Columnist Lee Harman is the editor of the grassroots music website and live platform Warrington Music [WAM]

DURING lockdown, how many times have you grumbled that the theatre show you booked for your partner’s birthday wouldn’t be going ahead?

Or cursed the fact that you won’t be at a summer festival for the fifth time in a row? Perhaps you were looking forward to taking your children to their first panto this Christmas.

The Chancellor’s Job Support Scheme has left hundreds of thousands of arts workers – including world leaders with decades of experience – with two choices: cry out in despair, or leave their profession.

The creative, events and music industry were some of the first to close in March, and sadly, may be the last to reopen.

More than 600,000 are employed in live events – or at least they were before this pandemic and almost all of them do not know when they will go to work.

Many have been made redundant already or ceased trading. They want to work but are legally being prevented from doing so. Yet their employer is still expected to pay towards their wages but can’t bring in any income. Some are self employed and have received no support.

These are the people who have brought Glastonbury to you and the 2012 Olympics.

Others work in the iconic West End or in various regional theatres. Some you may have seen week in, week out in Warrington supporting grassroots music, putting on shows which will unearth the next Adele, the next Viola Beach.

Warrington Guardian:

Pyramid on 'red alert'

Registered charity, The Music Venue Trust have been working hard to support venues of all sizes, and on Monday, they should have found out how much of the much touted £1.57billion emergency arts fund will be distributed, with final decisions due to be made on October 16.

While it sounds a lot, the UK events industry is valued at £84billion. In comparison, Germany is mainland Europe’s biggest live music market and unveiled a mammoth €550 billion aid package at the start of the crisis.

Wetherspoons alone got a £48million loan, so I can’t help but feel it’s a token amount for a sector that has seen death by a thousand cuts. Their greatest concern is the unpredictability caused by tightening restrictions and sudden changes. We have seen that already with Friars Court temporarily closing as it is just not financially viable to remain open currently.

The government cannot shrug its shoulders at 900 music venues being permanently lost. Our music is one of the country’s best cultural exports.

Venues across the country are on ‘red alert’ and have been lighting themselves up in red. You may have seen the photos of Parr Hall and Pyramid lit up last week. They are two of Warrington’s most loved venues but we have already seen a couple of places in the town fail to reopen. How many more can we afford to lose?

My thoughts are with Warrington artists who not only enjoy performing and making music, but use it to help maintain their mental health.

Not ‘viable’? Rishi Sunak just told our entire creative industry to get another job...