Westminster: 39 local arts organisations will benefit from new grants for cultural projects and the council’s annual Inside Out Festival 
English National Opera will bring ‘operettas’ to the street through walking tours for Inside Out 2023
Students at Marylebone Boys School learn how to upcycle garments with the help of fashion designers  
Westminster city council has invested 1.8m in arts and culture funding 
New funding announced to support the arts and culture sector in Westminster was announced by the council in November last year.  

First-time opera encounters through ‘operettas’ on walking tours hosted by the English National Opera will be held for residents this August. Young students at Marylebone Boy’s School will learn how to upcycle clothing from charity shops, and live carnival performances will be held at local festivals this summer in Westminster. All of these projects have been made possible by Westminster City Council’s Culture and Community Grants programme. 

The English National Opera’s (ENO) grant-funded project will see performers take to the street in full character dress and sing Gilbert and Sullivan songs on a Victoria London tour for the council’s Inside Out Festival. Singing workshops will also be held to support local people cope with the stresses of daily life through music. Workshops of this kind have been used previously by the ENO to assist the recovery of long covid patients.  

Several of the projects awarded community grant funding will engage young people in arts and culture. At Marylebone Boy’s School, a fashion designer is teaching pupils the power of sustainable garment production by upcycling clothing bought in charity shops. The artwork produced by students will be displayed in an exhibition at Paddington Station in July. Paddington Arts are also working with young people to create live carnival performances for festivals in Queens Park, Westbourne and Paddington.  

The Culture and Community Grants Programme allows organisations to bid for up to £10k of funding to deliver initiatives which improve residents’ access to arts and culture. Funding has also been awarded to projects supporting the Inside Out festival, an annual event hosted by the council which transports artwork from galleries, libraries, theatres, and film to the outdoors.  

This year, thirty-nine projects have been awarded funding amounting to £320k, which is a part of the council’s £1.8m investment to bringing arts and culture to its residents. The English National Opera, Paddington Arts and Marylebone Boy’s School are just a few of the organisations funded by the programme.  

Funding was awarded by a panel, which judged each bid against the grant objectives. Organisations awarded funding demonstrated that arts and culture would be easily accessed by local people, bring vibrancy to the city’s streets, tell the stories of global majority communities and help young people to find their voice.  

The council is committed to opening free cultural opportunities to those facing financial hardship. In 2021, the Inside Out festival was attended by 250,000 residents. At this year’s event, visitors can take part in walking tours, open air music performances and the National Gallery’s Summer on the Square. 

Cllr Tim Roca, Cabinet Member for Young People, Learning and Leisure said:  

Art and culture is a fantastic way to build connections, celebrate our history and educate our young people. It was great to see the high number of bids we received for this funding, and the range of projects which will now be on offer to residents in Westminster. I am looking forward to the Inside Out festival this summer, to showcase some of these brilliant projects and get our residents and visitors excited about art and culture in the city. 
Steve Shaw, Director of Paddington Arts said: 

This project will allow children from deprived backgrounds to work with professional artists to co-create an exciting an original piece of work that can be performed for their peers and an audience of family, friends and the local community. Carnival is a street art form that has international roots and connections. It involves design, construction, storytelling and performance. As well as performing at the schools, we will perform at local community festivals such as WECH festival; Queens Park Festival; Westbourne Festival and Paddington Festival (Maida Hill Market).
Richard Ardron, Headteacher of Marylebone Boy’s School said: 

We are delighted to have received a £3,000 grant from Westminster City Council to help fund our new enrichment club called 'Crafting a Sustainable Future'. This project is aimed to educate the students and the general public to learn more about sustainability within fashion and inspire everyone to be more mindful when making a purchase. The boys are currently working hard with fashion designer, Florence Grellier, to up-cycle and produce garments for their upcoming art exhibition being held at Paddington Station on Monday 10 July. 
Annilese Miskimmon, Artistic Director at the English National Opera, said:  

The ENO is grateful to be receiving a Culture & Community Grant from the Council to share our passion for music and opera with the community. We’re very much looking forward to welcoming audiences to our home, the London Coliseum, for a range of unique events and performances, as well as taking part in the Inside Out Festival with our Gilbert and Sullivan Walking Tour.