Mintfest – you must be bloody joking

And, just for once, I’m not referring to the many acts which Mintfest have “sponsored” over the years in the name of Art. Although to fully understand the point I’m making you shouldn’t forget such classics as:

The Concert of Silence;

The Spurting Man; and

The Tom Jones Experience

However, that’s enough “fun” for the time being.

Like so many other businesses, and it’s important to realise that the festival is run by a private company (Kendal Arts International),  Mintfest is running out of money. So much so that Julie Tait, one of the directors, has told the Westmorland Gazette

(the) street festival could be under threat if thousands of pounds is not raised to plug a funding hole

but no need to worry. The ever resourceful “organisers” have come up with a plan to ask the public to donate money to Kendal Arts International (a private company) to keep the “street event intact”.

Leaving aside, for the time being,

I have just one thing to say to the directors of Kendal Arts International

If you want to be treated like a charity act like one and at the very least publish full details of your income and assets but, also, don’t forget that December is an important time for giving and traditional charities will be suffering in the recession as well. Every £1 given to Mintfest is a £1 less for far more deserving causes.

Posted in Cumbria, General, Kendal, Private Eye, Quango, The North West by , November 3, 2011 19:31

  • LB1968

    Many, if not most, arts organisations are limited companies. If they are registered charities, they are probably a limited company as well. This affords them the same protection as any limited company ie it limits personal liability. I don’t know what other structure you would expect them to have, given that they lease property, hire staff, etc.

    They are, however, limited by guarantee, not share capital. They are not allowed to distribute dividends to directors, nor are they allowed to make a profit and this will be laid out in their Memorandum and Articles of Association. If this were not the case, they would not be allowed to apply for funding from the Arts Council or many other sources which explicitly state the type of organisations they will support.

    If you are a funded arts organisation, funders will pay you when a funding bid is successful or at agreed periods during a funding agreement. This takes no account of a company’s year end so a company with a high level of cash in their bank account will most likely have received funding for its activity over the next few months. It won’t be a “profit” from the previous year’s activities because they are not allowed to make a profit. There are checks in place to ensure this is the case with funders requiring stringent reporting and copies of accounts.

    Whether you approve of Lakes Alive or arts funding generally, surely it’s better to have accurate facts to support your argument?

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