Round 2: Opens 12 May and closes on 26 May (decisions by 28 July)
Early-career artists performance programmes
We are looking for high-quality programmes that support early-career artists to develop towards sustained professional performance. Applications may include programmes in Dance, Drama and Music.
We define early-career artists as those at the early stages of a professional arts career who have already demonstrated a clear commitment to their practice beyond an amateur or hobby level. Applicants should provide evidence of progression towards a sustained professional trajectory.
This round is intended to support structured programmes that lead to clear performance outcomes and professional development. We are not seeking participatory, educational or open-access activity. Applications focused on community learning programmes, youth participation programmes or general access programmes will not be considered.
A showcase (for example, a scratch performance, sharing of work-in-progress or end-of-course presentation) is not considered a professional performance outcome and will not be supported. We are looking for programmes that lead to substantive, public-facing performance outcomes demonstrating clear progression towards sustained professional practice.
Clarifying the scope of performance
This round is focused on structured programmes supporting live performance practice in Dance, Drama and Music, typically leading to public-facing performance outcomes in theatre, stage or concert settings.
The focus of this round is on the development of artists as live performers, supporting progression towards sustained professional practice.
While we recognise that many artforms and practices sit across disciplines, we are taking a relatively focused approach for this round. Applications primarily centred on recorded work, studio-based activity, or forms of music-making that do not focus on the development of artists as live performers of repertoire or original work in a stage or concert context are not the focus of this round.
Applications focused on other performance practices outside Dance, Drama and Music (for example spoken word, poetry and circus) will not be considered.
Applicants should consider carefully whether their work clearly aligns with the artforms and performance contexts outlined above before applying.
As with all our funding, we do not fund individuals directly.
Round 3: Opens 1 September and closes on 15 September (decisions by 17 November)
Children’s and young people’s music education (choirs are excluded)
We are interested in programmes which give children and young people opportunities to Learn, Create, Experience and Progress. We have a particular interest in applications which concentrate on teaching instrumental playing.
General guidance (applies to all rounds)
If your project does not align with the focus of a particular round, it will not be considered.
Applications must meet all eligibility requirements. If information provided at the eligibility stage is inaccurate, your application will be rejected.
Organisations may apply in successive rounds. However:
Please note that we do not support:
We are particularly keen to support small to medium-sized organisations, although larger charities are not excluded. Most grants are awarded to registered charities, but in exceptional circumstances we will consider applications from formally constituted community groups with clear charitable aims.
Grants will only be paid to an organisational bank account in the name of the applicant. Newly formed organisations should ensure that appropriate governance and banking arrangements are in place before applying.
We award both one-off and multi-year grants. Most funding supports project activity, although we may contribute to specific and restricted core costs for smaller organisations where this will have a meaningful impact.
