How we are funded

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra is funded through four main income streams: public funding through Arts Council England, South West core grant (42%) and local authority grants (15%); box office income (35%); and private funding through sponsorship, grants from trusts and foundations and individual giving (8%).

Arts Council England, South West core grant underpins much of the BSO's work across the south west and south east regions. As such the BSO has a remit to fulfil across these two regions in meeting Arts Council key performance indicators both through its work on the concert platform and education/community outreach programme.

Box Office income is received through the sale of tickets at all venues where the BSO promotes concerts, its main promotional venue towns being Poole, Bournemouth, Exeter, Portsmouth, Southampton, Winchester and Weymouth. The BSO performs at additional venues, booked directly by promoters as paid engagements (which provide additional monies for the orchestra) or as venue co-promotions, where the income is divided, as in the case of Basingstoke, Cheltenham and Bristol. The BSO commercial concerts, in particular its summer firework concerts, are key in maintaining this income.

BSO is unique in the number of local authorities that it serves. The four principal funders are Bournemouth Borough Council, Hampshire County Council, the Borough of Poole and Dorset County Council. Service Level Agreements are determined with each, allocating funding across a range of orchestral activities in the concert hall and beyond.

The BSO's private funding is made possible through generous business sponsorship from a number of national and international companies, as well as a steady income from various private trusts and foundations. Also vital are the many individuals across the south and south west who support the orchestra and its work through donations at all levels, from annual membership to major gifts and legacies.