Decision details

The Council resolved:-

(i)             to note Aberdeen City Council awarded £1,429,228 through the Cultural Investment Framework as part of the 2025/26 budget (as detailed below):-

(ii)           to note the Castlegate Arts unsuccessful application for Culture Investment Framework funding was considered through a fair and transparent process, with the officers recommending not to award funding due to the organisation not meeting investment priorities and the “Following the Public Pound” guidance, with the final decision being made at the Budget meeting on 5 March 2025;

(iii)          to note the Finance and Resources Committee unanimously agreed on 26 March 2025 to allocate £508,000 for Local Business Support and £521,380 for People and Skills from the 2025/26 UK Shared Prosperity Fund;

(iv)          to note the competitive application process for allocation of the 2025/26 UK Shared Prosperity Fund, with approximately £4 million worth of applications received for the Community and Place element, and only £1.2 million of funding remaining to allocate within the programme, and that the Finance and Resources Committee will make the final decision on the applications at its scheduled meeting on 7 May 2025;

(v)           to agree that any proposal to allocate funds directly from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund which bypasses this process sets a concerning precedent and is disrespectful to those organisations who have already applied for funding;

(vi)          to note that directing funds to specific projects without a clear process undermines objectiveness and fairness and could lead to similar claims from other organisations who were not approved for funding and may risk non-compliance with “Following the Public Pound” guidance and may also create a risk of the Council having to repay some of the money back to the UK Government on the grounds of having awarded money to projects which may not meet UK Shared Prosperity Fund eligibility and criteria;

(vii)        to acknowledge the funding provided to date by Aberdeen City Council’s SNP and Liberal Democrat Partnership in 2024/25:

(viii)       given the above outlined process for the allocation of UK Shared Prosperity Funding for 2025/26, to take no further action.