"The situation is dire, government support has been exhausted, and it now falls to artists, music fans, local communities and the wider industry to take action. Put bluntly, without these venues the opportunities for artists and audiences to connect in a meaningful way at a local level will simply disappear in a lot of cases. And if they go they will never come back. Please help us to help grassroots music venues to survive this unprecedented threat to their existence."

 

This is the appeal put out by the charity Music Venue Trust which protects, secures and improves the UK’s grassroots music venues. They have just launched a Crowdfunder campaign to raise £100,000 to create a national fund to support grassroots venues across the UK and prevent their permanent closure due to COVID-19. They are also calling on artists, fans and venues to come together and raise money through live streamed events. The idea behind #saveourvenues is to secure grassroots music venues one by one, as Frank Turner has been doing with his Independent Venue Love series of concerts. To see a list of #saveourvenue events click here.

ARTISTS: The #saveourvenues website provides simple tools for artists who would like to get involved. A map of venues shows which UK venues are keen to be partnered – they each have a fundraising page already in place to make it easy for music fans to donate. As events are organised they will be listed and streamed on the website and on the venue’s and artist’s social media platforms. As each venue target is reached, any money raised above this will go into the central pot which Music Venue Trust will use to help every venue across its network.

 

FANS: You can ‘Adopt a Venue’ by donating to a specific venue’s individual fundraising campaign. Check the “Venues in Crisis” map to see a list of venues in your local area that urgently need your help. You can also donate  to the national #saveourvenues Crowdfunder campaign as well as organise a ‘watch party’ on Facebook with your friends to promote ‘at home’ shows by artists supporting the #saveourvenues campaign. More shows are being added all the time to the ‘at home’ events page so check back regularly.

VENUES: To sign up for #saveourvenues a venue must contact their MVA regional/national coordinator

 

 

This is a great practical way to help venues individually and as a venue community. We encourage you to visit the Save our Venues website and follow the instructions that fit you: artist, venue or fan. Please spread the word on social media and remember to use the hashtag #saveourvenues everywhere!

saveourvenues.co.uk

 

 

Music Venue Trust on Facebook

 

Music Venue Trust on Twitter