It has been announced today by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) that over 300 cultural organisations have been given vital support from its Culture Recovery Fund. The scheme, which is designed to help overcome the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since August 2020, the Culture Recovery Fund has distributed £1.57 billion to around 5,000 organisations and sites across the country, giving a lifeline to theatres, museums, independent cinemas and many more cherished organisations around the country through the pandemic.

The final round of funding has supported organisations through the latest challenges, in particular those affected by the Omicron variant this winter. It has kept organisations up and running so that they can continue to support jobs and contribute to local economies.

Peterborough Cathedral has been awarded £184,000 so that it can continue hosting exhibitions, plays and festivals for visitors from its local community and beyond.

The Dean of Peterborough, the Very Revd Chris Dalliston, said:

“This grant is an enormous help to us at a vulnerable time financially. It’s wonderful to see worshippers, school groups and visitors returning to the Cathedral, and to be preparing for our summer programme in the hope of more buoyant levels of footfall. Yet all this is against a backdrop of two years of the pandemic, with the consequent loss of income, rising costs and very depleted reserves. The Culture Recovery Fund’s support will enable us to navigate these difficult times in better shape and we are so grateful for that.”

The Cathedral is planning to host the Natural History Museum's touring exhibition of animatronic dinosaurs, T.rex: The Killer Question, this summer, as well as a series of outdoor events in the Cathedral grounds.

You can read more about the grants awarded by the Cultural Recovery Fund on the DCMS website here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/more-vital-support-given-to-over-300-cultural-organisations-to-survive-beyond-pandemic-and-protect-jobs