Deadline: 4-Apr-25
Applications are now open for the Blyth Celebrates Fund, an exciting opportunity for communities, organisations, artists, and creative practitioners to actively contribute to the Blyth Celebrates programme.
This fund is designed to support innovative and engaging projects that highlight Blyth’s vibrant culture and connect with local audiences.
Aims
- The aims of the fund are to:
- Increase participation in culture and arts among local people in Blyth, through access to creative activities, events, training, and volunteering opportunities.
- improve wellbeing among local people in Blyth and visitors, through new opportunities to engage in cultural activities and events.
- Boost local pride by celebrating the town’s distinctive culture and heritage, promoted and communicated within the town and to visitors
- Support community connectivity; building on the ideas and contribution of residents, improving links between local communities and the regeneration of the town.
Fund Strands
- The programme offers funding through three distinct funds, each tailored to different types of activities and applicants:
- Community Celebrations: This strand supports free, public outdoor events held in Blyth’s Market Place. Open to Blyth-based residents, artists, and local community groups, these events aim to bring people together and celebrate Blyth’s unique spirit.
- Awards ranging from £500 to £2,500
- Creative Spaces at the Market Pavilion: Designed for organisations and creative practitioners living in Blyth and beyond, this strand enables the delivery of cultural activities hosted in the creative spaces in the new Market Pavilion. These activities should foster community engagement and creativity.
- Awards ranging from £500 to £2,500
- Artist Commissions: This strand offers funding to artists and cultural organisations to create temporary artworks or interventions in and around Blyth’s town centre. These commissions are intended to inspire and enrich the local landscape.
- Awards up to £5,000
- Community Celebrations: This strand supports free, public outdoor events held in Blyth’s Market Place. Open to Blyth-based residents, artists, and local community groups, these events aim to bring people together and celebrate Blyth’s unique spirit.
Eligibility Criteria
- Community Celebrations: strand 1
- This strand is open to residents living in Blyth. This includes any residents, voluntary, community or not for profit group or organisation (including charities), social enterprises or community interest companies that are based in or that serves the communities of Blyth.
- They are particularly interested in activity that can take place in or around Blyth’s market place or in the town centre.
- Groups or organisations applying must be formally constituted. Constituted groups must have a nominated bank account to receive and manage the funds.
- Grants will be paid in advance, and no match funding is required.
- Creative Spaces: strand 2
- Open to organisations and creative practitioners living in Blyth and beyond.
- They are particularly interested in activity that fosters community engagement and creativity and want to attract practitioners who demonstrate an evidenced depth of experience in quality delivery
- Examples of the types of activity that could be delivered across the building:
- Training and skills: (technical accredited courses), masterclasses for the cultural sector by respected practitioners
- Wellbeing / creative health cultural programmes in drama, writing, singing, dance or photography / film making etc.
- Plays in a week: for young people to connect to the Studio space o Workshops: writing for comedy, writing for theatre, song writing, writing for film
- Family programmes: e.g. storytelling, puppet performances and children’s theatre
- Interactive installations: early years and SEND
- Grant payments will be issued on signing a grant award agreement with 80% paid upfront and the remaining 20% on submission of a satisfactory final project monitoring report and budget with evidence of defrayal.
- Artist Commissions: strand 3
- Open to all UK-based artists and creative practitioners / organisations
- Proposals are sought for ambitious temporary artworks and interventions within the timeframe outlined above and in and around Blyth’s town centre responding to the Blyth Celebrates programme themes.
- Applications must demonstrate previous relevant experience in creating temporary artwork in relation to communities and public spaces.
- They are looking for accessible and impactful work that resonates with a wide audience to stimulate imagination and reflects Blyth Celebrates overarching themes.
- Grant payments will be issued on signing a grant award agreement with 80% paid upfront and the remaining 20% on submission of a satisfactory final project monitoring report and budget with evidence of defrayal.
For more information, visit Northumberland County Council.