Get Funding for your Year of Culture Project

There is to be a wide range of local arts and cultural groups have been the recipients of grants from Reading Cultural Partnership as part of the first part of the programme of Reading 2016, Reading’s year of culture. Now, the Partnership would like to invite local groups to bid for funding for Reading 2016 events from April to August.

Reading Borough Council, through Reading Cultural Partnership, has to date provided over £43,000 funding to 21 local cultural groups. Their projects link to Reading 2016’s January theme of ‘Get Fit for Culture’ and March’s ‘Reading 2050’.

Projects funded include:-

• a series of dance workshops organised by Alliance for Cohesion and Racial Equality (Acre) working towards a disability flash mob event in July
• a week of free and low cost access to arts and cultural events led by Readipop including gigs and music workshops
• a day of dance led by Rising Sun Arts Centre
• Culture Mix Arts music workshops for young people celebrating Reading’s diverse cultures
• Beautiful Creatures Theatre working with Launchpad on a special project to work with Reading’s homeless community
• Central Berkshire Business Education Partnership linking young people working in teams with the business community and local artists to develop creative solutions to solve issues that residents and/or businesses might face in 2050
• Real Time Ltd using new technology to share the experiences of young and older residents’ journeys into Reading, creating a time capsule of digital images and oral histories.  

These events are all part of the programme of Reading 2016 and the results will be seen across the town in the next few months. Full details of all the groups funded in Notes to Editors.

Apply for funding

Reading Cultural Partnership is now inviting groups to apply for funding relating to the Reading 2016 themes from April to August with priority for projects linking to the themes for April - new writing, publishing, writers clubs and groups; May – the  Story of Reading – community stories, walks and trails uncovering and celebrating Reading’s heritage and history;  June - Eat Reading – projects linked to diverse food traditions.

Successful projects could range from workshops and micro/small scale activity to more ambitious projects. For grants above £2,500 applicant organisations and individuals will need to demonstrate that they have found at least one other source of funding to add to the grant. The deadline for applications is 29 February. Grants for the final themes of the year will be finalised shortly. 

Councillor Paul Gittings, Chair of Reading Cultural Partnership and Lead Councillor for Culture, Sport and Consumer Services at Reading Borough Council, said:

“The list of groups set to benefit directly from these Cultural Partnership grants reflect both the diverse make-up of communities in Reading and the range of voluntary and community groups across the town. 

“There is now a fantastic opportunity for groups to apply for money relating to the Year of Culture themes. There is just over a month to get those bids in and I would urge as many organisations as possible to do so.”

Reading’s Year of Culture 2016 is a year-long celebration of the arts, culture and heritage in Reading supported by the Local Strategic Partnership, Reading Cultural Partnership, Reading Borough Council, Reading UK CIC and a wide range of arts and cultural organizations in Reading.

More information about grants for the Year of Culture 2016 and how to apply is available on http://www.reading.gov.uk/article/2800/Funding-for-Local-Groups

More information on Reading’s year of culture at www.reading2016.org.uk