Council boss 'delighted' as £3.5m funding saves Walsall's New Art Gallery
A council leader has said he is 'delighted' after an art gallery was given a multi-million pound funding boost.
Walsall's New Art Gallery, which was under threat of closure last year due to Walsall Council's dire financial situation, has been given £3.5 million from Arts Council England.
The future of the gallery was secured in January when the council announced it would be leaning on the private sector to provide the funding needed by selling naming rights and advertising space.
The additional money from the Arts Council, which is also providing major funding to the Black Country Living Museum and Newhampton Arts Centre, provides further security for the much-loved landmark.
Speaking after the funding boost was announced, Sean Coughlan, the leader of Walsall Council, said the funding was a 'significant vote of confidence' in the gallery.
He said: “I am delighted that Arts Council England recognises the national importance of the New Art Gallery with its £3.5 million National Portfolio Organisational offer for 2018-2022.
"Being offered every single pound that we requested is a significant vote of confidence in the New Art Gallery and our future plans for its sustainable management.
"With the potential of a Commonwealth Games just down the road 2022, I’d like to think we can showcase Walsall on a global stage.”
“I made it clear when setting our budget earlier this year that we never intended to close the Gallery. Instead, given the ongoing pressures to local authority funding, we needed to be more imaginative and certain about how we operate and fund such facilities.
"Taking a long term view of the budget over a four year plan has allowed us to do just that.”
The funding comes as part of a £9 milllion package to museums and art centres across the Black Country from Arts Council England.
The New Art Gallery is one of seven organisations in the region that will benefit from major grants via the council's National Portfolio.
Between 2018 and 2022 the following organisations will receive:
New Art Gallery, Walsall - £3,525,948.00
The Arena Theatre at the University of Wolverhampton - £449,276
Newhampton Arts Centre, Wolverhampton - £720,000
Wolverhampton council (including Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Bilston Gallery and Bantock House) - £671,020
Black Country Touring, based in West Bromwich - £573,988.00
Multistory, based in West Bromwich - £563,248
Black Country Living Museum - £2,200,000
