London orchestras face bleak future as funding is slashed

Two of Britain's best chamber orchestras and a popular arts centre are among the victims of the latest Arts Council slash in funding to hundreds of organisations.

The London Mozart Players, the City of London Sinfonia and the Windsor Arts Centre are among those to be affected as the council cuts funding to a fifth of arts organisations in the London area.

Funding will be scrapped as part of the council's biggest spending review since it was set up 60 years ago.

The Mozart Players, once described as "one of the best chamber orchestras in the world" by a leading German magazine, face an uncertain future. Former conductors include Jane Glover, who has worked with all the major symphony and chamber orchestras in Britain and appears regularly at the Proms.

Anthony Lewis-Crosby, who runs the Players, said: "It's going to be very serious for us now."

The City of London Sinfonia, which plays at St Paul's Cathedral and the Barbican, and is resident orchestra at Opera Holland Park, has also had its funding cut.

The cuts were revealed by the Evening Standard on Friday with nearly 200 arts organisation across the country being told that the Arts Council funding will end from next April.

Other victims include the north London-based Pop-Up Theatre company for children, which has been running for more than 25 years.

It has been told that its £194,000 grant is likely to be withdrawn. Venues including the Drill Hall theatre off Tottenham Court Road and organisations such as Bubble which organises promenade theatre, shows and community education in south London are also among the 53 hit in the capital.

Victims of the grant cuts have only until 16 January to persuade the council to change its mind.

But they can argue only on the grounds of "flawed procedure" and not the council's "artistic judgement," which makes appeals very difficult. The Arts Council, which distributes £1 billion a year in grants, has defended the cuts as designed to reward excellent groups and point out there are many winners as well as losers. Critics say the policy is biased towards larger organisations.