Private support for the industry reaches £8.2 million

The latest figures for private support in the arts published by Arts & Business, the national charity dedicated to encouraging and developing effective partnerships between business and the arts, shows that the total amount of private support for the film and video industry has reached £8.2 million, an increase of 15% since 2003/04, when the figure stood at £7.1 million.
This figure reflects the national trend, as the total amount of private support for the arts has grown to £452 million - an increase of 15% from 2002/03 (when it was £393 million). In terms of other arts forms, crafts, heritage, music and theatre/drama have achieved the greatest increases in investment, while visual arts and museums reported an overall drop in the level of funding they received.
The Arts & Business Private Investment in the Arts report is the only survey in the world to produce these figures and reports on both business investment and individual giving together.
Overall the biggest growth area has been in individual giving which now stands at £244 million, a figure that is growing steadily by about £20 million every year, and has risen by 18% since 2002/03 (when it was £207million). From 2003/04 business investment has increased by 6% to £119 million and investment from trusts and foundations has fallen to £89 million.
Colin Tweedy, Chief Executive of Arts & Business, comments: “These are very significant figures. There is more money going to the arts from the private sector than ever before. No one should ever dare write private sector income out of the arts funding script. The work of Arts & Business makes the UK the only country in the world to produce these figures on an annual basis. We will continue to prove the case that the arts are a good cause for additional private sector investment, creating a richer society for us all.”
Culture Minister David Lammy said: “The continuing growth in private sponsorship of the arts in the UK is very good news. It is great to see that the surge in public investment is mirrored in business support too. And we are both backing success. Thanks to this partnership, the arts have been enabled to flourish and to enrich more lives as never before."
(GB)