More than 1,100 arts and culture champions have signed a strongly worded open letter to the city council opposing huge cuts to creative groups.
Leaders from Aardman, Watershed, Bristol Beacon, Bristol Old Vic, Arnolfini, and the city’s Balloon Fiesta are among those urging the Ωauthority to abandon plans in its budget to gut all £635,000 from its Cultural Investment Programme (CIP) by 2029.
It has emerged that ideas to identify replacement funding to plug the gap would generate only £225,000 annually after five years – a third of the current pot of grants.
A report to councillors in December said the money would come from developer contributions, called strategic Community Infrastructure Levy, a new philanthropic fund and a membership scheme to generate grassroots support.
The open letter said: “We are writing collectively as organisations and individuals across Bristol’s cultural sector to express our deep concern about the proposed closure of the Cultural Investment Programme in the council’s draft 2026/27 budget.
“Bristol trades on its cultural reputation, yet after years of chronic underinvestment, the ecology that sustains the city’s creative life is beginning to break down.
“The council’s own research shows that the cultural sector generated £892.9million in economic impact in 2023/24.”
The letter said the crisis could not have hit at a worse time.
“There are no easy solutions, but it is time for the council to face reality: cultural support cannot be cut indefinitely without severe social and economic consequences.
“Culture is not a luxury – it is the lifeblood of Bristol, and it is time the city invested in it accordingly.”
The local authority’s own research found that every £1 it invests leverages £88 from arts organisations and that the cultural sector reached almost 11 million people in 2023/24, delivering £122.4m in social value through health, education and community building.
In an open letter reply, council leader Cllr Tony Dyer (Green, Southville) and Bristol One City Culture Board co-chair Cllr Ani Townsend (Green, Central) said they shared the signatories’ passion for the arts and creative economies.
They said: “The financial situation facing our council – and local authorities across the country – is stark.
“Rising demand and costs for the services people rely on, combined with continued real-terms cuts in central government funding, mean we must consider every non-statutory budget carefully to meet our legal duty to set a balanced budget.
“This is not a choice we make lightly.
“No decision has been taken on the future of the Cultural Investment Programme, and the proposals remain subject to many rounds of review until all councillors vote on the budget at February’s full council meeting.
“We deferred these proposals last year to give us time to develop a cultural strategy and explore alternative, sustainable funding models. That work continues at pace.”
Performing arts union Equity and other campaigners is urging the council to drop the plans.
By Adam Postans, Local Democracy Reporting Service