Royal Scottish National Orchestra hit by “severe” cuts from council

Scotland’s National Orchestra have warned they will be forced to scale back their performances in Glasgow after being hit with harsh budget cuts. 

RSNO hold regular performances in Glasgow Concert Hall, which they have stated will need to be reduced. This comes after Glasgow City Council announced cuts of £50,000 to the orchestra each year for the next three years. 

The organisation has stated that these “severe” cuts are a “significant blow” to the organisation’s endeavours. 

The orchestra runs school and nursery programmes which aim to develop the musical education of young people as well as a substantial programme of school concerts including a weekly Youth Chorus of 300 school children. 

The organisation has warned that these youth outreach programmes will have to be scaled back, and that “the critical role that the RSNO plays in Glasgow’s cultural life will be diminished.” 

Most of the orchestra’s funding comes from the Scottish Government, who recently announced a 3% increase in the organisation’s budget allocation. 

However, most of the work done by the orchestra takes place in Glasgow where they perform around 150 days of the year. Their current budget allocation from Glasgow City Council is around £150,000 per year meaning the new cuts will be devastating for the ensemble. 

A spokesperson for the RSNO said: “At a time when Glasgow Life venue hire fees and other costs are increasing, at a rate greater than inflation, the consequences of todays decision inevitably and regrettably will mean a reduction in performances at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and and a loss of services to the schools and communities the RSNO serves in the city. 

Beyond our schools and communities programmes, the RSNO makes a significant cultural contribution to Glasgow.” 

These cuts come as part of a reshuffle of funding allocated to Glasgow Life, which is now expected to generate more than £7m of income yearly. 

The budget slashes have already affected Glasgow museums including the Burrell Collection and Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery, both of which faced closures last year due to staff strikes over the cutbacks.

Fiona Cairns, collections access assistant at the Burrell Collection, said: “The cuts are so severe we’re looking at losing a third of our collections care and access staff. 

Our learning and access assistants and curators, their numbers have been decimated and that will really affect the provision we can provide to children and families especially in the school holidays. 

Museums belong to all of us, they are an amazing resource and we worry about how accessible the collection will become to this generation and the next generation.”

Speaking to The Scotsman, a spokesperson for Glasgow Life said: “Glasgow City Council faces a funding gap of more than £107m over the next three financial years and Glasgow Life faces a reduction in its funding as a result.

We met the RSNO well ahead of the budget to highlight the situation Glasgow faces and to discuss how this reduction could be structured to ensure it has as much opportunity as possible to identify alternatives to this funding.”