Emergency Covid-19 cash help for ‘flagship cultural venues’

Emergency funding of £1m is being given to the V&A in Dundee to help it deal with the impact of coronavirus.

The move is part of a package of financial aid for “flagship cultural venues” in Scotland, with the Burrell Renaissance Project in Glasgow – which aims to revitalise the museum and safeguard its collection – being awarded £750,000.

Capital Theatres, which operates the Festival Theatre, the King’s Theatre and The Studio in Edinburgh, will receive £500,000, on top of £250,000 it has already been awarded through the Performing Arts Venue Relief Fund.

The latest funding from the Scottish Government is part of efforts to support the culture and heritage sectors, with almost £98m of emergency cash allocated so far.

Announcing the latest cash awards, culture secretary Fiona Hyslop said: “Culture is vitally important to all of our lives, and the Scottish Government is determined to do everything within our powers to see the sector through this crisis.

“This includes providing financial support to our flagship cultural venues, as well as the work already under way to help smaller organisations and individuals within the culture sector.

“This latest funding announcement brings the Scottish Government’s total Covid-19 support package for our culture and heritage sectors to just under £98m.

“We know further support will still be needed, and the major issues presented by the pandemic are not going away, which is why we will continue to work in partnership with the sector to support them to not only survive the pandemic but to thrive in future.”

Fiona Gibson, chief executive of Capital Theatres, said the emergency funding was “greatly appreciated” and would be a “short-term financial lifeline”.

She said: “We would very much like to thank the Scottish Government for their support and recognition, acknowledging the crucial contribution our theatres provide to the local, national and cultural sector economies. This will enable us to continue supporting our core staff, freelancers and communities alike.”