A MUSIC and drama centre in Corsham is celebrating after receiving a grant of more than £18,000 from Arts Council England.

The news of the £18,132 windfall arrived at The Pound last week and was gratefully received.

A spokesman said: “ We are delighted and very grateful to secure emergency funding from Arts Council England.

“We are part of a wonderful web of venues and organisations, some of whom have not been as fortunate, and we would urge you to continue to support them.

“Thanks all round and to lottery players who make this funding possible.”

A month after being forced to close its doors in March the centre launched the Pounds Arts Comeback Fund and has been overwhelmed by the support shown.

The centre said: “We have been overwhelmed by generosity, love and kindness so far. Donations, messages of support and engagement with us during this period is just staggering.

“We are your arts centre. We want to welcome you all back as soon as we can and we can’t wait to fill this town with wonder, imagination and artistic beauty with you all by our sides. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

One well wisher said: “A local arts centre, supporting local artists is important for the well-being of any community. Good luck.”

The Pound's cafe and exhibition space re-opened last Tuesday as restrictions began to be lifted.

The Arts Council supports 196 organisations through the Covid-19 Emergency Response Funds and last weekend announced it would be paying a total of £33 million to 196 organisations, including The Pound.

Darren Henley, Chief Executive, Arts Council England, said: “Since the outbreak of Covid-19, our main priority has been to ensure that as much of our country’s cultural ecology as possible survives the summer – from individual artists and freelancers, to museums, libraries and arts organisations, both large and small, located in every corner of the country.

“This investment, made possible thanks to National Lottery players, provides critical relief to valued cultural organisations that faced immediate financial disaster before September.

“We know that massive challenges remain in the autumn, and we’ll use the rest of our available funds, alongside the Government funding just announced, to support our sector in the coming months.”

In June The Wharf Theatre, Devizes, launched its won Covid-19 fund amid fears it would not be able to survive the crisis.

It has set a target of £30,000 on its Justgiving page and has so far raised £9,473. It has the backing of celebrity patron Christopher Biggins.

The theatre is also holding fundraising events and last week held a sale of costumes.

To help the Wharf go to /justgiving.com/campaign/wharftheatre to help The Pound go to poundarts.ticketsolve.com/products/donation