New financial statistics released by Salford City Council show that the cash strapped authority spent almost £200,000 on an opera for babies, an 'end of the world party' and classical music.
Figures for May show that the Council handed the BBC £150,000 for 'sponsorship', which could be a leftover from its original £3million sweetener to the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra as the staggering payments were, er, staggered, when the cuts began to bite.
Meanwhile, in June, the Council handed £36,000 to the Manchester International Festival, or MIF, also in 'sponsorship'. Events held in Salford included BambinO, an opera for babies which ran at Salford Sports Village for two days, with a £5 admission fee, and a Dinner Party at the End of the World at Centenary Building, with a £50 admission fee, exploring 'themes of survival, extinction, scarcity and opulence'.
The Dinner Party's sister event, Party Skills for the End of the World, described as 'how to get by when the end comes' - and in particularly bad taste after the Arena attack - featured how to make martinis, sew orange peel and create a lava lamp, while a fictional apocalypse went off in the background. The admission here was £30 (£12 if on a 'low wage').
The only other Salford events were a free exhibition at The Lowry examining the partition of India and Pakistan, and 'an evening of Sufi music' with tickets costing between £25 and £45 (£12 if on a 'low wage').
While Salford Council handed out £186,000 in sponsorship over just two months, next Tuesday, Salford City Mayor, Paul Dennett, will be making a decision on closing The Grange, the city's only residential care home for disabled children.
The closure is opposed by staff and families of children resident at The Grange, and there's been a petition signed by over 3,000 people supporting the campaign to Save The Grange.
In the minutes of a meeting with families of children at The Grange, seen by the Salford Star, Lisa Stone, the Council's lead member for Children's Services, told the parent of one of the children; "I wanted you to meet us to show you that we do care. There's a whole city to look after and we can't afford The Grange..."
The families have called a lobby of Salford councillors, supported by trade union Salford City UNISON, for next Tuesday morning, from 9am outside Salford Civic Centre on Chorley Road, Swinton.
The Mayor will be making his decision at the Cabinet meeting which begins at 10am and is open to the public to attend.
For full details see the Facebook event page – click here.
See also previous related Salford Star articles...
UNISON Accuses Salford Council of Lying Over The Grange – click here
Salford Mayor to Decide Whether Disabled Kids Kicked Out of City – click here
Salford Council and Co Spend £70,000 on Culture Consultants - click here
Main photo by James Glossop
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