The British Council has announced £2 million in new funding over three years to support Ukrainian cultural organisations and advance the priorities of the UK–Ukraine Cultural Commission and the goals of the 100 Year Partnership between Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
The new funding was announced in London on 15 September during a meeting involving representatives of Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture, the Ukrainian Institute, the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), and the British Council.
The £2 million will serve as an initial contribution to a new fund designed to implement the priorities of the UK–Ukraine Cultural Commission and the goals of the 100 Year Partnership. The fund will provide direct support to organisations in Ukraine.
Between 2027 and 2030, the funding is expected to expand joint Ukrainian-British cultural initiatives, create more opportunities for cultural organisations and professionals, and strengthen long-term ties between institutions in the two countries.
The fund’s operating mechanism and specific areas of support will be developed jointly with other members of the UK–Ukraine Cultural Commission, including the British Council and the Ukrainian Institute.
The UK–Ukraine Cultural Commission was established within the framework of the 100 Year Partnership between Ukraine and the United Kingdom as a permanent platform for expert dialogue, identifying shared priorities and projects and, where appropriate, discussing their joint financing.
The cultural dimension of the 100 Year Partnership provides for the development of long-term ties between museums, galleries, theatres, music venues and other cultural institutions in the two countries through exchanges of expertise, joint projects and co-productions.
Other priorities include deepening cooperation between the British Council and the Ukrainian Institute, developing links between the film and television sectors, and regularly presenting Ukrainian culture in the United Kingdom and British culture in Ukraine.
Another area of the partnership focuses on protecting, preserving and restoring Ukraine’s cultural heritage. This includes professional and educational exchanges for specialists, efforts to combat the illegal removal and trafficking of cultural property, and measures to counter the erasure of Ukrainian cultural identity.
This work comes amid extensive damage suffered by Ukraine’s cultural sector as a result of Russian aggression. According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture, as of the end of August 2026, 2,138 cultural heritage sites and 2,640 cultural institutions had been damaged or destroyed. Of these, 47 cultural heritage sites were completely destroyed, while 569 cultural institutions were destroyed.
“The £2 million from the British Council is an important investment in Ukrainian culture, its resilience and its future. It creates new opportunities for Ukrainian institutions and joint Ukrainian-British projects. I sincerely thank the British Council and the United Kingdom for their consistent support and partnership, which is already delivering concrete results,” said Tetiana Berezhna, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture.
“This new £2 million in funding is part of the British Council’s long-term work to develop cultural ties between Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Next year will mark 35 years of our work in Ukraine, and throughout this time one of our priorities has been to bring people and institutions together and create opportunities for lasting cooperation. The new fund will give us a practical tool to continue this work, support Ukrainian cultural organisations and professionals, and help implement the priorities set by the Cultural Commission and the 100 Year Partnership between Ukraine and the United Kingdom,” said Richard Garrett, who will soon head the British Council’s office in Ukraine.
