Derry's Playhouse 'Artitude' project receives massive funding boost

Derry's Playhouse has announced that its major environmental and artistic community engagement project ‘Artitude: Climate, Culture, Circularity’ has been awarded £1,063,320 from The National Lottery Community Fund’s UK-wide Climate Action Fund.

The Playhouse will work with project partners Zero Waste Northwest, Northern Ireland Resources Network, Queens University Belfast and Derry City and Strabane District Council to co-ordinate and deliver a programme of creative activities. 

These activities are designed to use the arts and creative practice to encourage behavioural change and challenge attitudes to waste, consumption and climate action.

It will bring together activists, artists and community groups to build community care, help change minds and attitudes and to spread environmental information in a positive and powerful way. 

Playhouse CEO Kevin Murphy believes this is a genuinely exciting moment for The Playhouse and project partners.

He said: “We have been working together for some time now, bringing a creative, community and arts-led approach to making peaceful climate change here in the Derry City and Strabane District Area.

"This investment at the heart of communities from the National Lottery Community Fund over the next 3 years will enable us all to transform our place together, involving everyone in making a difference towards a more sustainable future.”

Phase One of the project was made possible through National Lottery funding in 2022, and it has been a great success with Artitude Festival in 2023, the creation of storybook assets ‘The Story of the Jumper’ and ‘The Story of the Garden’ as well as a whole range of workshops for all ages on sustainability, awareness and activism.

Kate Beggs, NI Director of The National Lottery Community Fund said: “We’re pleased to award Artitude this £1 million grant from our UK-wide Climate Action Fund, showing our commitment to supporting long term climate action.

“Artitude is a great example of what we want groups to achieve, to work closely with communities to explore and capture what they want and need. I commend the hard work and time that everyone associated with Artitude has given and the impact of what has been achieved already.

“So far, we have awarded over £4.5 million from our Climate Action Fund in Northern Ireland with around £3 million being invested in important flagship projects in the North West. This illustrates the power of the partnerships that exist in the wider Derry area across sectors, and the common passion to address the climate crisis. Supporting the environment is a consideration in all our funding as we move forward with our new strategy to support communities.

“This year marks 30 years since the first National Lottery draw in 1994, and thanks to those who play the games and raise £30 million for good causes each week, £786 million has been awarded to communities across Northern Ireland over this time.

“We look forward to seeing what can be achieved through National Lottery funded projects like Artitude in the future.”

For more information on the Artitude project please visit our website: https://www.derryplayhouse.co.uk/event/artitude-climate-festival