you haven't the patience, or you haven't the skill? Fundraising is a highly skilled area, but the funding itself is so skewed in particular directions that getting funding for programming in festivals is VERY difficult. I've managed to get £4k towards my programme, but I was very crafty. I was told at the outset of the consultation process that funding for programming in festivals is rare as hen's teeth. And anyway, any funding achieved is year-on-year (must be re-applied for, with no guarantee of renewal) and you have to prove that what you're doing in subsequent years represents "new activity". The only reprieve from this loop is to become a Regularly Funded Organisation, and that is VERY hard. So The organisers of Sidmouth could re-introduce the arena one year, and not be able to achieve the funding for the next. The application process is long and labour intensive. For large-scale fundraising you really need a dedicated member of staff - I doubt the current committee would be in a position to create such a post.

It is incredibly easy to be flippant about all of these issues; addressing them in any meaningful way is another matter.

BTW, I presume the "iniquities" of the funding system refers to grants like mine, as you took a sidelong swipe at it earlier. Well, I played the game. I looked at the Arts Council's priorities and criteria, I consulted with my local office, and made sure my project was fulfilling a need, which is essential to a successful application. The system may be imperfect, but the key is not to get bitter and negative and instead try to make good things happen within its confines.