Black Swan Arts saved from closure thanks to public generosity

The Black Swan Arts has been saved from closure thanks to the generosity of the community, which helped the Centre raise around £13,500.

The arts centre, located at 2 Bridge Street, was at risk of closure due to rising energy bills, which have doubled over the past couple of years.

To prevent closure and keep the centre open, trustees launched the Save Our Swan appeal to raise around £10,000, warning that the centre would close at the end of April if the target wasn’t met.

Thanks to the community’s generous support for the Save Our Swan appeal, the campaign raised around £13,500, allowing the centre to remain a hub for arts and crafts, with a gallery, artist studios, shop, writers’ space and cafe.

“This has certainly eased the short-term pressure,” said co-chair trustee Ian Fooks. “In truth, this has been a real wake-up call that, as it stands, our income from tenants and shop sales is simply not enough to cover the running costs of the building.

“We are reviewing all our costs to reduce waste and source everything as economically as possible. One of our largest outgoings is utilities, and I’m pleased to say we are currently in discussion with a local business that may be able to help us with some groundbreaking new battery technology that could provide significant savings on our electricity costs.

“In tandem with cost controls, we also need to increase our income, so we will be focusing far more on fundraising going forward than we have in recent years.

“One huge financial positive is that, on the back of the Save Our Swan publicity, we have received an additional grant from a charitable foundation that wishes to remain anonymous.

“This money is not to be used simply to cover running costs, but to fund more initiatives to encourage art in the community — so this is an exciting opportunity for new ventures. We are focusing on more community outreach and events, particularly with young people and schools.”

As a charity, Black Swan Arts supports emerging artists and, among various events, runs the Young Artist Open every year.

Next year, the centre is due to celebrate the charity’s 40th anniversary and are now looking ahead to planning events to mark the milestone.

Ian said, “We are in a much stronger position thanks to the enormous goodwill of the public, and the messages we received were a real insight into how much the centre means to so many people. So, we head into our 40th year with much excitement for the future.”

The team are also looking for more volunteers and trustees to help run the centre. Ian added, “We are particularly looking for those in the fields of legal work, HR and fundraising. If you are interested, contact the centre to find out more.”

Pictured: Trustees l-r – Leon Thompson, Alex Webb, Roger Whitewick and Lesley Little