Soul legend Beverley Knight backs Wolverhampton youth theatre under threat of council cuts

Central Youth Theatre has been running in Wolverhampton for 30 years.

But proposed cuts to the voluntary sector in the city have left the group fearing for its future.

Wolverhampton City Council is looking to reduce its outlay to the voluntary sector by £1.6 million as part of wider £98 million cuts.

The singer, who is currently appearing in The Bodyguard in London's West End, took to Twitter to express her support for the group.

The 40-year-old from Penn Fields tweeted:

Central Youth Theatre responded to the Tweet and thanked the singer for her support.

The theatre group receives a grant of just over £13,000 a year from the council, accounting for around a fifth of its turnover.

Bosses say this money allows them to subsidise activities so they can be enjoyed by more young people.

Jane Ward, director, said: "The cuts have been announced but there has been no detail. Nobody really knows how it will work."

The group currently has around 100 members aged from eight to 25. Tim Clark, spokesman for Wolverhampton City Council, said: "We understand that there will be concern amongst the sector, but at this stage this is a proposal. No decisions have been taken on which groups face losing their grant.

"A consultation on the savings proposals is taking place before councillors make a decision on the budget early next year."