As part of the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund, support is being made available to heritage organisations across England, including £68,200 in Dewsbury.
The Government made £1.57bn of support available through its Culture Recovery Fund to support heritage and the wider cultural sector during the Covid-19 pandemic. The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England have worked together to ensure that this significant investment from Government reaches the organisations most in need. This is the first tranche of funding for heritage, covering grants of up to £1 million, and is part of the £92 million Culture Recovery Fund for Heritage - managed jointly by Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Mark Eastwood MP, for Dewsbury, said:
I am thrilled the Dewsbury Minister has received this funding thanks to the government’s Culture Recovery Fund. It's clear that this Government funding is great news for the Minster and it’s fantastic news for people in Dewsbury that our wonderful heritage is getting vital support at this challenging time.
Reverend Simon Cash of Dewsbury Minster said:
I am really grateful to the Arts Council and the Recovery Fund. The lockdown had meant that we had lost all our regular source of income. We were really struggling to survive and we still have bills to pay, insurance and things like that, and a building like this is phenomenal. What this grant will allow us to do is to redevelop some of our space. We want to provide somewhere where people can come and feel safe especially those who are suffering from mental health problems to help them through these difficult times. We hope to reopen our refectory, we also hope to, with that maybe provide something like home economics classes and try and help local people in this area. So it's been really helpful.
