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

National Regional Arts Broadband Forum

Recently I was fortunate enough to be invited to be one of fifty observers to the National Regional Arts Broadband Forum, organized by Regional Arts Australia, at Parliament House, Canberra.

Twenty speakers representing a range of stakeholders including; NBN Co, ABC Television, the tertiary education sector, new media, regional and Aboriginal arts organizations, discussed an open response to the question – How will better access to broadband enable the arts to help build stronger communities?

Much of the conversation centred on the impact NBN services will have on education services and creative enterprise/opportunity. By removing distance and isolation from the equation, clearly, more people will be able to participate either as ‘makers’ or as ‘audience’. In nurturing this ‘market share’, speakers stressed the need for players to partner and connect, to metaphorically create broadband like links, in support of what can be achieved.

The Hon Simon Crean MP, Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government & Minister for the Arts also addressed the forum. He strongly articulated arts related broadband opportunity in the context of community cultural, social and economic benefit. His vision of a connected future emphasised the need for arts related participation to be found at ‘intersections’ throughout the community. He unambiguously sees the arts as a major player in regional development, lifestyle and service provision and that this role will be enhanced by the NBN.

In health and education, across local government, within community and social services and throughout the private sector ‘cultural’ intersections already exist. As many readers of this blog know, in regional Australia, museums, galleries, theatres, conservatoriums and Aboriginal cultural centres are often found at the centre of what people do. Programs they run actively seek to connect and ‘tap the talent out there’, a role Crean emphasised in commenting on the two way nature of broadband – the ability to upload shouldn’t be forgotten.

In the not to distant future, Regional Arts Australia will be publishing a more detailed account of proceedings. Hopefully we will be able to publish it (or a link to it) on our website so stay tuned and in regard to the NBN, think big!

Michael Rolfe

Visiting The Willows and Boorabee

A visit to The Willows and the spectacular Severn River Gorge was the absolute highlight of a recent trip to the New England area for M&G NSW CEO Michael Rolfe and myself.

The Willows and the adjoining Boorabee property form a 2900 hectare Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) gazetted in March 2010 and one of only five in NSW.

It has an abundance of rare native wildflower and bird species and, if you are lucky, you might spot a Koala or three. The Koala is a totem of the local Ngoorabul people and they have ambitions to slowly develop the area as a koala sanctuary.

There is a cluster of huts offering basic accommodation that some fortunate school groups and others have used occasionally. Glen Innes Local Aboriginal Land Council plans to makes some improvements to these and the caretaker’s house. Three local Aboriginal Rangers are employed part time on the property under the Caring for Country program, there’s certainly plenty to do!

The Cooramah Aboriginal Cultural centre in town, also run by the LALC, is closed to the public at the moment, thought the café space is leased and the separate youth centre building is popular and busy.

The links to land and culture through the IPA is a priority and hopefully at some stage Cooramah can reopen to showcase this through artworks, photos and displays for those who can’t access this beautiful part of the world.

Steve Miller