NPO decisions: What now for the unsuccessful?

While Arts Council England's (ACE) Investment Programme for 2023-26 represents its largest ever National Portfolio, the announcement left numerous organisations with an uncertain future.

A total of 130 organisations previously funded through the portfolio missed out on funding altogether and 35 of those that retained their NPO status suffered cuts of £50,000 or more.

In addition, of the record 1,730 applications in this round, 610 organisations that were not part of the previous 2018-22 portfolio were not offered funding.

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While many of those not funded previously may not have expected to be successful, the huge demand for ACE support is indicative of the tough financial climate for a sector still recovering from the pandemic and experiencing the impact of the ongoing cost of living crisis.

Much of the media focus has been on high-profile casualties in London – such as English National Opera – that lost funding as a result of efforts to redistribute funding to the regions. But, beyond this, scores of grassroots organisations outside the capital have been significantly impacted by the decisions.

Of the 130 previously-funded NPOs that have missed out altogether, 38 (29.2%) are based in London, 28 in the North (21.5%), 23 in the South West (17.7%), 15 in the South East (11.5%), 15 in the Midlands (11.5%) and 11 were national organisations (8.5%).

Of the 35 that have received cuts in excess of £50,000 a year nearly two thirds (22) are in London, with five (14.3%) in the South East, three in the Midlands (8.6%), three in the North, and two in the South West (5.7%).

Those affected outside London include, Unlimited Theatre, a Leeds-based company of artists and producers which lost annual funding of £166,000, while Ludus Dance, based in Lancaster, which introduces children and young people to dance, lost all its £95,000 a year funding

Meanwhile Britten Simphonia, based in Cambridge, lost the £400,000 a year it received as part of the National Portfolio – a quarter of its total budget.

Organisational nimbleness

Norwich-based curious directive, which produces theatre about science, also lost all its funding. Jack Lowe, Artistic Director at the company, said: "We’ve not been an NPO before. So we do know what it’s like.

"The important notion for all organisations who’ve lost funding is to realise they’ve done nothing wrong. We’re a very small theatre company making work in Norwich and taking it to the world. Our growth and ability to devise theatre about science has inspired over 170,000 people. We’re proud of that.

"Our organisational nimbleness and artistic integrity is our superpower. It’s why people queue round the block to see our work in Norwich.

"We drew the blueprint for how independent theatre companies in Norfolk can help deliver Let’s Create and as the landscape has been re-drawn, we’re working closely with our brilliant local authorities (Norfolk County Council and Norwich City Council) to achieve our dreams in the coming years.

"Operating outside [of the National Portfolio] isn’t perceived to be easy – but it’s important to note it’s where the majority of the arts organisations who knit together the fabric of our cultural life thrive."

Leveraging additional income

Among others to lose their funding entirely is Creativity Works, which runs arts and health projects in Bath, North East Somerset, and Bristol, offering creative activities and courses to improve mental health and wellbeing. It now hopes to continue operating at a similar level.

The charity, which received around £90,000 a year and was part of the National Portfolio since 2012, says the funding from ACE allowed it to not only grow its delivery, but also leverage additional funding.

Its records for the year 2020/21 shows its overall income rose to £185,264 – boosted by two government contracts worth a combined £52,691 – up on the £156,920 recorded for 2019/20.

"Both staff and the Board of Trustees have planned for this eventuality [of losing ACE funding]," a statement by the charity said.

"Despite this setback we face the future with confidence – we have a committed and highly experienced staff team, an ambitious five-year business plan, significant contracted work to deliver, healthy reserves and a robust fundraising plan to help see the organisation through this period of change."

Fundraising campaigns

2Faced Dance Company, based in Herefordshire, also lost all its funding. The company, which creates performances to tour theatres and festivals across the UK and internationally, as well as delivering workshops in schools, colleges, universities and prisons, has been part of the National Portfolio for ten years.

In addition to the annual support it has received, 2Faced Dance Company was handed £100,000 from ACE in March this year, for a capital development project on its studio, the Centre For Movement, to make the space fully accessible for all and provide facilities on a par with those found in major metropolitan cities.

However, it has said it now finds itself in the position where that capital equipment may never be used.

The company expects to continue earning through performing, teaching, creating work for other people, hiring out its studios and mentoring, as well as from grants from a variety of trusts and foundations, but says it needs to make up the lost funding from ACE.

In response it has launched a fundraising campaign called "195 reasons why", reflecting the fact it had previously been funded by ACE to the tune of £195,000 a year.

It says it has been "inundated with messages" from people across Herefordshire, and people asking how they can help.

"We have received an overwhelming level of support," a statement issued by the company says.

'Stripping back'

One of the smaller scale organisations to be affected in London is Dash Arts, based in Tower Hamlets, which produces events and participation programmes alongside international actors, musicians and artists.

Its Artistic Director Josephine Burton says they will be "totally stripping back the organisation", as well as attempting to raise additional donations from individuals and make some applications to trusts and foundations.

"But it’s a very competitive and challenging world out there," she said.

"Many trusts and foundations will be besieged by requests for support from organisations not just, like us, looking to replace missing Arts Council contributions, but just to make work."

"The really enormous challenge is we’re a tiny organisation, so making work at the same time as fundraising [is difficult].

"We emerged from Covid to make three shows this year, which has been phenomenal for us, but being a small organisation I was working on and opening an adaption of Middlemarch in Coventry at the same time as writing the Arts Council application. We now have to write a transitional funding application and work out a strategy going forward, and the work continues.

"Developing new projects as an artist and running an organisation [at the same time] while lurching from one of these crises to another is an enormous challenge."

Leadership changes

Another impact of the funding decisions is a raft of changes in leadership at affected organisations.

The Gate Theatre, based in Camden, London, lost all of it funding. It has now appoined Nicola Clements, most recently Interim Executive Director at Camden People’s Theatre, as its new Chief Executive following the departure of Shawab Iqbal, who stepped down to join Leeds Playhouse as Executive Director.

Announcing her appointment, The Gate emphasised her fundraising and event management experience during a decade she spent with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

"She will bring a wealth of financial expertise to developing the company’s business strategy and will forge new and develop existing partnerships across the sector, building on the Company’s outstanding international reputation for producing bold, inventive and provocative new work," a statement on her appointment said.

"Nicola’s role at the Gate Theatre will involve managing and developing the financial strategy and business plan for the company, in line with its artistic vision."

Elsewhere, Artistic Director Roxana Silbert has stepped down as a result of Hampstead Theatre's funding loss, with Executive Producer, Greg Ripley-Duggan, being made responsible for the transition to a new funding model.

And Susan Wildman has left her position as Chief Executive of the Oldham Coliseum by mutual consent, with former Artistic Director Chris Lawson appointed in her place. This follows Oldham Coliseum losing 100% of its funding too.

Transition funding

ACE has set up a Transition Programme to allow unsuccessful NPOs, or organisations funded outside the National Portfolio through Business Plan funding, additional time to make a decision on their future – whether that be finding new forms of funding, scaling back their work, or winding down.

Organisations leaving the National Portfolio in April 2023 can apply for up to seven months of their current annual level of funding, taking them up until the end of October next year, with the application portal open until Tuesday 28 February 2023.

While the transition funding will potentially provide financial support until the end of 2023, the outlook for many organisations will depend on the success of strategies being formulated now for beyond that date.