Arts Funding Worshops

Image by angusf from Flickr

This year Arts NSW and the Australia Council for the Arts combined to do a presentation on the their grants programs. They have been rolling it out as a road show across NSW so if there is one near you I encourage you to go as it is a great opportunity to hear direct form the funders about their programs. 

Contrary to myth, both of these bodies do want you to apply and want you to have the best chance at winning a grant. In some ways the odds are against you: for applicants to the Australia Council it is a bout 1 in five applications are successful. But you do have to be in it to win it

Here are some of the key tips they gave to writing a successful application

1/ Choose the Right Grant.

Check your eligibility and talk to the relevant person. Do some research and check out who has been previously awarded grants and what it was for. IF your not sure, or cant find the type of grant you are looking for then give them a call.

2/ Write in Plain English

Be concise. Be Direct. They want to know what you want to do, how you intend to do it and who will do it. This last point is important - briefly describing why the people involved are the best people for the task gives an assessment panel a sense of if the task will be completed

3/ Don't wait until the last minute.

A rushed application reads like ...well... a rushed application. If you can't plan to get the application done in a timely manner then it doesn't give a strong indication that you can manage the time line of your project.

4/ Budget!

There is an old saying "look after the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves".  (For those of you who were born after 1966 - use Google for an updated version). In your budget make sure that it balances: ie expenditure equals income. Make sure it adds up. Add notes to make it clear. Show all sources of funding. Included any "non cash" contribution.

5/ Support Materiel

Don't drown the poor assessors - each assessor is reading hundreds of applications  . Included the most relevant and potent materials/images that you can that support your case for why this project is important to you and your organisation and that you can deliver the project on time and on budget.

6/ Cut and Paste your application into the online applications

When writing your grant application do it in a word document and then cut and paste that into the on-line applications.  That way you will have solved all of your word count issues, spelling , grammar and its just a matter of publishing. Also should the system crash - you at least have a copy of your work!

7/ Visit the Website(s)

Each of the main funders list all their grants on their sites and provided a lot of information about each of the grants. It really is the quickest way to obtain a lot of information before you start writing..

Arts NSW 2012 Arts Funding Program Guidelines http://www.arts.nsw.gov.au/index.php/category/funding-and-support/

The Australia Council's 2011 Arts Funding Guide is http://www.australiacouncil.gov.au/grants

Finally don't forget that M&G NSW is also here help. Our friendly team is standing by to take your call! or you can visit our website http://mgnsw.org.au/grants/overview1111/

Michael Huxley