Jazz Agency grant commission
Guidance for applicants
Section one: Introduction
Welcome ............................................................................................................. 2
Context ................................................................................................................ 3
Desired outcomes .............................................................................................. 4
Section two: How to apply ................................................................ 6
Who can apply .................................................................................................... 6
Eligibility statement ........................................................................................... 6
What funds are available ................................................................................... 7
How to apply ....................................................................................................... 7
Section three: How we will make our decision ............................... 9
How we will assess your proposal ................................................................. 10
Checklist ........................................................................................................... 10
Process and timeline ....................................................................................... 11
Notification ....................................................................................................... 11
Section four: Freedom of information ............................................. 12
Complaints procedure ..................................................................................... 12
Freedom of Information Act ............................................................................ 12
Data protection ................................................................................................. 12
Section five: Declaration ................................................................. 13
Section one: Introduction
Welcome
Thank you for your interest in the North Area jazz development commissioned
grant programme. This guidance gives you information needed to make an
application to become the provider for the delivery of the Arts Council’s North Area
jazz development programme.
Arts Council England champions, develops and invests in artistic and cultural
experiences that enrich people’s lives. We support a range of activities across the
arts, museums and libraries – from theatre to digital art, reading to dance, music to
literature, and crafts to collections.
Great art and culture inspires us, brings us together and teaches us about
ourselves and the world around us. In short, it makes life better. Between 2011
and 2015, we will invest £1.4 billion of public money from government and an
estimated £0.85 billion from the National Lottery to help create these experiences
for as many people as possible across the country.
From 1 October 2011, we added museums and libraries to our remit. As with the
arts, this will see us championing, developing and investing in museums and
libraries.
www.artscouncil.org.uk
Arts Council England recognises the value of jazz and the role it plays in the music
scene in the North. As such, Arts Council England wishes to strategically invest in
order to achieve the most effective support for jazz. Arts Council England is
therefore commissioning an organisation to develop jazz across the North East,
North West and Yorkshire.
The successful agency should support the existing jazz sector and lead the
development of both artform and audience. Its ambition will be for the North to be
recognised nationally and internationally as a place for jazz artists to reside and
develop their practice. In short, to make the North a recognised hub for jazz.
This brief identifies broad outcomes that the Arts Council wishes to see achieved
through supporting a single delivery agency for development services to the jazz
sector across the North from October 2012 to March 2015. This brief is informed
by our ten-year strategy, Achieving great art for everyone
We have up to £190,000 to invest annually for three years from October 2012 to
March 2015 (2012/13 pro rata) to support an organisation to deliver against the
outcomes specified below. Interested parties are invited to respond to this brief
setting out what they propose to deliver in terms of activity and against the desired
outcomes over the period. Delivery plans should commence in October 2012.
Support will be in the form of a grant from Arts Council England. Reporting
requirements on achievement against the outcomes will be specified within a grant
offer and a copy of our standard terms and conditions are available here.
Context
The successful organisation will deliver initiatives, based on sector knowledge and
credibility, which contribute to Achieving great art for everyone. It will present a
strategy-driven programme of activity which builds upon the strengths of the
northern jazz ecology. Strengths include, but are not limited to: an excellent range
of emerging and early career artists (from individuals, to small groups to
composer-led jazz orchestras); a culture of artistically-led experimentalism; a wide
range of venues, festivals and showcasing opportunities; some clear talent
development routes; and some strong networks of voluntary-led promoters.
There remain, however, a number of challenges to the sector that the successful
organisation will need to address. There is potential for partnership development
to bring new investment to the sector, in order to increase its capacity and profile.
There is a decreasing number of applications from the jazz sector to Arts Council
England’s open access Grants for the arts programme, although success rates for
applications have remained constant.
The successful organisation will demonstrate a broad, sophisticated understanding
of jazz, and will demonstrate an artistically led approach to diversity through its
work, informed by Arts Council England’s Creative Case, enabling connections
with other forms of music and art. For example, there is potential to build
opportunities for artists and audiences through the connections between jazz and
other music of Black origin, as well as through the role of improvising across music
traditions.
