THE trust which manages three theatre venues in Basingstoke faces a further funding cut this year.

The Anvil Trust manages Anvil Arts, which runs The Anvil, The Haymarket and The Forge, and applied for funding for 2015-16 from Hampshire County Council’s Culture and Recreation Investment Fund.

The trust applied for £81,440 from the county council – the same amount as 2014-15.

However, Councillor Roy Perry, leader of the county council and executive member for policy and resources, has agreed to cut the charitable trust’s funding by three per cent, to £79,000 over the next year.

The news comes after Basing-stoke and Deane Borough Coun-cil’s decision-making Cabinet decided to press ahead with plans to cut its share of funding by five per cent each year until March 2017.

The Anvil Trust currently receives an annual grant of £1.089million from the borough council.

Chief executive of Anvil Arts, Christine Bradwell, remained upbeat despite the funding cut, saying: “We are delighted that Hampshire County Council has continued its investment in The Anvil Trust.

“We look forward to working with it, as one of our major partners, in the coming year to continue to provide great live performances, and community and education work, for the people of Hampshire.”