By Eric King-
Innovative cultural projects, libraries, museums and creative industries are to benefit from £250m of new funding for the culture and creative sector, the Culture Secretary announced today.
Of this new funding over £125m will be invested in regional museums and libraries around the country, the Department Of Culture has said. The Department said that more than £90m will be provided to extend the Cultural Development Fund which uses investment in heritage, culture and creativity to drive regeneration and growth.
A further £18.5 million has been allocated to York’s National Railway Museum, and an extra £7 million for Coventry and the UK City of Culture programme.
In total, over the next 5 years, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will invest an additional £50 million each year in culture and the creative industries across England to revitalise existing assets and to support new cultural development.
Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan said:
Creative and cultural institutions are at the heart of our communities. The Cultural Investment Fund is the Government’s biggest ever single investment in cultural infrastructure, local museums and neighbourhood libraries and will benefit communities across the country. This will help drive growth, rejuvenate high streets and attract tourists to our world-class cultural attractions.
The CIF will provide funding for a wide range of projects, including:
Extending the Cultural Development Fund for another 5 years with over £90m of funding, which will enable more than 20 places across the country to transform their local cultural and creative industry infrastructure.
Kickstarting the transformation of the National Railway Museum, including new gallery and exhibition spaces, improved accessibility and the restoration of heritage buildings. The museum will become the cultural hub of York Central – the redevelopment of the largest city centre brownfield site in Europe – projected to include 6,500 high-value jobs, and up to 2,500 new homes.
Major infrastructure and maintenance work at local and regional museums across the country, safeguarding precious collections and local landmarks and increasing opportunities for commercial and community use.
This will help realise one of the key recommendations of the Mendoza review about how the government can better support the sustainability of the sector in England.
Upgrading buildings and technology so public libraries across England are better placed to respond to the changing ways people are using them.
Additional support for UK City of Culture 2021 to transform Coventry, unlocking £37m of additional funding and over £107m of tourism impacts.
The £250 million investment will be delivered by DCMS, with Arts Council England (ACE) having a key role in distributing the fund. Both the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England will also play important roles, particularly in the delivery of the museums maintenance fund.