Eight organisations in the borough will receive funding as part of Arts Council England’s National Portfolio scheme
By Alice Kemp-Habib

Sunshine International Arts is one of eight Haringey organisations to receive Arts Council funding

Eight cultural organisations in Haringey will receive over £3m from Arts Council England over the next three years.

The new funding plan – which runs from 2023-26 – comes as part of a wider effort to withdraw support from central London and redirect it to the capital’s outer boroughs.

As part of the scheme, four Haringey-based organisations have been added to the council’s National Portfolio. These include LatinoLife, which supports the UK-Latin arts industry, and Bernie Grant Arts Centre, a Tottenham-based venue that champions Black artists. Over the three year period, they will receive £375,000 and £921,000 respectively.

LatinoLife founder Amaranta Wright said: “Being an NPO is a huge badge of honour. It means that the UK Government, via the Arts Council recognises the work we have been doing for many many years, supporting and nurturing UK Latin creatives and growing the UK Latin Arts Industry.

“It’s a recognition for us but also of the huge amount of talent in our community which has been bubbling under the surface of British society ready to explode. This grant will allow us to unleash that talent onto the British public.”

Hannah-Azieb Pool, artistic director and CEO of Bernie Grant Arts Centre, said in an Instagram post: “Our new NPO status will allow us to support even more Black artists to make exciting, bold and groundbreaking work.

“We thank the Arts Council for their support and are truly excited to get on with our mission of amplifying voices that wouldn’t otherwise be heard, developing new audiences and providing valuable career opportunities in the arts for those from underrepresented backgrounds.”

The George Padmore Institute, a research facility dedicated to Black communities in Britain, will receive £219,000 during the funding period. zerOclassikal, which provides a platform for emerging musicians from Asian and ethnically diverse backgrounds, is set to receive £225,000.

Four existing National Portfolio Organisations in Haringey (continental Drifts, Daily Life Ltd, Jacksons Lane Theatre and Sunshine International Art) will continue to receive funding. Two additional organisations – Furtherfield and Modus Arts – have received two years of funding under the Arts Council’s ‘Transfer Programme’, for organisations that are willing to relocate outside of London.

Controversially, the new plan means that Arts Council England is not funding organisations that previously received money through the scheme, such as Donmar Warehouse theatre in Covent Garden. Other institutions – such as the English National Opera – have been forced to move out of the capital due to a drastic cut in funding.

Tonya Nelson, Arts Council England’s area director for London, said: “Our aim has been to support a broad range of organisations and artforms in every corner of London, with a clear focus on ensuring that investment goes into places that, historically, have been underserved including London’s outer boroughs.

“Funding these new organisations and places, will help us inspire the next generation of cultural and artistic talent and increase opportunity for people of all communities and backgrounds.”

Arts Council England’s chair, Sir Nicholas Serota, said: “London is a global powerhouse of the creative industries, renowned across the world for its galleries, theatres, museums, libraries and music venues.

“As someone who was born and has lived in the capital most of my life, I recognise how the arts can enrich people’s lives. I am proud of the quality and range of the arts in London and the benefit and prestige that they bring to the city.

“The investment we are announcing today balances the need to protect London’s place in our nation’s creative and cultural ecology with an increase in investment across the outer boroughs and across the whole country where investment has been too low, making high quality culture available to everyone wherever they live.”

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