The Kings Theatre in Cheddar has welcomed the announcement today (July 6) from the government that it is putting £1.57 billion of funding into the arts.

The theatre is hoping to reopen as soon as it is possible to do so, and is hoping that the funding announced today will help secure the future of the arts in general.

In the announcement from the government, thousands of organisations across a range of sectors including the performing arts and theatres, heritage, historic palaces, museums, galleries, live music and independent cinema will be able to access emergency grants and loans.

Kings Theatre is run by the Wessex Learning Trust and projects officer Sam Kail-Dyke said: "As a trust we welcome the Government's announcement of funding for arts venues, such as the Kings Theatre, which have been unable to work or host any events since the coronavirus lockdown.

"We hope that this will help secure the future of the arts and allow us to continue to resume the rich programme of events which the Kings Theatre is incredibly proud to be able to bring to the Cheddar community.

"Although we do not yet have a fixed date for re-opening the theatre, we of course hope to do this as soon as it is safe to do so, and will be following government advice and guidance to put together a plan to do this in the hopefully not too distant future."

Decisions on awards will be made by the government working alongside expert independent figures from the sector including the Arts Council England and other specialist bodies such as Historic England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute.

Repayable finance will be issued on terms tailored for cultural institutions to ensure they are affordable. Further details will be set out when the scheme opens for applications in the coming weeks.

Oliver Dowden, Culture Secretary, said: "Our arts and culture are the soul of our nation.

"They make our country great and are the lynchpin of our world-beating and fast growing creative industries.

"I understand the grave challenges the arts face and we must protect and preserve all we can for future generations.

"Today we are announcing a huge support package of immediate funding to tackle the funding crisis they face.

"I said we would not let the arts down, and this massive investment shows our level of commitment."