£3.9m for cultural volunteering

About £3.9m has been awarded to increase volunteering opportunities in the sector.

Arts and culture organisations received most of the grants distributed by Arts Council England from the £4.6m Volunteering Futures Fund on Wednesday (April 13).

Beneficiaries included Bureau Centre for the Arts in Blackburn and Darwen, which will roll out a new two-year volunteering programme, Redcar's Festival of Thrift, which plans to collaborate with 12 partners on volunteer recruitment, and a consortia of local organisations led by Barnsley Museums.

The 19 lead organisations being funded are expected to work with more than 160 partners.

Just two grants have gone to London-based organisations, with eight given to awardees in the North of England.