Finance

The British Film Institute (BFI) has awarded £2.1m in funding to 24 British companies working in independent film, TV, animation and video games in the latest round of the Global Screen Fund.

Financed through the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the awards of between £50,000 and £144,000 were granted to help companies achieve new international business partnerships, enhance their global reach and generate increased revenue through international expansion and export over the next three to five years.

“The ambition of these companies in developing truly global growth strategies, and in striving to reach new international audiences, is so exciting to see, demonstrating opportunities for further growth,” said Denitsa Yordanova, BFI Head of the UK Global Screen Fund.

“It is so important that we continue to build on the UK’s strength in the global content marketplace, investing to support the screen sector in reaching its full potential.”

BFI also announced that UK Global Screen Fund applications are now open for International Business Development, International Distribution Festival Launch Support and International Distribution Film Sales Support.

The next round of UK Global Screen Fund international co-production funding is due to open on 3 August.

The price of entry to some museums and attractions in Leeds has risen by up to 14%, the BBC reports.

The price hikes apply at venues including Temple Newsam House, Leeds Industrial Museum, Thwaite Watermill and Abbey House Museum, all owned by Leeds City Council.

The rises were implemented due to inflationary pressures and increased staff costs, the council said. 

The average rise in entry prices was between 5% and 14%. No admission price will rise by more than £2, the council said.

Attractions including the Art Gallery and Leeds City Museum will remain free to enter.

A council report laying out the price changes said they aimed to “ensure Leeds Museums and Galleries can provide choice to visitors, offer value for money alongside specific discounts, deliver against agreed income targets in the next financial year and support Leeds 2023, in the year of culture”.

Kilburn Library in Brent is in need of a £765,000 refurbishment to tackle structural concerns about the building, according to council sources.

Both the building and the garden have been described as “in a poor state” by Brent Council’s Corporate Director of Resident Services, amid concerns that further damage to the building may cause it to become “increasingly unsafe”.

“If the Library Service doesn’t act now… then the long-term future of Kilburn Library may be jeopardised,” warned a council report on the library’s condition.

It added that “the building itself may need partial closure if structural problems are not addressed quickly. If no investment is put into the current facilities the condition will decline further.”

Damage to the structure includes large cracks, My London reported.

The necessary refurbishments are expected to cost £765,000. The library has been awarded a £231,000 grant from Arts Council England’s Library Improvement Fund, leaving £534,000 currently outstanding.

If the project goes head, work will begin in November, with reopening set for April 2024. The council is negotiating a temporary move to The Granville, a local community building in South Kilburn in the interim.

As well as tackling structural problems, the refurbishment project will seek to create new hireable spaces to generate additional income and invest in the library’s “underutilised” garden.

“The project will futureproof the library facilities for an estimated further ten years and enable more flexible use,” said Brent Council’s Corporate Director of Resident Services.

“It will alleviate some of the pressures of cyclical maintenance required to maintain its current condition.”