Press release: UK Jazz in Crisis: Musician and Broadcaster Joe Stilgoe Launches National Movement to Save Britain’s Jazz Clubs Backed by Guy Barker, Claire Martin OBE, Ian Shaw, Sally Greene, and other leading voices

London, UK – Joe Stilgoe, acclaimed musician, singer, and broadcaster known for bringing a modern energy to jazz and swing, has launched a national movement to protect the UK’s jazz clubs. Joined by leading figures such as trumpeter and composer Guy Barker, celebrated vocalist Claire Martin OBE, broadcaster and singer Ian Shaw, and Ronnie Scott’s owner Sally Greene, Stilgoe is calling for urgent action to save these vital cultural spaces before they disappear.

In an open letter to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Lisa Nandy, Stilgoe and his co-signatories highlight the systemic underfunding and growing financial pressures that are pushing many grassroots venues to the brink.

The letter can be viewed on his Instagram page - https://www.instagram.com/thejoestilgoe/

 

“Every time a jazz club closes, it rips the soul out of the community,” says Joe. “These places are where musicians cut their teeth, where audiences fall in love with the music, and where communities come together. If we don’t act now, we risk losing not just venues, but the next generation of British jazz talent.”

The crisis in numbers

• Funding gap: Jazz receives just 2% of Arts Council England’s live music funding, compared to 49% for opera (Source: Review of Jazz in England, All-Party Parliamentary Jazz Group/Chris Hodgkins).
• Economic contribution: UK music venues add over £500 million to the economy each year while operating on margins of less than 0.5% (Source: Music Venues Trust Annual Report, 2024).
• Community impact: Jazz clubs provide inclusive, seated environments vital for the 24% of the UK population registered as disabled (Source: Office for National Statistics).
• Job losses: The wider hospitality sector has seen 84,000 job losses since October 2024, with a predicted total of 200,000 jobs lost by the end of 2025 (Source: London’s Night-Time Economy – Economy, Culture and Skills Committee, February 2025).

For Stilgoe, the issue is personal. The recent closure of Kansas Smitty’s, the much-loved East London bar co-founded by clarinettist Giacomo Smith, was a painful reminder of how vulnerable these spaces are, no matter how beloved. It was in venues like this that Stilgoe and many of his peers learned their craft, built communities, and developed the relationships that underpin today’s vibrant British jazz scene.

That sense of loss, and of wanting to celebrate the cultural importance of these spaces, quietly influenced Stilgoe’s latest project, Joe Stilgoe and the Entertainers. The collaboration, featuring Smith and other leading musicians, is described by Stilgoe as “a love letter to jazz clubs everywhere – the smoky rooms, the audiences who keep coming back, and the joy of live music.”

The campaign calls for three urgent steps to protect the future of live jazz in the UK:

1. Fair access to arts funding so jazz can survive and grow.
2. Recognition of jazz within national cultural policy, reflecting its role in Britain’s music economy.
3. Support for grassroots venues, similar to that provided to classical institutions, to safeguard the future of live jazz.

“Britain has given the world some incredible jazz musicians, from the pioneers of the 1960s to new stars like Ezra Collective, who just made history winning a Brit Award,” Joe adds. “None of that would have been possible without the clubs that nurtured them. Those venues are the lifeblood of our music, and they need our help.”

Joe and his co-signatories have requested an urgent meeting with the Secretary of State to discuss integrating jazz into the UK’s cultural strategy and ensuring these vital venues remain a cornerstone of Britain’s cultural and economic landscape.