Greenwich Theatre's mission to create a ground-breaking national as well as local profile has got the backing of another 12 months' funding by the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

"We're proud and delighted to receive the funding from the council at a fixed rate - so there are no cuts," said the theatre's executive and artistic director James Haddrell. "I think it's a ringing endorsement of the work we've been doing in recent years, especially when so many arts organisations around the country are suffering cuts. In times of austerity the visionary funders who understand the wider value of culture start to become evident. The arts aren't just about leisure - they support quality of life, health, wellbeing, local economies and social regeneration.

"The £259,000 is about 20 per cent of our annual turnover and basically pays for wages and utility bills, while the shows pay for themselves. Most theatres of our size would be funded to about 50 per cent so we've created a business model that's yielding a lot of success."