Educational institutions, arts organisations, music services and Youth Music Action
Zones all make important but largely independent contributions to jazz education.
Some also play a key role in talent development and attracting musicians to the
region. However, there has been a decline in the number of young people playing
brass instruments in jazz compared with brass band and orchestral sectors. The
successful organisation will maximise opportunities for the sector to play a key role
in music education, including music hubs, and to make connections between jazz,
the national curriculum and music provision.
The successful organisation will demonstrate an appropriate strategy for
development of new audiences for jazz which underpins its activity and addresses
challenges facing the sector. For example, despite some strong promoter
networks a number of promoters face issues of declining audiences. The
successful organisation will support the sector to increase the likelihood of people
engaging with jazz irrespective of their socio-economic or educational background
and enable more people, including families, to get involved as active participants.
The successful organisation will effectively distribute activity and resources across
the regions and develop appropriate partnerships and stakeholder relationships to
promote a distinctive northern jazz identity. It will act as a coordinating body by
engaging in strategic planning with appropriate partners, including national
portfolio organisations, to provide an effective link between the organisation’s own
initiatives and other agencies and their work. The successful organisation will
become an active part of national and international infrastructure for jazz.
The successful organisation will represent the distinctive jazz landscape of the
North, as well as acknowledge the particular unique elements within the North
East, North West and Yorkshire. It will identify and respond to opportunities which
develop the northern jazz offer, and create a focal point for jazz artists and
audiences, in order to tell a compelling story for jazz in the North.
Desired Outcomes
Artist development
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An increased take-up of training and professional development opportunities,
including that from higher education into professional practice
An increase in progression by emerging artists from a range of backgrounds
into professional practice
Increased performance opportunities for northern artists
New partnerships (eg between venues/festivals and artists) which deliver
opportunities for new work to be created, presented and toured
Networks and sector development
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An increased profile and public awareness for jazz in the North
Networks which enable collaboration and the sharing of knowledge and skills
across the voluntary and professional jazz sectors
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Partnerships with relevant networks outside of jazz eg classical, folk, rural
touring
More developed skills, capacity, sustainability and resilience within the
voluntary and grass-roots jazz sector
Increased access by musicians, promoters, venues and festivals to specialist
advice and guidance on how to develop their activity eg fundraising, training
and professional development, signposting to appropriate national and
international sources of information
An increased number of high quality jazz projects supported by Grants for the
arts
Audience development
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Increased audiences for jazz, especially for northern jazz artists
The development of new audiences for jazz
Children and young people
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Partnerships which demonstrably increase jazz education activity in the North
Increased opportunities for young people as audiences and practitioners of
jazz eg through partnerships with Bridge organisations, Youth Music, local
authority music hubs, etc.
Section two: How to apply
Who can apply?
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Individual organisations or consortia, from the arts or non-arts sectors, which
can meet the aims and objectives of the work are eligible to apply
Arts Council national portfolio organisations and other funded organisations
which can demonstrate appropriate experience and jazz expertise. National
portfolio organisations would need to demonstrate that the activity is additional
to their agreed national portfolio organisation activity
We cannot give grants to organisations that share out profits to members or
shareholders; unless the activity applied for is a self-contained, financially ringfenced arts project with a clear benefit to the public. No grant funds can
contribute to an organisation’s profits. Applicants should also ensure they
comply with current regulations on state aid
Applicants must be properly constituted as an organisation. The kinds of
organisations which are eligible to apply include:
o Limited companies registered at Companies House
o Community Interest Companies registered with the CIC Regulator
o Charities or Trusts registered with the Charity Commission
o Limited Liability Partnerships registered at Companies House
o Partnerships established under a Deed of Partnership
o Industrial & Provident Societies or Community Benefit Societies subject to
regulation by the FSA
o Royal Charter Companies
o Statutory Bodies
Eligibility statement
To help us process your application efficiently, you will need to provide an
eligibility statement. At the beginning of your written proposal you should include a
statement that confirms the answers to the following questions about your
application:
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Are you an organisation or consortia of organisations with a registered office in
England or Wales?
