A FESTIVAL devoted to promoting the arts in Harwich has been saved thanks to more than £50,000 of emergency funding.

Harwich Festival, which delivers up to four festivals each year and runs the Harwich Arts and Heritage Centre, is also known for its public arts projects.

It also runs the Harwich Box Office, at Harwich Library.

With the coronavirus pandemic leading to the cancellation of the Combined Arts Festival and the closure of the centre, the organisation was left in a “precarious” position.

Without urgent support, Harwich Festival would have folded.

But it can now continue thanks to a £52,126 grant as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion culture recovery fund.

Peter Davis, the festival’s artistic director, said: “The Harwich Festival is an arts organisation that provides opportunities, support and entertainment to its local community.

“Without this financial support the organisation would have ceased to exist.

“The cultural recovery fund grant from Arts Council England and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport will now enable us to support our staff, reopen the Harwich Arts and Heritage Centre and to plan for the future.”

The first round of funding, worth £67million, has been shared out among 433 successful applicants.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: “This funding is a vital boost for the theatres, music venues, museums and cultural organisations that form the soul of our nation.

“It will protect these special places, save jobs and help the culture sector’s recovery.

“These places and projects are cultural beacons the length and breadth of the country.

“This unprecedented investment in the arts is proof this government is here for culture.”