Sheffield City Region calls on projects for £15m cultural fund to boost 'culture and tech sectors'

The Sheffield City Region (SCR) is calling on creative and innovative projects to tap into a new £15m cultural regeneration fund.

The Local Enterprise Partnership, SCR’S business arm, put out a ‘call’ for proposals to access the Northern Cultural Regeneration Fund and help build a regional legacy from the Great Exhibition of the North next year.

The fund will make grants of up to £4m for cultural and tech projects to be included in next year’s exhibition, helping attract future investment in the Northern Powerhouse.

The Great Exhibition, in Newcastle from next June to September, is set to be the biggest event in England in 2018. It will showcase world-class art, culture, design and innovation from the North.

The Local Enterprise Partnership has been asked by the Government to co-ordinate proposals locally.

Sir Nigel Knowles, chair of the Local Enterprise Partnership said: “This fund can make a huge contribution to the cultural and creative offer of the City Region. We’re a region blessed with outstanding creative and cultural talent and are quite rightly recognised for the contribution this sector makes to the economy and our communities.

“But we’re also a city region that doesn’t have some of the iconic physical cultural and creative assets that other parts of the country boast – which means the talent and the opportunity that abounds here don’t always play as central a role as they could do.

“This fund can help us develop some of those assets. We’re entirely open to ideas from across the city region – and the LEP Board looks forward to considering the proposals that come forward”.

Northern Powerhouse Minister Jake Berry said: “The North is a cultural powerhouse, as well an economic one, and this £15m fund will give a boost to the region’s vibrant culture and tech sectors.”