Spalding’s South Holland Centre is to get a grant of nearly £180,000 from the government to keep it going.
Arts Council England has announced it will offer the venue £170,860 of vital support through the DCMS Culture Recovery Fund scheme.
The purpose of the fund is to help maintain England’s cultural ecology by supporting organisations of particular significance in their field or local area, who found themselves at financial risk due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A spokesman for South Holland District Council, who oversee the theatre, said: “One of the key reasons the South Holland Centre was chosen for support was its importance to the local community and its status as the only professional theatre, arts centre or cinema in the district.
“Since lockdown began in March the centre has lost 85 per cent of its usual income, with the Arts Council support providing the time and security for a viable, sustainable and resilient long term future for the venue to be decided upon and prepared.
“Whilst the current national rules make it unviable for the centre to reopen at this time, staff have continued to work to make sure that the necessary upkeep is carried out, whilst also supporting the council’s other services throughout the pandemic in areas such as community outreach, housing and parks and maintenance.”
Coun Gary Taylor, portfolio holder for communities and facilities, said: “I am very grateful to the Arts Council for this show of support to the South Holland Centre and those who work there. 2020 has been an incredibly testing year and the resilience and motivation of the team to keep on going has been great to see.
“This funding provides us with a valuable opportunity to ensure we can make the most appropriate possible plan for the centre going forwards, with the future use of the venue of great importance to the district’s community and sure to form a leading part of the town centre improvement plan for Spalding.”
