A COMPANY in Watchet is celebrating after receiving £389,000 thanks to the Government's Culture Recovery Fund.

The Onion Collective CIC will use the money for the development of East Quay - a project on the quayside which will include galleries, education space, workshop/studio space and places to eat and stay.

The funding will allow the Onion Collective to finish the build and open the doors in Summer 2021.

Georgie Grant, Director, The Onion Collective CIC, said: “The East Quay is the result of an extraordinary community effort to refurbish and redevelop the quayside in Watchet, it uses creativity and culture as the means to bring people together and imagine a better future.

"We are absolutely thrilled that Arts Council England are supporting the last piece of the jigsaw, this award allows us to finish the build and open our doors in Summer 2021.”

Somerset County Gazette:
REDEVELOPMENT: At Watchet

Seven cultural organisations in the South West have also received the funding, including Bristol Music Trust and Hall for Cornwall in Truro.

Phil Gibby, Area Director, South West, Arts Council England added: “We are really pleased to announce seven awards from the Culture Recovery Fund: Capital Kickstart across the South West.

"This latest tranche of funding to be announced from the Government’s generous package of support for the arts, culture and heritage sector ensures that many of the regions ambitious and ongoing cultural developments - that have been delayed due to Covid-19 - can now securely get back on track to reopening and serving their communities with fantastic cultural experiences.”

The most recent announcements, follow several previous rounds of investment from the Culture Recovery Fund.

So far, £428million has been distributed to more than 2000 cultural organisations though the Grants programme.

This is alongside the £3.36million Emergency Grassroots Music Venues Fund.

The recent funding announcement takes the total allocated from the Culture Recovery Fund over £1 billion.