A community arts centre could close if vital short-term funding is not found.

The Ropetackle Arts Centre, in Shoreham, needs £10,000 to ensure the centre remains open until at least April.

Martin Allen, a trustee of the centre, said: "We are a registered charity and if we couldn't get the money the centre would have to close."

Mr Allen, a lawyer, described the situation as a "cash flow problem" and that the money was to see it through to April, when ticket revenue from events such as the Adur Festival, is expected to stabilise the centre's finances.

Before then, Mr Allen said the board of the Ropetackle trust, which runs the centre, would be looking at various grants and sponsorship from local businesses to possibly plug the gap.

He also added that a lifeline could be sought from renegotiating some of the centre's debt repayments to creditors such as Adur District Council.

It costs £50,000 a year to run the centre and the trust had applied for the money through a council grant - which will be formally decided in April.

Mr Martin said that a councillor, who he did not wish to named, had told the trustees they would be turned down.

He said: "We are surprised and disappointed that we didn't get the funding but we are asking the council to help us still because there may be other funds available.

"We need these funds to help us through."

A council spokeswoman said: "Adur Council has a grant budget of £51,000 for community development projects which are in line with the council's priorities and we received 19 applications for a slice of this money.

"No formal decisions have been made about who will or will not get a grant as the process is still ongoing and the outcome is expected to be announced mid April 2008."

The £500,000 Ropetackle Arts Centre, which seats 200 people, opened in September and is a key venue in the Adur Festival, which runs between May 30 and June 15.

It was paid through a planning gain agreement with Berkeley Homes, which was behind the Ropetackle development.

Mr Allen admitted the nature of how the centre came about had proved troublesome.

He said: "The underlying problem is there's not been a real strategy from the outset in how the centre could be funded because it's not going to be able to be self sufficient financially."

He added that a professional management team was now in place at the centre and that its first full programme of events was underway, so that revenue from ticket sales should be much better in the future.

What do you think about the funding crisis?