PROMOTERS of a 67-year-old festival for the performing arts have hit out after they missed out on a £1,000 grant from borough council bosses in Pendle.

Each year supporters of the volunteer-led Luther Greenwood Festival collect around £4,000 to ensure that the twice-yearly gathering is open to around 100 entries in dance, music, speech and drama.

MORE TOP STORIES:

But the final £1,000 is usually sourced via a grant from Pendle Council – which has been rejected for 2014 due to financial cutbacks.

This year the council’s small grants fund was slashed from £40,000 to £20,000.

Festival organisers will have to cover the shortfall from their reserves but are warning that this is not a long-term solution.

Eric Beardsworth, festival chairman, said: “I accept that Pendle Council has limited resources.

“However, I find it puzzling that here in Pendle, an area renowned for its music, drama and dance talent, a small group of our local councillors who allocate the grant money have seen fit to cease helping organisations that promote the performing arts.”

The festival has always been able to call on assistance from the former Colne Council and its Pendle successor, with free use of The Muni.

But in recent years the festival has been charged £1,000 for the hire of the Albert Road venue by Pendle Leisure Trust.

Dean Langton, the council’s central services head, said the fund received applications for support totalling £93,000 for the available £20,000.

He added: “These are difficult times and the council has had to make some tough decisions about how money is spent.”

The junior music and adult choir classes will be held at The Muni on Saturday, November 29, with the speech and drama sections on the same day at St John’s Methodist Church, Albert Road, and the adult music event also there the following Saturday. Admission will be £2.