Manchester City Council Earmark Nearly £250,000 To Support Local Grassroots Music Venues

Manchester City Council has announced that they have earmarked nearly £250,000 to support Grassroots Music Venues in the city and help them share the success of the city’s summer of music.

In recent weeks, hundreds of thousands of music fans have converged on the city to celebrate its music scene, including 340,000 attending the five Oasis homecoming gigs at Heaton Park alone. Other artists appearing in Manchester this summer include Fontaines D.C., Charlie XCX, Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo. It has been estimated that Manchester will have attracted 1.3 million music tourists over the course of the summer, a massive boost for the city’s economy as a whole, especially the hospitality industry.

These large-scale events are also generating income for Manchester City Council. They plan to earmark £245,000 to be made available in financial support for Grassroots Music Venues in Manchester. The exact details are being finalised, but the intention is that Music Venue Trust will administer the scheme to ensure that money can be distributed as quickly and effectively as possible.

This support is now a blueprint. Manchester City Council has taken the lead with this bold and innovative action, and MVT hopes to see many more cities and towns across the country join their efforts to secure the future of the UK’s Grassroots Music Venue network.

Cllr Bev Craig, Leader of Manchester City Council

“Manchester is a big noise in the music world. This summer, all eyes have been on the city as we’ve hosted some huge concerts and seen unprecedented success in our large venues, as the EMA MTV Music Awards showed.

But while the biggest gigs – in the city’s arenas and parks – might dominate the headlines, we know they are only possible because they are part of a wider ecosystem with smaller, Grassroots Venues providing the launchpads for acts to develop and grow.

We know that across the country, Grassroots Venues are struggling. That’s why we want to ensure that our Grassroots Venues can share some of the benefit from the success of those big events. We’re blessed in Manchester with an array of great smaller venues. They are there to be enjoyed, and I’d encourage anyone who values them to get out and support them.”

Jay Taylor, MVT England Coordinator

“Music Venue Trust wants to thank and congratulate Manchester City Council for leading on this crucial support for Grassroots Music Venues.

It’s inspiring to see Manchester recognise its place as one of the world’s leading music cities and acknowledge that the fantastic Grassroots Music Venue network in the city is an essential cornerstone of the amazing music being produced by Manchester artists.

In April, the government reduced business rates relief in England for many Grassroots Music Venues, significantly impacting their long-term sustainability. Manchester City Council has taken the lead with this bold and innovative action, and we hope many more cities and towns across the country can join their efforts to secure the future of the UK’s Grassroots Music Venue network.”