Printworks, Egg London, Studio 338, Oval Space and The Pickle Factory are excluded from the cultural recovery fund.
Some of the venues and nightclubs in London, the capital of England, were excluded from the facility of the government’s funding to relieve the culture and arts ecosystem.
Venues such as Printworks, The Drumsheds, Exhibition, Egg London, Studio 338, Oval Space and The Pickle Factory are just some of them.
The Night Time Industries Association (NTIA), representing more than 200 clubs, businesses and organizations in the UK, made a written statement and emphasized the contribution of the dance music industry to the culture and economy of the country, and stated that they found the decision shocking.
In his statement, Michael Kill, NTIA CEO, concluded that: “shocked and dismayed that some of the key contemporary music venues, events and supply chains have been missed out of the Culture Recovery Fund.”
He also added:
“We have been aware all along that the fund would not be able to support everyone, and will leave many businesses who have missed out on this opportunity awaiting on a perilous cliff edge. But given the significance of some of the businesses that have been left out, we are concerned with regard to eligibility and fair consideration around the types of businesses and the criteria they have been measured against.“
Some of the managers and employees of the venue also dshowed their reactions to the decision with their statements.
Simon Aldred of Printworks questioned the government and Arts Council England’s selection process, asking: “Can someone please help me understand how a company that is privately owned and run by a small team that have built this from scratch with our own money and created as voted by DJs and the audiences some of the most important venues in the UK and possibly the world are not being given even one penny?”
Jo Splain from Oval Space and The Pickle Factory said:
“I am still at a loss as to how our venues have not received any support from the Cultural Recovery Fund. We are renowned for the depth and quality of our events programme and for our importance to a long list of underrepresented communities, movements, artists and creatives with whom we work and welcome on a daily basis. Yes, the ethos behind our programming is most certainly rooted in club culture, and we are proud of this, the celebration of diversity, inclusivity and it’s disruptive nature.
But, if spaces more closely aligned with authentic club culture have for some reason been overlooked by this fund, then there simply must be alternative financial support made available to them. These are the places where groundbreaking artists and creatives first present their work, often years before they achieve mainstream recognition and are recognised as being of cultural importance. The effect of losing venues such as these will damage the cultural landscape of our cities immeasurably and will be felt for generations to come.”
Dan Perrin from Studio 338 expressed his disappointment as follows:
“We were heartbroken to discover that we were not deemed worthy of support by the arts council England. As the biggest nightclub in London and one of the biggest in Europe, this was obviously a shock and something which we find very difficult to understand. The reason given is that they did not feel we are financially viable. Again this is shocking, as before Covid we were widely regarded as one of the most successful venues in the U.K. and will be again if we are supported during this difficult time. We thank the Arts Council for their efforts so far but ask them to rethink this decision. For one venue in London to receive almost a million pounds, an online ticketing website 750k and Studio 338 nothing is a plainly wrong and seems to be based on a competition to see who can write the best proposal as opposed to being a fair system to allow all venues the opportunity to survive this existential threat.”
He continiued:
“Whilst I was delighted to see the likes of the Ministry of Sound and Resident Advisor receive funding, it is clear from my research that the venues and organisations which received support used consultants to complete the paperwork and those which didn’t have this resource or experience of asking for public money were rejected. This is plainly wrong as it means large organisations receive funding whilst independents do not.”
Another venue that shares its reaction to the decision is Egg London. Laurence Malice, the club’s brand manager and creative director took his words: “We are devastated by the news we will not be supported by funding from the Cultural Recovery Fund, Egg London has and always had over the last 17 years a large outreach ethos from setting up workshops with the local council estate projects to show the community that there are other ways to live your life outside of crime. We also have close ties with Central St Martins setting up Exhibitions and Events with the No 1 Arts University in the World.”
A number of venues, festivals, record companies, talent agencies and various music-related organizations in the UK have benefited from support of up to £ 1 million. New recovery funds are expected to continue to be announced in the coming weeks.
