Published: 11 Oct 2017
This is a further short update, following on from our most recent communication on Regular Funding 2018-21, which we published in August.
We now know that the Scottish Government will publish its draft budget on 14 December 2017 and Creative Scotland will find out what its budget settlement is on, or shortly after, that date.
Once we have that information, our Board will be able to make its final decisions regarding the network of Regularly Funded Organisations for 2018-21. We will do everything we can to announce these decisions as soon as possible after this.
In addition to continued pressure on Scottish Government budgets, we are also experiencing declining income from the National Lottery. Our income from National Lottery funds for the last financial year, 2016/17, was 15% down on the previous year and this downward trend has continued into 2017/18. This means we are having to budget very carefully for 2018/19 and subsequent years.
National Lottery funds currently constitute 18% of the Regular Funding budget however, given the sharp decline in income that we are experiencing, it is unrealistic to allocate funds in a similar way in future.
With this in mind, the overall budget available to support Regular Funding 2018-21 will be even more challenging than at first anticipated, resulting in a lower overall budget and fewer organisations in the Network.
In this context, it is even more important for everyone to join us in underlining why Creativity Matters and to help us make the case for public funding for culture and the value it delivers, culturally, socially and economically for the people of Scotland.
Finally, we very much appreciate that the timing for notification of the Regular Funding process creates issues for many organisations. Once we are in a position to make and communicate our decisions, we will discuss any transition needs individually with organisations as soon as possible thereafter.
If anything is unclear regarding Regular Funding, or you would like more information on any other aspect of our work, our Enquiries service is always available to answer any questions you may have.
Iain Munro
Deputy Chief Executive, Creative Scotland
