Wells Film Centre is being awarded nearly £80,000 from the government's Culture Recovery Fund, designed to help the cultural sector survive the coronavirus crisis.

The cinema will receive £78,980 as one of more than 200 independent cinemas across England that are being supported this Christmas with £16 million in grants from the government's £1.57 billion fund.

Wells Film Centre applied for the grant so it can continue to offer its screening programme for young people, parents and babies, its popular Tea Matinees as well as its regular talks with invited art and history speakers.

Sally Cooper, proprietor at Wells Film Centre, said: "After what has been an exceedingly difficult year due to Covid-19, the financial support from the Culture Recovery Fund has helped secure the continued survival of the Wells Film Centre so that we can continue entertaining and bringing together our local community."

Two hundred and one cinemas have received funding so far from a £30 million pot allocated by the British Film Institute (BFI), on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

More grant applications from independent cinemas are also currently being assessed. Cinemas will be able to apply for another £14 million in grants in the new year as part of the second round of the Culture Recovery Fund. The new round of funding is in addition to the £30 million already being allocated by the BFI.

The BFI has been accepting applications and awarding grants to independent cinemas throughout the autumn.

Eligible cinemas were able to apply for Safety Grants, to help venues meet the immediate costs of implementing Covid-secure measures to protect staff and audiences, and larger Business Sustainability Grants to help stabilise sites financially.

Recognising that cinemas need content, during this crisis, the government's Film and TV Production Restart Scheme has tried keep the cameras rolling at the other end of the screen supply chain.

The £500 million scheme, which opened for applications in October, has assured nearly 100 productions that they will be supported if future losses are incurred due to Covid-19 and provided the confidence they need to restart filming.

The deadline for productions to register for the scheme has also been extended until April 2021, giving more film and high-end TV projects the security to start shooting in the spring.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, said: "As a Star Wars fan, I know there's no better place to experience great films than in your local cinema and these grants will provide vital support for independent venues through Christmas and beyond.

"Our Restart Scheme has already helped to get nearly 100 film and TV productions back up and running as part of our Plan for Jobs, and it's right that we extend this to support even more jobs in the UK's creative industries."