MP urges cultural organisations across Southport to bid for Government funding to Level Up Culture.

Damien Moore MP is encouraging cultural organisations across Southport to bid for funding from the £75 million boost in culture funding for English regions from the Conservative Government.  

The boost in financial support will make sure places that have been culturally under-served in years gone by get a better distribution of arts funding and help level up people’s opportunities to enjoy and experience arts and culture.

As part of the plans, Arts Council England (ACE) and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport have identified 109 ‘Levelling Up for Culture Places’ which will be targeted for additional investment.

Organisations old and new will be encouraged to bid for funds. With Sefton designated as one of the Levelling Up for Culture Places, this means that cultural organisations in Southport could be given the extra support they need to build on their rich cultural heritage. 

The Conservative Government is delivering on its commitment set out in its Levelling Up White Paper to raise cultural spending significantly outside the capital, boosting opportunity for all.

Damien Moore, MP for Southport, said: “For far too long, cultural investment has been unfairly distributed, despite the wealth of talent spread across the country, and in particular across Southport.

“The Government’s funding boost for cultural organisations in areas of historically low cultural engagement is a vital step forward in redressing these structural imbalances, and I urge cultural organisations across Southport to bid for these funds.

“Together with our unprecedented £2 billion Culture Recovery Fund that supported organisations throughout the pandemic, today’s announcement means that there has never been a greater level of investment by the taxpayer in culture in the post-war period.

“I am proud to support this Conservative Government’s commitment to Level Up Culture across the nation, ensuring that opportunity is spread to everyone, in every part of the country.”

Nadine Dorries, Culture Secretary, said: 

“I have said from day one in this role my priority is to increase access to arts and culture across the whole country.

“Today marks a big step in achieving this aim as we shift new cultural investment into places previously at the back of the queue.  

“Culture enriches people’s lives. It entertains us, brings us together and can be a catalyst for regeneration. Everyone should have access to it no matter where they live or what their background.”