The Tramlines Trust, which was created this year by the organisers of Tramlines festival, has distributed over £30,000 ($36,000/€35,000) to local groups and beneficiaries.
The festival also brought in almost £4m to the local economy in 2022, according to research.
An independent report from Bluegrass Research and Sheffield City Council demonstrated that Tramlines festival, which attracted 35,000 people daily during its July run at Hillsborough Park in Sheffield, has brought in over £3.8m to the local economy. There was also a direct boost to local culture by funding over £500,000 to the Tramlines Fringe and free activities in the city since 2009.
Tramlines also donated over 350 tickets in 2022 to Tickets for Good, Sheffield Young Carers and other local charities. Tramlines 2022 raised over £50,000 for charity which went to the Tramlines Trust, Hillsborough Primary School, the NSPCC and The Sarah Nulty Power of Music Foundation – named after the former Tramlines director.
The inaugural round of funding from the Tramlines Trust has seen £30,183 distributed to a number of businesses that enhance and support local communities in the city. Over £10,000 from the Tramlines Trust has been directly donated to organisations in Hillsborough including the Hillsborough Hornets Disability Football Club and The Burton St Foundation.
It is the first time Tramlines has commissioned a full economic report with Bluegrass Research. The £3.8m figure for the local economy was calculated by looking at the number of attendees, local contracts, accommodation, expenditure outside of the event, people travelling to the city, local talent and local suppliers.
This year’s festival was also incorporated into Tramlines’ charitable efforts through the programming of The Library Stage. This was handed over to various Sheffield-based organisations, who created shows of all-female acts, regional rappers, DJs, vocalists, lyricists and more.
Timm Cleasby, Tramlines Operations Director, said: “When Sarah took over as festival director we, as a team, had many discussions about how Tramlines could keep giving back to the community and supporting Sheffield no matter how the event evolved. The Tramlines Trust builds on these early initiatives and now supports a huge amount of Sheffield charities, businesses, artists and projects. Sheffield is our home and carrying on the great work that the Tramlines founders started to support Sheffield is a big priority for us all.”
Charlie Barton, marketing and community engagement manager, added: “Over the years Tramlines has supported a variety of Charities and good causes, this year we’ve levelled up the local support on offer. In Spring, we launched the Tramlines Trust and have distributed funds raised at this year’s festival to some fantastic Hillsborough, Sheffield and South Yorkshire charities. Through the Trust, Tramlines fundraising is now reaching smaller grassroots organisations, casting the net of support wider than ever before, we can’t wait to continue this in years to come and build on our collaborations with some incredible local initiatives.”