Theatres Trust Awards £58k In Grants For UK Theatres With The Linbury Trust

Through its partnership with The Linbury Trust, Theatres Trust is awarding £58,060 split between 13 not-for-profit theatres in the second round of its Small Grants Programme. These awards are made as The Linbury Trust confirms the renewal of its funding for the Small Grants Programme, with a further £300,000 committed over the next three years to support the UK's beloved community venues.

Projects funded in this round of grants focus on improving theatres' accessibility and sustainability as well as urgent repairs and maintenance works that are essential to ongoing viability.

Glasgow's Citizens Theatre will install a Changing Places toilet as part of its major redevelopment programme, making the venue accessible to all for the first time in its history. Liverpool's Royal Court will purchase 35 devices to enable people with hearing and visual impairments and who do not have a smartphone access the assistive hearing systems or audio described performances, making productions in main house and studio theatre more accessible. Brookside Theatre in Romford and Seven Dials Playhouse in London will both make improvements to their box offices to be accessible and more welcoming to all audiences.

Omnibus Theatre in Clapham will upgrade its air conditioning and heating unit while Warminster Athenaeum will install a new ventilation system, both projects making the respective venues more comfortable for audiences and performers. Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds will replace its existing downlighters with LED alternatives that meet current safety standards. The Old Library Bodmin will install insulation on the roof its historic building. All of these projects will support the theatres to be more energy efficient and make vital cost savings.

The Garage in Norwich, Hackney Empire and The Robin Hood Theatre in Newark have all been awarded grants to carry out urgent repairs to their building's roof. Newport's Dolman Theatre will install WiFi across the whole building and improve its security system, while Sheppey Little Theatre has secured funding to repair its emergency lighting. These are all essential projects that enable the theatres to remain open and serving their local communities.

Jon Morgan, Director of Theatres Trust, comments, After the pandemic there is a real desire across the theatre sector to 'build back better', to improve accessibility and sustainability and widen reach into communities. Theatres also need to recover from the serous impact of the pandemic on their own operations and support from grant schemes like this are vital in helping them on the road to recovery. Theatres Trust is hugely grateful to The Linbury Trust for committing to a further three years of funding, which will allow us to provide targeted support where it will have the biggest impact.

Stuart Hobley, Director of The Linbury Trust, comments, Congratulations to all the theatres across the UK who will be using these grants to make their spaces more accessible, sustainable and welcoming. We're thrilled to continue our partnership with Theatres Trust. Theatres play such an important role in local economies and, as we emerge from the long shadow of Covid, this funding will support vital improvements to help welcome back audiences, and for neighbourhood theatres to shine.

The next round of the Small Grants Programme supported by The Linbury Trust is now open for applications with a deadline of Tuesday 3rd May 2022.

The first year of the Small Grants Programme has been made possible thanks to the generous support of The Linbury Trust, as well as donations from Judy Craymer CBE and Charles Michael Holloway Charitable Trust. The Linbury Trust has committed to funding the scheme for a further three years, with funding totalling £300,000.