22 February 1999

Millennium Festival is Launched

One of the biggest single announcements of grant support ever made in Britain took place today with the launch of the Millennium Festival.

In Cardiff, Dr Kim Howells, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State of Trade and Industry, detailed the programme which gives the people of Wales more than £6 million to help create events and activities to celebrate the new millennium.

He said: "The new Millennium stirs the imagination giving us a real opportunity to bring about change for the good. The Millennium Festival is all about helping local groups to fulfill their hopes."

Dr Howells added: "The successful activities are those which show a blend of colour, extravaganza, serious reflection and community support that will fire the imagination of the people of Wales."

The Festival in Wales is part of the UK Millennium Festival. A total of 1,000 awards are being announced across the country through launches not only in Cardiff but also in Birmingham, Glasgow and Belfast. In Wales, 77 larger awards are being announced.

These successful larger festival awards range from £6,000 to £600,000. Application forms for smaller awards will be distributed around the country from April onwards.

Some of the Welsh projects which have been awarded grants are:

Cardiff Millennium Festival Project. Being organised by Cardiff County Council, this will be a series of high profile community events including arts, crafts and sports. The project has attracted a £600,000 grant from the Millennium Commission. The contact at the County Council is Mike John on 01222 872 416.

Swansea 2000. A year long celebration. Events will include arts, history, sports and the environment. The celebration is being organised by the City and County of Swansea where the contact is Spencer Martin on 01792 835 400. The project has attracted a grant of £180,000 from the Millennium Commission.

Restless Gravity Festival of Theatre. A festival of International theatre and performance during October 2000, based around Aberyswyth, Bangor, Swansea and Brecon, but covering most parts of Wales. The project has attracted funding of £100,000 from the Arts Council of Wales. The contact is Chris Ricketts in Brecon on 01874 622 583.

Celtic Bowl Festival in Harlech. A synaesthetic cultural festival from 10 communities expressed through traditional and contemporary forms. John Brown is the contact on 01766 780 345.

Just Another Day. A two-day project involving a number of photographers recording the lives of people in Wales over the 48 hour period over the Millennium Weekend. Organised by Ffotogallery in Cardiff, the outcome of the project will be a touring exhibition. The project has attracted a grant of £35,600 from the Arts Council of Wales. The contact is Dawn Giles on 01222 341 667.

The Centre for Alternative Technology has attracted a grant of £37,700 from the National Lottery Charities Board for a project which aims to inspire, inform and enable young people to become involved with the process of developing sustainability in their homes and local community. The contact is Mrs Ann MacGarry on 01644 702 400.

The Christian Lewis Trust in Swansea has been allocated a grant of £78,000 from the National Lottery Charities Board to recruit and train volunteers to support the work of the Trust in caring for children with cancer and their families.

Millennium Stone. This project will recreate the supposed process of building Stonehenge. Organised by Menter Preseli, the project has been awarded a grant of £100,000 by the Heritage Lottery Fund. The contact is David John, Pembrokeshire County Council, on 01646 821 742.

The Gateway Project will open the way to Wales’ historic park and garden heritage by providing easier access to sites all over the country. The project is organised by the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust and has attracted a grant of £113,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The contact based in Pembrokeshire is Mrs B C L Harden on 01758 730 610.

Further information from Paul Abbandonato/Carolyn Pugsley 01222 237 333