Back on the first of February 2020, The Plough Arts Centre announced that it was facing financial difficulties due to a gradual rise in core costs and a long term decline in its core income. Although audiences had risen by 55% in five years, it was facing an uncertain future and running a deficit, which threatened to close the much loved venue in Great Torrington.
A public appeal for donations went out to all who value The Plough’s diverse arts programme which has been a constant feature of cultural and community life in North Devon for 45 years. The funding appeal was covered by BBC Spotlight, BBC local radio and The Gazette and Journal, as well as via online appeals through social media which reached a national and even international audience.
An overall funding target of £50,000 was set and by Thurs 26 March, over £54,000 had been donated by local people from across the region and beyond. Plough Director Richard Wolfenden-Brown said ‘The people of North Devon have been absolutely amazing! We have been astonished (and humbled) by their generosity and the passionate support they have demonstrated for the survival of The Plough Arts Centre, particularly at this time of national emergency. Our trustees, staff, volunteers and supporters owe a very big ‘thank you’ to all who have contributed.’
One of The Plough’s charity trustees, Hugh Wormington, who set up the online crowdfunder that raised £30,000 of the total, said ‘this was a stunning community effort and achieved with such speed. We offered various rewards for donations at different levels with 16 people kindly donating £150 and receiving a 10 x word plaque to go on one of our new balcony seats. Others made donations large and small and left uplifting comments on the crowdfunder. One comment from an Ian Hobson in Yorkshire said “The Plough? In a field of its own”. One very generous person happily paid £1,000 to receive a reward of a bottle of champagne signed by the Prime Minister plus a bonus of three toilet rolls. He then accepted the toilet rolls but kindly declined the champagne so that it can be used at a future Plough auction.’
In addition to the success of the public fundraising The Plough recently received some additional positive news. After representations by Plough trustees, Great Torrington Town Council, Councillor Cheryl Cottle-Hunkin and Plough Supporters, Torridge District Council voted overwhelming at their Community & Resources meeting on 16 March to invest £25,000 in The Plough for 2020/21 and promised to explore three year funding within six months. In addition The Town Lands Charity, owners of The Plough building, agreed to invest £10,000 towards the venue’s buildings costs for 2020/21. Great Torrington Town Council voted to increase their annual grant to The Plough by £1,000 to £10,000 and to backdate that change to the current financial year. Devon County Council were unable to commit to core funding, but via Cllr Andrew Saywell and other County Councillors they contributed £3,600 to the online crowdfunder and encouraged The Plough to apply for Health & Wellbeing project funding. Cllr Saywell commented ‘The Plough is vital not just to Torrington but to the surrounding communities, and people do travel to it from all over Devon and beyond.’
North Devon District Council are considering The Plough’s request for regular core funding which is based on the fact that over a third of the venue’s audiences and participants come from the NDDC area. Any decision will have to wait until the current virus emergency is resolved. The final good news was the support of Buckland Brewer Parish Council which kindly made an investment of £200.
Sadly, less than 24 hours after learning the good news of new public investment, The Plough was forced to close due to the virus on 17 March, along with all other cultural venues. For a few days it seemed that the charity would rapidly go out of business, but hopes are now high that if the government’s Staff Retention Scheme applies to Plough staff then costly redundancies can be avoided and that The Plough will survive to reopen as soon as it is safe to open the doors.
The Plough’s Chair of Trustees, John Eeles summed up a roller-coaster fortnight ‘recent events have been beyond anything we have experienced before, but thanks to the local community and their elected representatives, our future now looks more secure and we can plan with some confidence to be here and thriving when the current virus crisis is overcome. We want to be able to offer people something to look forward to and we are working hard behind the scenes to reschedule performances, to maintain communications online and to plan ahead for a brighter virus-free future for all of us.’
Plough Director, Richard Wolfenden-Brown added ‘When the current national emergency is over, people will want to gather together again and to celebrate the things that make life worth living and that includes arts and culture which bind our communities together. As the posters say across the front of our building – ‘We Will Be Back’!
RWB 26/3/20
