Theatres Trust Supports 7 Theatres Through Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities Grant Scheme

Theatres Trust, the national advisory and advocacy body for theatres, has announced the second round of grants to be awarded through its Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities programme. 

The seven theatres to receive a share of the £57,850 fund are Amulet Theatre, Shepton Mallet; The Groundlings Theatre Trust, Portsmouth; Hulme Hippodrome, Manchester; Leith Theatre; Netherton Arts Centre, Dudley; Ramsbottom Coop Hall; Spilsby Sessions House.  The theatres are all on the Theatres at Risk Register 2024, published by Theatres Trust in January, and are at various stages in their journey to revival.

The grant programme aims to help the restoration, reopening or revitalising process for Theatres at Risk through funding expert support with focuses on increasing organisational resilience, improving skills and engaging more people with heritage projects.  Work funded in this round includes fundraising and business planning strategies, community engagement and outreach, conditions surveys and an oral history project. 

Jon Morgan, Director at Theatres Trust says, Theatres Trust believes that every theatre on our Theatres at Risk Register has the potential to be brought back into use for its community with the right support.  We are delighted to be able to award these grants, which will enable meaningful progress on the journey to resilience.

Funded thanks to a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund as well as funding from the Pilgrim Trust and Swire Charitable Trust, Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities aims to reduce the threat to At Risk theatres and strengthen the theatre sector’s resilience as it recovers from the pandemic and deals with the challenges of the cost-of-living crisis and difficult funding landscape.

Stuart McLeod, Director England – London & South at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: It’s fantastic that the second round of theatres that will benefit from this support has been announced. Our theatres are integral to our communities, but they’ve had to deal with unprecedented challenges in recent years.  We want to support the UK’s heritage to adapt and thrive with these challenges and this programme offers theatres a chance to do just that.  The legacy of this will be felt for many years to come.

Sue Bowers, Director of the Pilgrim Trust says, The strength of community action to save these remarkable theatres at risk shines through these projects, and the Pilgrim Trust is delighted to support this vital support programme.