THE owner of a unique tourist attraction is “heartbroken” that his business is fighting for survival after missing out on a government grant.

Graham Owen, who runs the Phileas Fogg World of Adventures in Hollingbury, Brighton, said he was shocked to be informed by the Arts Council that his attraction would receive no support at all through the Culture Recovery Fund.

The grants programme was set up to help cultural organisations across the country recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, with funding packages between £50,000 and £3 million on offer for successful applicants.

READ MORE: Full list of East Sussex arts organisations awarded funding

Mr Owen believes the system for allocating funding, carried out by the Arts Council on the government’s behalf, was flawed.

He said: “The government provided millions of pounds for the arts and events industries but there was no policing of the system.

"We are the only people we know of who didn’t get any grant in Brighton and Hove, even though we met all the criteria.

“What I think is particularly unfair is that some businesses got more than one grant across all the categories, whereas others were left with nothing.

“There is no bitterness towards our fellow businesses in the arts – we are happy for everyone in our home city.

“It just doesn’t feel right that some people ended up with excess cash and some people got nothing at all. If there was some policing of the system, hundreds of other companies could have been saved.”

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The Phileas Fogg World of Adventures, which provides immersive theatre-based gaming experiences at its site in Hollingbury and hosts events elsewhere in the city, has previously been named Tourist Attraction of the Year at both the Sussex Business Awards and the Brighton and Hove Business Awards.

The site was closed throughout the first lockdown and had been operating at 20 per cent capacity until it was forced to shut again this month.

Mr Owen said: “Some businesses are seasonal whereas we run hundreds of events throughout the year. We also help college students through training days with our actors and make-up artists.

“Now we’re on the verge of fighting for our survival against all the odds, without any help – and we still have rent to pay, despite the second lockdown. It’s heartbreaking”.

In the South East, more than £25 million was handed out to save 146 theatres, venues and organisations through the Culture Recovery Fund.

The Brighton Centre was awarded £250,000 while Brighton Pride received £643,100.

An Arts Council spokesman said the fund was “an unprecedented investment” from the government but the scale of the crisis meant it would still not be able to support everyone.

He said: “We know this means some organisations will be disappointed with the decision they have received, but we are confident we have scrutinised all applications against the strict criteria rightly set for this fund by government.

“Although we can’t comment on individual applications, there are a number of reasons why an organisation may have been unsuccessful – for example they may not have been able to show they were at risk of no longer being financially viable this year.”

Phileas Fogg World of Adventures is hosting two immersive shows in the run-up to Christmas, with social distancing measures in place.

Elf, an immersive pantomime experience, opens from December 5. Audiences in groups of six will be taken on a journey and encounter a host of pantomime characters on the way, as well as Father Christmas.

A Christmas Carol will take audiences back to Victorian London in an immersive version of Dickens' classic novella.

There are limited tickets for both shows so booking is advised. For more information, visit www.phileasfoggsworldofadventures.co.uk.