THE VALE of Glamorgan Council has agreed a major grant aid package to boost the work of the area's leading professional arts and culture centre.

St Donats Arts Centre, which is receiving £25,000 from the council in the current year, has also been awarded a further £105,000 over three years from 2002/2003.

Recent activities at the site were hit by the foot and mouth outbreak, with two flagship events - Crafts in Action and the Beyond the Border International Storytelling Festival - being cancelled.

Council leader cllr Jeffrey James told the News: "As part of a service level agreement, the grants package will, hopefully, safeguard the centre's future and enable it to develop closer working relationships with Vale schools, address staffing levels, invest more funds in marketing and raise its profile and work on a local and national level.

"The Council very much appreciates the contribution St Donats makes to providing a rich and exciting programme across the area and, in agreeing this funding, is seeking to ensure Vale residents benefit from improved access to high quality artistic activity."

Welcoming the council's commitment, centre director David Ambrose said: 'We are delighted at this very positive stance from the Vale and anticipate that this level of local authority support will help restore the confidence of other funding partners in the private and public sector, in particular the Arts Council for Wales, which will be approached for similar increases in revenue funding.

As well as annual events like Craft in Action, the International Storytelling Festival and the major Vale of Glamorgan Festival, centre plans for the next few years include:

A co-ordinated programme of education projects, including Science meets Art, and paper making and music workshops; a three year literacy and oral communication project at schools and centres for the elderly; Vox Humana, an exploration of the human voice through song; an international theatre project; St Donats sculpture competition, and a third annual Festival of Words.

David Ambrose added: "Alongside these exciting events, the centre will maintain its unique service to the immediate community via a continuing programme of cinema, amateur and schools theatre as well as hosting various community events with Atlantic College and others."