Why the UK’s Independent Cinemas Matter and Why Their Exclusion from Cultural Funding Should Concern Us All

As Director of Cornwall Film Festival, delivered by Mor Media Charity, I’m writing this to raise awareness of a quiet but serious issue facing the UK’s cultural landscape: independent cinemas have been excluded from the Government’s recent £1.5 billion investment in culture.

Like many in the sector, we welcome this significant investment and recognise its potential to support sustainable cultural organisations that contribute to economic growth, wellbeing and social cohesion. But the absence of cinemas, particularly independent and community-facing cinema, is deeply worrying.

Top left: Merlin Flora Cinema, Helston, The Poly Falmouth, WTW Lighthouse cinema, Newquay. Middle row, Mike Leigh & Mark Kermode at Cornwall Film Festival, the Merlin Savoy cinema, Penzance. Bottom left Merlin Regal Redruth, WTW The Regal Wadgebridge, Newlyn Filmhouse

Cinemas are a vital part of the cultural infrastructure

Cornwall Film Festival works year-round with independent cinemas and community screening venues across Cornwall, where cinema is often the most accessible cultural experience available locally. In a geographically dispersed county, these spaces are not a luxury; they are essential.

Through our partnerships, we:

• bring UK and international film & filmmakers to Cornwall

• support early-career filmmakers

• deliver education and outreach programmes for young people

• create shared cultural experiences that strengthen community connection

Independent cinemas sit at the heart of this ecosystem. They act as cultural anchors, support local economies, nurture creative talent and provide inclusive, affordable access to culture.

A sector at risk

We welcome the investment but urge the Government to reconsider the exclusion of cinemas from capital funding. Our national partners at the Independent Cinema Office provide this stark evidence:

• 31% of independent cinemas do not believe they can remain operational without access to capital funding within the next 3–5 years

• A further 28% are unsure

• For many, there is currently no viable route to National Lottery or public capital investment

  
  

This is not a marginal issue; it’s an existential one.

Why this matters in places like Cornwall

In regions such as Cornwall, cinemas play a disproportionate role in sustaining cultural life, supporting local creative industries and tackling rural isolation. Treating cinemas differently from museums, libraries, arts venues and heritage buildings risks undermining the long-term resilience of our cultural infrastructure.

If we believe culture should be accessible to everyone, not just those in major cities, and cinemas must be recognised as part of that essential fabric.

A call for change

Today, I have written to Jayne Kirkham, MP for Penryn & Falmouth, asking her to raise this issue with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. I have also written to Lisa Nandy, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, urging her to support the inclusion of independent cinemas within future cultural capital funding programmes.

Independent cinemas deserve to be supported on an equal footing with other cultural institutions, not as an afterthought, but as a cornerstone of cultural life.

If we allow these spaces to disappear, we don’t just lose screens. We lose places of gathering, discovery, learning and shared experience. And once they’re gone, rebuilding them will be far harder and far more costly than supporting them now.

Louise Fox

Director, Cornwall Film Festival

Mor Media Charity