role in our cultural ecosystem and contribute to our vision of a city-region where everyone has access to high quality culture and leisure opportunities.”