‘Bitterly disappointed’ organisers of Bermondey Square Jazz Day forced to end event after lack of funding

A community jazz day has been forced to end after four years when it discovered funding could not be secured from the council for it to continue.

Bermondsey Square Jazz Day had been running once a month in Bermondsey Square, Tower Bridge Road, Southwark, but had its final show on Sunday, as its funding ran out and nothing new had been secured from Southwark council.

Stephen Pierre, creative director at the Unity Music Arts Team, based in Great Suffolk Street, which organised the event, said he was “bitterly disappointed and disheartened” at the decision from Southwark council.

He said: “We’re very upset. These events bring in around 400 people and are tried and tested. I just can’t understand it.

“I’d just like to know who was on this panel and why they made this decision. It’s a blot on the Southwark culture team.”

Mr Pierre said he personally had to take out a loan to keep the jazz day going and that he had applied for less than £3,000 from two of Southwark’s cultural event grants.

He added: “The past four years have been a fruitful time. We won a Southwark business community award and attracted some of the best music students from London’s conservatoires.

 

“These were free events for aspiring and seasoned musicians which provided community enrichment. The businesses in the area are fuming and I have tried my best to make these free community events more inclusive to support older and disabled people with providing additional seating and fully accessible toilet facilities.

“The way forward post-Covid for councils with little money is small-scale grassroots events like these.”

The news comes amid other music venues being shut down in South London, including The Junction in Coldharbour Lane, another establishment for aspiring musicians.

Southwark councillor Alice Macdonald said: “We share in the disappointment that the organiser of Bermondsey Square Jazz Days has decided not to go ahead with the events this year, due to a lack of sponsorship.

“While the Jazz Days were not eligible for the Cultural Celebration Fund, the organiser received £4,850 from the council’s Neighbourhoods Fund. We have further opportunities later this year to apply for council funding for events, which the organiser of Bermondsey Square Jazz Days will be able to apply for.

“Last year more than 30,000 people attended events in Southwark, with some being run independently and some with council support. We know how important these events are but after a decade of Government cuts to our budget, the council is sadly not able to support events on the scale we once were.”

Pictured top: A Bermondsey Square Jazz Day event (Picture: Unity Music Arts Team)