Arts Council England (ACE) has defended its investment strategy outside London, with its Chair, Sir Nicholas Serota, highlighting significant funding directed towards the North of England. In a recent letter, Sir Nicholas stated that the region has received more than £40 million from the Arts Everywhere Fund, a programme designed to support arts organisations across the country.
Sir Nicholas's comments come in response to public debate, including letters published on 26 April, which raised concerns about a potential 'arts funding gap' in the North. He acknowledged that the Arts Everywhere Fund was 'heavily oversubscribed', a situation he attributed to the 'acute need for capital' within the arts sector nationally.
The Arts Everywhere Fund is a key initiative by Arts Council England to support infrastructure and development projects for cultural organisations. Its oversubscription underscores the ongoing demand for investment in cultural facilities and programmes beyond the capital, a goal that ACE has consistently articulated as central to its strategy.
While specific details about individual projects funded in the North were not provided in Sir Nicholas's statement, his intervention aims to reassure stakeholders about ACE's commitment to equitable geographical distribution of resources. The debate over arts funding allocation remains a recurring topic, with various Government departments and cultural bodies often scrutinising the balance between London-based institutions and those in other regions of the United Kingdom.