Farleys House and Gallery in Muddles Green, near Chiddingly has been awarded more than £100k from the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund. The first wave of funding has been allocated to heritage projects impacted by the pandemic.
The Sussex home of surrealist artists Lee Miller and Roland Penrose is one of 152 heritage sites across the south of England, set to receive a lifesaving financial boost. The money aims to help restart vital repair and maintenance work, keep venues open and save jobs and livelihoods.
Farleys House was a meeting place for some of the leading figures from the world of 20th century modern art and holds works by many notable British and overseas artists.
Other East Sussex heritage projects to benefit include:
- The Bluebell Railway based near Uckfield, who recently celebrated their 60th birthday (£727,000)
- Sussex Archaeological Society, which runs Michelham Priory near Hailsham, East Sussex (£497,500).
MP Nus Ghani said:
“I am delighted that this grant will help Wealden’s heritage sites to ensure they continue to thrive post-pandemic.”
Meanwhile in west Kent, funding has been awarded to:
- Kent and East Sussex Railway Company, who run steam trains out of Tenterden, near Ashford (£301,000)
- The Spa Valley Railway in Tunbridge Wells (£153,900)
- Historic home Penshurst Place near Tonbridge (£107,600).
Duncan Wilson, from Historic England, said:
“These grants range from giving skilled craft workers the chance to keep their trades alive to helping heritage organisations pay the bills, and to kick-starting repair works at our best-loved historic sites.
“The funding is an essential lifeline for our heritage and the people who work tirelessly to conserve it for us all, so that we can hand it on to future generations.”
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