Individual Artist Grant 2025/26 ROUND 2 (Ards and North Down Borough Council)

Overview

Ards and North Down Borough Council 

INDIVIDUAL ARTIST GRANT 2025/26 - ROUND 2

ROUND 2 will be for opportunities taking place between 1 Aug 2025 - 31 March 2026

The aim of Ards and North Down Borough Council’s Individual Artists Grant is to enhance professional development across all artforms through funding for short term courses/residencies/development opportunities.

Artists aged 21 years or under should apply to the Youth Arts Training Grant. Please be advised that as this is a different grant stream, it may not have a second round of funding available.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

To be eligible you must meet all of the following criteria:

• Resident within Ards and North Down Borough Council area.
• A practicing professional artist in any art form including; visual art, applied art, multi-media, music, dance, drama, literature, etc.
• Applying to or have been accepted or invited onto a course/residency/development opportunity.

WHAT TYPE OF COURSE/TRAINING OR RESIDENCY* IS SUITABLE?

Those:

• that improve technical skills which relate to the artist’s professional art practice
• that improve the artist’s ability to manage their professional art practice
• that develop new skills which support the artist’s professional art practice

*Please Note: If the opportunity that you are applying to is an artist's residency, please be advised that we have an Arts Residency Bursary Programme to the Tyrone Guthrie Centre, Ballinglen Arts Foundation, and the John Hewitt Summer School. If you wish to apply to any of the residencies listed, please apply through Ards and North Down Borough Council's Arts Bursary Programme** (linked below) as your application will not be considered through the Individual Artist funding stream. Please note the earlier deadline of 30 January 2025.

**Arts Bursary Programme: andculture.org.uk/funding/bursaries Please be advised that as this is a different funding stream, there may not be a second round of bursaries available.

WHAT IS AVAILABLE?

A maximum grant of £250 is available. 

CRITERIA

Please read the full Individual Artist Grant Criteria document linked at the bottom of this page (can also be downloaded under the heading "Related") before completing your application.

SUPPORT MATERIAL

It is recommended that you compile the essential documentation in the following formats before completing your application online, ready to be uploaded:

• Up-to-date CV (PDF or Word format ONLY)
• Supporting materials* in the following formats where applicable (Images no less than 1MB each in JPEG or PNG format ONLY, audio files no more than 60 seconds in length and under 25MB, video files no more than 60 seconds in length and under 25MB, publications / examples of writing as one PDF or Word document ONLY)
• Course/residency/development opportunity programme/information/itinerary (PDF or Word format ONLY)
• Receipts/invoices/evidence of costs (PDF or Word format ONLY)
• Further information relating to the course/residency/development opportunity (PDF or Word format ONLY)

*Supporting Materials:

Visual Artists/Craftspeople may provide up to 6 high quality images of their work which should be of high quality/resolution and clearly demonstrate the work. If you require further information on photographing your artwork, see page 4.

Performing artists may provide up to 6 audio or video files no more than 60 seconds in length each, and under 25MB.

Writers may provide up to 6 examples of writing no more than one page in length per example.

Failure to supply the requested essential documentation, or in the formats as stated, at time of application will result in your application not being assessed.

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Monday 9 June 2025, 11:59pm (sharp)

Please Note: Application form will shut at 11:59pm precisely and incomplete applications will be lost, and therefore not received or accepted.

You are encouraged to complete your application at your earliest convenience and not on the date of the deadline in case you encounter internet or connection issues. 

Please ensure that you leave sufficient time before the deadline to complete all questions, and upload all supporting documents to the application form.

IMPORTANT

It is recommended that before submitting your application that you click the 'save and come back later' button at the bottom left of each page. This will save your work allowing you to return to it. You will need to complete each question on that page before you can save the work or move on to the next page. If you submit your application without saving your work, and you experience an IT issue or loss of internet connection, your work will be lost and you will have to start again. 

PLEASE NOTE

If you require special assistance with this application process, require a one-to-one telephone/video meeting for advice, or would prefer to complete a Word version of this application, please contact us before the deadline (no later than 12noon, Monday 2 June 2025) to allow adequate time for this to be arranged. 

Email: artsgrants@ardsandnorthdown.gov.uk for more information.

Once applicants have successfully submitted their proposal on the system, they will receive an automated acknowledgement email with their unique reference number. Please check your junk folder. If you do not receive this email, then your application has not been submitted.

If you experience any problems with this online application form, please contact Ards Arts Centre before the deadline: arts@ardsandnorthdown.gov.uk