Culture Coventry Awarded NPO Status By Arts Council England

28 June 2017

Culture Coventry, which manages three of Coventry’s finest museums including the Herbert, was yesterday awarded National Portfolio Organisation status by Arts Council England. The NPO status brings with it a total of £1.6M in funding, over a period of 4 years.

£215m has been pledged to 76 arts organisations across the West Midlands by Arts Council England. Along with Culture Coventry, Open Theatre has also been awarded NPO status, and several existing NPOs including Warwick Arts Centre, Belgrade Theatre and Talking Birds have also had their funding renewed.

The Herbert will use the funding to cement their position as the cornerstone of Coventry’s community; a vital cultural space with innovative and contemporary programming, recognised as a vibrant destination and the public square for Coventry. 

Creative diversity is at the heart of the bid, giving people of all ages, abilities, socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds more opportunities to access and enjoy the Herbert, becoming active participants in its creation, development and identity.

Francis Ranford, Director of Audience Engagement said, “We are delighted to have been awarded NPO investment, which will support the Herbert to become recognised as a major regional hub for creative output. It will enable us to transform our delivery and practice, developing new learning and outreach opportunities for the wider community. Our goal is to become a dynamic and enabling environment, accessible to all, building a foundation to lifelong engagement with arts and culture in the city. This could not have come at a better time for Coventry, as excitement builds around the City of Culture 2021 bid.”