Please supply the postcodes of all organisations that form part of your bid.
Are you applying on behalf of an organisation that engages people in England
in arts activities or helps artists or arts organisations, museums and libraries to
carry out their work?
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Your activity must demonstrably benefit the three northern Arts Council
regions: North East, North West and Yorkshire
If your organisation shares profits to members or shareholders, you must read
the guidance and comply with conditions relating to grants and profit
distributing organisations.
What funds are available?
We have up to £190,000 to invest annually for three years from October 2012 to
March 2015 (2012/13 pro rata) to support an organisation to deliver against the
outcomes specified in this brief.
Year one: 1 October 2012 to 31 March 2013 (up to £95,000 available)
Year two: 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014 (up to £190,000 available)
Year three: 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015 (up to £190,000 available)
Delivery plans should commence in October 2012. Support will be in the form of a
grant from Arts Council England. Reporting requirements on achievement against
the outcomes will be specified within a grant offer and a copy of our standard
terms and conditions are available here.
How to apply
There are a few easy steps to applying to the northern jazz development grant
commission:
Read this guidance carefully
This guidance gives you information on how to apply for funding and answers
some common questions.
Prepare your written proposal
Prepare your proposal to tell us about your approach. You must apply by
submitting a written proposal to us outlining how you propose to meet the
objectives set out in this guidance using the following headings:
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Proposed delivery against outcomes
Financial sustainability
Management/governance
Expertise and credibility
Partnerships
Clarity of vision and future ambitions
Your proposal should contain no more than 3000 words.
Prepare your budget
Prepare your budgets for each of the financial years reflecting the proposed
activity and how much funding you are applying for in each year. We would expect
a detailed budget for year one and outline budgets for years two and three.
Submit your proposal
 Your completed proposal should be emailed along with the signed and
scanned declaration (page 13) to lee.hall@artscouncil.org.uk The proposal
should be electronically submitted as one document and must not exceed
10MB
 The deadline for applications is 5pm on Monday 27 February 2012
 You will receive an acknowledgement email confirming that we have
successfully received your application.
Assistance if you have a disability
We can help you apply if you are disabled, deaf or have learning difficulties. To
make sure we can support deaf and disabled applicants in a meaningful way, we
will agree the help we can provide on a flexible and individual basis.
If you need assistance or wish to request this pack in another format, please
contact our Enquiries team by email to enquiries@artscouncil.org.uk, textphone:
020 7973 6564 or telephone 0845 300 6200 and they will make the necessary
arrangements.
Section three: How we will make our decision
How we will assess your submission
A single delivery body will be selected based on the strength of the proposal and
budget. The delivery body may deliver the jazz agency role as a whole or as a part
of its organisational activity. Your application will be assessed against the following
criteria:
Written proposal
1.
Proposed delivery against outcomes
The successful organisation will demonstrate a robust, strategic delivery plan
which clearly explains how it will meet the outcomes described in the brief. It will
need to define the outputs used to arrive at the outcomes as well as demonstrate
how activity will be delivered across the North West, North East and Yorkshire
regions.
The delivery plan will need to contain a fit-for-purpose evaluation model and
explain how success will be measured. The evaluation mechanism will need to be
SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely)
2.
Financial sustainability
Organisations should be financially sustainable and have appropriate financial
controls in place able to deliver effectively against the outcomes specified in this
brief. Consideration will also be given to value for money. Consideration will also
be given to the extent in which the financial sustainability of the organisation
present risks to its ability to contribute to the outcomes listed in this brief. The
successful organisation will not be eligible for additional funding from Grants for
the arts.
3.
Management/governance
Organisations should be able to demonstrate appropriate governance, leadership
and management to deliver against the outcomes specified in this brief. The
successful organisation should demonstrate quality of the staff and any key
delivery partners in relation to their role in the project.
