Winners and losers in £200m Creative Scotland funding deal
The public body that supports the arts and creative industries in Scotland has revealed which applicants will receive long-awaited funding. The Scottish government says 251 organisations will share more than £200m from Creative Scotland over three years in a "transformational" deal. Is this truly transformational for recipients, or simply a step in the right direction?
The announcement is certainly significant for the organisations that are now part of Creative Scotland's multi-year funding programme.Talked about since 2018, under way since 2023, and delayed on several occasions while the arms length body wrestled with the Scottish government over exactly how much money they had to distribute.While the government has kept its promise of substantial extra funding, the spread of projects, the fact this is the first increase in many years, and the current economic climate means few of the applicants will any be any better off than they were in 2018.Wigtown Book Festival's allocation of £111,800 for year one restores their public sector funding to 2018 levels taking into account inflation.The advantage of the new system is that it rises to £138,550 per annum for the following two years as well as giving them the stability and certainty of a three-year arrangement.
As ever, demand outweighed resources. There were 500 initial enquiries about the fund, before the final 251 made it through the arduous application process.A hundred and forty one of those are new to long term funding. Many of them are community based -North Edinburgh Arts, Govanhill Baths and Birnam Arts as well as Birks Cinema in Aberfeldy and the Belmont in Aberdeen. Their grants - while smaller than many established organisations - will allow them to plan ahead and harness their communities with a new level of certainty.The spread of genres and geography is impressive, and in part thanks to a sustained campaign to value the arts in Scotland.
The tensions between the cabinet secretary and Creative Scotland, which led to the closure of the open fund in August last year, may have lessened but they're not over.A review of the body's funding processes, ordered last year after a row over a grant awarded to an explicit art project, is about to get under way.There are of course casualties. Fifteen organisations including Cumbernauld Theatre had their applications turned down. The only previously regularly funded organisation on the list, it released a statement staying it was "heartbroken" by the decision and called on the community to "Fight for the future of the theatre."Creative Scotland wouldn't give details about the reason for their rejection but said there would be further talks to consider alternative support.
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