Mossley arts group wins major national funding boost

A Mossley-based arts organisation says a major national funding win could mark a turning point for culture in Tameside.

Carnival arts charity Global Grooves has secured three years of investment from the prestigious Paul Hamlyn Foundation Arts Fund, following a successful supplication to the highly competitive national programme. The fund has since closed to new applications due to overwhelming demand.

Chief Executive Leon Patel believes the award represents more than just financial backing for the organisation, it signals a potential ‘sea change’ for Tameside’s cultural landscape, which has historically received far less investment than neighbouring Manchester.

Figures from 2024 show that Tameside attracted just £4.12 per head from Arts Council England, compared to £28.17 per resident in Manchester.

Leon said the new funding will enable Global Grooves to expand its reach and strengthen what he describes as the borough’s ‘cultural power’.

Over the next three years, the organisation has pledged to engage 90,000 people from Tameside, Oldham and beyond, create paid opportunities for 150 artists and support 54 external organisations – “strengthening the cultural ecosystem and keeping talent rooted here in Tameside”.

The funding will allow the team to significantly broaden their programme, including developing new local festivals and increasing support for musicians, dancers and visual artists. It will also support deeper work tackling systemic barriers to cultural access through their base at The Vale on Micklehurst Road in Mossley.

Leon explained that while the historic former mill continues to evolve as a creative hub for local artists, grassroots groups and underrepresented artforms, the organisation is now placing increasing emphasis on how cultural access is experienced more widely.

“For us, access is not only about physical space, it is about who feels welcome, who gets to take part and who has a voice in shaping culture,” he said. “This investment allows us to better understand and challenge those barriers, and to work towards a more inclusive and equitable cultural offer for Tameside.

“Rather than seeking a standard ‘community arts’ investment, we are focused on longer term, strategic change – a shifting of cultural power.”

Leon added that the funding will enable Global Grooves to work alongside communities across Tameside’s nine towns and neighbouring areas, co-creating new festivals, performances and training initiatives that reflect local interests and ambitions.

“The funding will help us to strengthen long-term trust, increase opportunities for co-creation with local communities, and develop leadership pathways for talented local people,” he said. “It will allow us to build infrastructure in a place that has been underinvested for generations.

“Now that Paul Hamlyn have demonstrated belief in and commitment to Tameside, we are in a much stronger position to bring further long-term national investment into the borough.”

Global Grooves was founded in 2003 by Leon Patel, Holly Prest, from Greenfield, and Brazilian artist Eraldo Marques. Their aim was to bring people of all ages together through participation in Carnival arts.

Since then, the organisation has worked internationally while maintaining a strong presence across Tameside and Greater Manchester. Recent project partners have included West African Development (WAD), South Asian women’s organisation Khush Amdid, the Dipak Dristi group for older women in Ashton, autistic social group A Team and Saddleworth Women’s Morris and Clog.