Arts Council England pauses funding for new NPO

Core funding payments to a first-time National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) that runs a theatre and music venue have been paused by Arts Council England (ACE) pending a review into its financial situation, it has emerged.

Wigan-based Arts at the Mill became a member of the portfolio for the first time in November last year, receiving £305,000 a year for the three-year period.

But closures of two parts of its main building due to structural issues have resulted in it losing revenue of more than £1m.

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The non-profit community interest company, which trades under the name The Old Courts, runs a large multi-arts venue in a historic former court building in the town which features a bar, cafe, theatre and live music spaces as well as space for retail and office use.

But in April structural damage was identified in the concrete floor of the Grand Vault music venue and the 150-seat theatre which have since been closed. As a result, it has lost around £1.2m in revenue.

The NPO is in the process of making an insurance claim relating to damage, believed to have been caused during previously contracted building work to remove a large safe.

But it said as the claim is taking longer than anticipated it is currently self-funding these repairs through revenue from spaces that remain open. It estimates that it will cost £100,000 to make the venues functional and a further £300,000 to restore them to their previous condition.

Robust monitoring

An ACE spokesperson said: “Arts at the Mill have made us aware of financial challenges. We are in dialogue with them to understand the current position and we have begun a review into the situation.

"As an Arts Council NPO, Arts at the Mill have signed a funding agreement with us which contains specific conditions around governance, management and finances.

"We have robust procedures in place to assess applications for funding and to monitor the use of public money by the organisations we fund.”

The NPO said that as a result of the closures it did not recruit any planned new roles or re-recruit roles when people left the organisation in order to safeguard as many roles as possible should its insurers deem the claim not to be an insured loss.

'Strong track record'

A spokesperson for The Old Courts said: "We have been open and transparent with our funders about our financial situation including sharing fund deposits and projections.

"We are currently working with an independent consultant, who has been commissioned by ACE to review, support and validate our financial plans between now and March 2026.

"Since we became an NPO, we have submitted the correct quarterly reports and to date each funding instalment has been released on schedule. The next report and the review is due at the end of October and our funding will be released as planned providing Arts Council are happy with both.

"Our claims for public funds are independently audited and submitted to funders – we have had a strong track record of using public money correctly and have continued to do so throughout the current situation with the building damage."