THE PAUL HAMLYN FOUNDATION ARTS FUND
Revenue grants of between £90,000 and £300,000 over 3 years are available to UK charitable organisations and social enterprises that recognise and act on the potential of the arts to achieve personal, cultural and social transformation.
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o Application deadline: the next application window opens on Monday 4th November 2024 and has a deadline for applications of FRIDAY 31st JANUARY 2025 at 12 noon (midday).
o Funder: The Paul Hamlyn Foundation (founded 2004. Charity number 1102927. Total charitable expenditure for the year ended 31 March 2023: £54,374,779 (2022: £52,373,157)).
o Who can apply: UK registered charities and Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs), unincorporated organisations, Community Interest Companies (CICs), Industrial and Provident Societies, as well as companies that are limited by shares and guarantee.
o Key words: Arts, Crafts, Creative Writing (including Poetry), Dance, Design, Film, Music, Opera, Photography, Digital Arts & Media, Theatre and Drama, the Visual Arts and Cross-Arts Practices, Personal, Cultural and Social Transformation, Social Justice and Responsibility, United Kingdom.
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We expect the next round of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation’s Arts Fund to be the most competitive yet and have therefore decided to advertise the scheme before the application window opens on Monday 4th November 2024. This is in order that agencies interested in applying have more time to prepare their proposal. Full details about the programme are available on the Foundation’s website.
The Paul Hamlyn Foundation sees culture as the heart of a just society, where all people and communities have a right to express themselves through art and culture. It believes that art and artists can help people see the world differently, bringing unheard stories and narratives to the fore and opening up new imaginative possibilities. To realise this potential, the Foundation believes the sector needs long-term structural and cultural change.
The Foundation’s Art Fund is a revenue grant scheme that aims to support a portfolio of organisations who represent this change to develop, learn from each other and further explore the potential of art for personal, cultural and social transformation. It wants to:
o Build capacity and resources for culture within historically underfunded communities.
o Explore the role that artists can play in addressing issues of social justice, and
o Create the infrastructure for a more equitable cultural sector.
It is looking to work with organisations for whom these aspirations are central to their vision and mission. The Arts Fund supports the long-term development and transformation of these organisations as a route towards social justice and sustainability.
The Fund is focused on supporting organisations to become more sustainable and to deepen the impact of their work. This can include:
o Support for specific posts.
o Skills development.
o Underpinning of the strategy or business model, and
o Project delivery which is central to an organisation’s mission and vision.
The Foundation’s definition of ‘arts’ includes crafts, creative writing (including poetry), dance, design, film, music, opera, photography, digital arts and media, theatre and drama, the visual arts and cross-arts practices.
The Arts Fund will support eligible organisations (see list above) who:
o Use their creative practice to help us engage with the complexity of the world around us.
o Centre the lived experience of those affected by injustice in their programmes, leadership and governance.
o Are exploring how values of care, equity and justice can be embedded in their own organisational culture.
o Have a clear sense of their own role in supporting change as part of a wider ecosystem.
o Are generous with their learning and working with other organisations towards mutual aims, and
o Use their creative practice to challenge traditional cultural hierarchies of genre and art form.
Revenue grants of between £90,000 and £300,000 are available for a period of 3 years. A bursary of up to £500 is also available to help organisations apply to the Fund. Grants can cover up to 50% of an organisation’s annual turnover over 3 years, based on their last published audited accounts.
A blog discussing some previously funded projects is provided on the Foundation’s website.
Funding is not available for:
o Work that is focused on entry-level employment pathways.
o Work which aims primarily to deliver targeted health, wellbeing, educational or public health outcomes.
o Academic research programmes.
o Organisations who work primarily in formal education settings.
o Newly registered organisations that have yet to produce independently audited or examined accounts.
o Individuals, or
o Capital projects and equipment purchase.
The application process is as follows:
1. Complete the online first stage application form, which opens on Monday 4th November 2024 with a deadline of Friday 31st January 2025 at 12pm (midday). If applicants have an organisational business plan and budget, they are asked to include it with the first stage application form.
2. All applicants are expected to receive a decision on their first stage application by Monday 31st March 2025, although this may vary depending on the volume of applications that the Arts Fund receives.
3. For applications that progress to the second round, the Foundation will make contact to arrange an conversation at a convenient time between April and June 2025 and request any additional information it needs. The Foundation will send applicants questions for the conversation in advance, and only request additional information that they already have and use.
4. It is anticipated that final decisions on grant awards will be announced by the end of June/beginning of July 2025.
The Foundation is likely to schedule one or more online Question and Answer sessions once the Fund opens in early November. Please check its website for updates.
Further information, guidance and details about how to apply to the Fund is available on the Foundation’s website.