4. Expertise and credibility
The successful organisation will demonstrate a broad and sophisticated
knowledge and understanding of jazz, both as an artform and as ecology within
the different regions in the north. It will need to demonstrate credibility within the
sector and a strong track record of relevant activity. It will also need to
demonstrate that delivery agents are appropriate for the activity proposed.
5. Partnerships
The successful organisation will demonstrate existing and proposed buy-in from
relevant partners and networks as well as experience of encouraging successful
collaborations between organisations of different scales and with stakeholders with
differing expectations.
6. Clarity of vision and future ambitions
The successful organisation will demonstrate a clear understanding of the context
and relevant issues facing the jazz sector within the north. It will understand of role
of other jazz national portfolio organisations and where they fit in. It will set out a
clear vision as to current priorities and future ambitions.
Budgets
The successful organisation will demonstrate a fit for purpose budget against
proposed activity. Applicants should provide a planned budget for year one
(2012/13) and outline budgets for years two and three (2013/14 and 2014/15). It is
up to applicants to detail the required funding in each year.
Checklist: what your proposal must include
If your application does not contain the information we need in the format we ask
for it to be in, we will return your application with a letter outlining why we have
been unable to accept it.
Documentation
1
Eligibility statement
2
Name of the lead applicant
3
Contact details for the lead applicant including postal
address, contact telephone number and email address
4
Details of the other partners if this is a consortium bid
5
Details of the geographical coverage of your activity
6
A detailed activity plan following the headings provided in
the how to apply section
Included?
yes/no
Proposed delivery against outcomes
Financial sustainability
Management/governance
Expertise and credibility
Partnerships
Clarity of vision and future ambitions
7
Budget for each financial year
8
Signed and dated declaration form (see section seven)
Process and timeline
Commissioning briefs launched
7 December 2011
Deadline for submissions
27 February 2012
Announcement of our decision
2 April 2012
Launch of northern jazz development role
1 October 2012
Notification
Applicants will be informed of our decisions by email on 2 April 2012.
We will work with the successful applicant to agree a final programme of delivery.
Section four: freedom of information
Complaints procedure
If you are not happy with the way we dealt with your application, please contact us
and we will discuss this with you. If you are still unhappy, you can ask us for a
copy of our complaints procedure. Details are available on our website at Making a
complaint or by contacting our Enquiries team by email to
enquiries@artscouncil.org.uk or by phoning 0845 300 6200. Please note that you
can only complain if you believe we have not followed our published procedures
when assessing your application. You cannot appeal against the decision.
Freedom of Information Act
The Arts Council is committed to being as open as possible. We believe that the
public has a right to know how we spend public funds and how we make our
funding decisions.
We are also listed as a public authority under the Freedom of Information Act
2000. By law, we may have to provide your application documents and information
about our assessment to any member of the public who asks for them under the
Freedom of Information Act 2000.
We may not release those parts of the documents which are covered by one or
more of the exemptions under the Act. Please see the Freedom of Information
website at www.foi.gov.uk for information about freedom of information generally
and the exemptions.
We will not release any information about applications during the assessment
period, as this may interfere with the decision-making process.
Data protection
As a public organisation we have to follow the Data Protection Act 1998 and the
Freedom of Information Act 2000. We have a data protection policy which is
available from our website.
Contact us
Please contact our Enquiries team who will then direct you to an appropriate
person.
Telephone: 0845 300 6200
Section five: declaration
Please sign and scan this declaration and send it with your proposal.
I confirm that the organisation named on this application has given me the
authority to sign this application on its behalf.
I confirm that the activity in the application falls within the powers of the
organisation's constitution or memorandum and articles of association (the legal
document setting out the rules governing the organisation).
I confirm that, as far as I know, the information in this proposal is true and correct.
______________________________ Print Name (lead applicant)
______________________________ Signature (lead applicant)
______________________________ Date