British cultural bodies are set to receive VAT rebates totalling more than £100 million.

Hundreds of museums, theatres, art galleries and orchestras are expected to benefit from the victory won by the Bronte Society after a 10-year battle with Customs and Excise over the status of its Bronte Parsonage Museum in Haworth, West Yorkshire.

Robert Barnard, the Bronte Society's chairman, said that the money, which includes interest that would have been earned on the VAT payments, represented a "marvellous victory for the little man" over the taxman.