# Eight arts organisations take a share of £2.4 million Art Impact Fund third round

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2017/07/27/eight-arts-organisations-take-share-2-4m-art-impact-fund-third-round/
- Published: 2017-07-27T09:00:32+01:00
- Author: Melanie May

**The Arts Impact Fund has selected eight arts organisations to share a £2.4 million
funding investment.**

The [Arts Impact Fund](http://www.artsimpactfund.org) is a £7 million initiative
to demonstrate the potential of social investment as an additional way of supporting
enterprising organisations in the arts and cultural sector. Following this round,
the Arts Impact Fund has now committed £5.4 million to 16 organisations since 2015.
While terms vary, interest rates can be expected to range from 4-7 per cent per 
annum with a loan duration of between three and five years.

The Arts Impact Fund mixes public, private and philanthropic investment, from Bank
of America Merrill Lynch, [Esmée Fairbairn Foundation](https://www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk/),
Nesta and [Arts Council England](http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/) with additional
funding from Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.

## Advertisement

As well as helping financially resilient organisations to grow, the Fund also aims
to recognise, bolster and communicate the social value created by the arts, including
the positive impact it can have on the welfare and cohesion of local communities.

The new Arts Impact Fund investees are:

 * **Birmingham Royal Ballet** (£215,000) – to help diversify income streams, its
   production of_ The Nutcracker _will be adapted for future arena and other large-
   scale venue tours.
 * **Fuse Art Space** (£150,000) – to launch pioneering residential arts training
   programme taught by world-class arts practitioners.
 * **Make it Sustainable** (£300,000) – to invest in preserving an industrial heritage
   building, The Old Print Works in Birmingham; creating opportunities for creative
   community engagement in a deprived area of the city.
 * **MeWe360 **(£150,000) – to create a new, long-term workspace and mentoring development
   hub for Black, Asian, and minority ethnic creative entrepreneurs in Soho.
 * **Studio Wayne McGregor** (£500,000) – to complete the construction of a new 
   studio space for the choreographer and his dance company; making it the first
   cultural organisation in the Olympic Park.
 * **Walk the Plank** (£170,000) – to enable this UK outdoor arts organisation to
   create, and relocate to, a new outdoor arts creative hub in Salford; contributing
   to local regeneration and strengthening the area’s cultural infrastructure.
 * **Village Underground **(£600,000) – for this iconic London music venue to acquire
   new, larger multi-arts venue in Hackney and partner with an arts charity, Community
   Music, to deliver social programmes.
 * **V22 London **(£300,000) – to acquire a listed heritage building in Orpington
   and create new affordable artist studios; refurbishing it for the benefit of 
   creatives and local community.

The organisations will document their artistic, social and financial impact quarterly
for the duration of their loans, with the Fund sharing the findings from all of 
the investees. As a demonstration fund, there is the potential for the model to 
be scaled or replicated in other sectors.

Andrea Sullivan, international head of Environment, Social and Governance at Bank
of America Merrill Lynch, said:

> “Maintaining a vibrant arts sector is critical to the social and economic development
> of our communities, and with traditional funding sources constrained, the Arts
> Impact Fund offers an innovative financial solution with tremendous potential 
> for scale. We are delighted to be involved in this initiative, offering not only
> financial support but also experience of impact investing which is helping to 
> create sustainable change in communities globally.”

The next round of funding is expected to be announced in January 2018. Information
on eligibility and how to apply for a loan is available on the [Arts Impact Fund site](http://www.artsimpactfund.org).

Main picture: The Nutcracker, Birmingham Royal Ballet. Photo: Bill Cooper

 * **[IoF Cultural Sector Network to expand with funding from Arts Council England](https://fundraising.co.uk/2018/03/08/iof-cultural-sector-network-expand-funding-arts-council-england/)**(
   8 March 2018)
 * **[Private investment in arts & culture increases by 8% over three years](https://fundraising.co.uk/2019/06/21/private-investment-in-arts-culture-increases-by-8-over-three-years/)**(
   21 June 2019)
 * **[Government to inject extra £75 million into levelling up access to the arts](https://fundraising.co.uk/2022/02/24/government-to-inject-extra-75-million-into-levelling-up-access-to-the-arts/)**(
   24 February 2022)

![Loading](https://fundraising.co.uk/wp-content/plugins/page-views-count/ajax-loader-
2x.gif)