ORGANISERS of York Pride and the Wagon Plays are to receive a share of a £50,000 fund designed to support events in 2022.

A new community cinema is also coming to York as 15 organisations secure extra support towards the costs of staging activities which were hit by the Covid crisis.

The £50k grant funding comes from the Government’s ARG fund, and is provided by City of York Council to Make It York.

Among the events and festivals to receive funding is York LGBT+ Pride whose Pride event on June 18 is a major celebration of the diversity of the LGBT+ community.

Another recipient is the 2022 Wagon Plays, organised by York Mystery Plays, which will be staged outdoors across the city from June 19 to 26.

A new Groves Community Cinema, with a weekend of films every quarter, will also be launched.

Organised by Theatre@41, it will show topical films and films from the Yorkshire Film Archive.

Alan Park, chair at Theatre@41, said the Groves Community Cinema would provide residents 'with a relaxed, affordable and accessible cinema that allows the community to connect with one another and provide some with their first visit to a theatre'.

"Without this money we would not have been able to launch the cinema. Now the Groves and the wider York community can benefit from this event for years to come.”

York Mediale 2022 Events have also won support for its programme of events at York Art Gallery from June 24 to September 18, and also in November.

These include the Body Vessel Clay exhibition and the Immersive Assembly, Mediale’s international artist development programme in collaboration with the city of Viborg in Denmark, a fellow UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts.

Meanwhile, Operation Hummingbird, a play exploring loss, love, terminal illness and anticipatory grief, by Next Door But One CIC, will be staged in August.

Other events to receive support include the Wilberforce Trust's Christmas Fayre in December and a summer fayre in August.

Helen Apsey, of Make It York, said: “It's a really broad, vibrant and diverse mix of events and festivals, which support local communities and residents, the local economy, and the aims of the York culture strategy.

"It's been a really difficult few years for people, and these events will give residents the chance to re-engage with their city, to take part in new activities, and to celebrate and enjoy the diverse range of events and festivals happening in York this year, as well as attracting visitors to support the local economy.

"Many events and festivals have been severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, couldn't take place as planned, or had to be cancelled altogether - and it's still impacting organisers' ability to fund the overall costs of events activity now."