Arts Council England has been in the news a lot recently.
Earlier this month, it revealed its 2018 to 2022 budgets: £622m across National Portfolio Organisations, the Grants for Arts scheme and Culture and strategic funds, alongside a pledge to redress capital–centric funding.
“Everybody deserves to benefit from Arts Council investment, wherever they are, whatever their background. Our plans through to 2022 show we mean it when we talk about great art and culture for everyone" said Arts Council England Chief Executive, Darren Henley.
Of National Portfolio funding, a £37 million per annum increase is earmarked to support a 4% points uplift in the proportion of the budget used outside of the capital.
A further announcement followed this week that £4.6 million would come from the Sustained Theatre and Change Makers programmes (£2.1 million and £2.57 million respectively).
These funds would specifically support people and work in the field of diversity in the arts and cultural sector, and touring new work by black and minority ethnic theatre makers.
Funded organisations have since come into the news with their own announcements about their distribution.
These included Sheffield Theatres who received £150,000 from the Change Makers programme who will create three trainee positions and have Javaad Alipoor, artistic director of Northern Lines, join as artist in residence.
Alipoor has a remit to increase engagement with black, asian and minority ethnic communities and artists.
Change Makers funding, which is targeted at increasing diversity at senior levels, will provide bursaries for training placements at National Portfolio Organisations to disabled and black and minority ethnic leaders.
Other recipients include Battersea Arts Centre and Jess Thom, and Royal & Derngate and The Core at Corby Cube (Northamptonshire Arts Management Trust) and Andrew Miller.
Also Sheffield-based, £500,000 from the Sustained Theatre scheme has been provided to Eclipse Theatre Company for a programme involving more than 1,200 black artists.
Eclipse will work with ten other organisations in delivering residencies, mentoring and workshops and offering rehearsal and development space.
Sustained Theatre funding will also go to Birmingham Repertory Theatre in partnership with Talawa Theatre Company, Bush Theatre, Tamasha Theatre, and Tiata Fahodzi.
Levels of Strategic funding are largely unaltered at £125 million per annum.