The Arts Council of Wales has today announced the launch of a Resilience Fund to help the arts in Wales to protect themselves against the impact of the Coronavirus/Covid‑19 crisis.
The headlines are:
- A £7m Resilience Fund jointly financed by the Welsh Government and Arts Council of Wales, with £5.1m from National Lottery sources
- Funding for individuals and organisations
- Managed by the Arts Council of Wales
- Further details to be published on Tuesday 7 April 2020
Speaking today, Arts Council of Wales Chair, Phil George said:
“The Arts have always provided enjoyment and solace, especially in times of crisis. They are sorely missed in a world confined to self‑isolation and will be hugely important in the period of recovery from this grim pandemic. It’s therefore essential that we do everything possible to ensure that artists and arts organisations survive and regain their position at the heart of Wales’s culture and well‑being”
“Through the Arts Resilience Fund, £7m of funding will be available for those organisations and individuals who are at the most urgent risk. Our first task is to address immediate financial crisis and hardship.
“We have already relaxed funding requirements for organisations and individuals who have grant funding in place, allowing them to respond flexibly to the new challenges that they face. But today we go further. The Arts Resilience Fund will bridge the gap between immediate crisis and a future of new creative activity post‑Coronavirus, a future which is already stirring in the imaginations of our inventive artistic community.”
Outlining the next steps, Nick Capaldi, Chief Executive of Arts Council of Wales said:
“The Arts Resilience Fund joins the packages of funding previously announced by the UK and Welsh Governments. Our immediate task is to ensure that the opportunities offered by this unprecedented range of support are clear and easily understood and we’re working round the clock to finalise the practical detail. We know that those working in the arts are anxious for firm detail, but we hope that they’ll feel that the arts in Wales are best served by taking a day or two longer to get this right. We’ll provide details of the Fund on Tuesday 7 April.”
Nick Capaldi concluded by saying:
“In spite of the unimaginable stresses and strains that we’re feeling, artists have once again responded inventively to the challenge of the time. Within a matter of days, online platforms were alive with imaginative responses from publicly funded cultural organisations in Wales. We’re seeing live‑streamed concerts and readings, artists and musicians running online clubs and choirs, and dance organisations live‑streaming classes to their students. The irrepressible creative spirit of artists and arts organisations refuses to be undimmed. And it’s this that we’re working so hard to protect.”