Arts Council of Wales is seeking people to join as Arts Associates

Do you believe the arts can change lives?
Do you believe they should be available to all?

For the Benefit of All sets out the ambitions of Arts Council of Wales through to 2023.

We are creating a new way people can get involved in this work. These will be important years for shaping the contribution the arts are making in contemporary Wales, and we are seeking expertise from the sector to inform and challenge this process.

Arts Council of Wales has specialist officers who provide knowledge and expertise in the arts, but the arts never stand still and we recognise that to supplement our knowledge and inform our thinking, we need to collaborate with people with experience and challenging imaginations and perspectives. Often this will come from a variety of artists themselves lending their experience and expertise or from people involved in communities or areas of work where the arts are developing their role. Critically for the ambitions of For the Benefit of All to be realised we need the make up our Associates to be diverse and activist in outlook.

Your Role as an Arts Associate of the Arts Council of Wales

• You would be participating in our various Sector Development Groups devoted to art forms and to ways of working in the arts.
• You could be involved in Grant Decision Groups in the way we have had artists and other creative professionals participating in our Creative Wales programme. We are currently consulting on future approaches to our work via National Lottery Funding
• Widening engagement is a significant priority for the Council. We would be seeking Arts Associates’ participation in how we will achieve greater reach through communities where access to the arts can be more developed and our equalities and inclusivity agenda strengthened.
• We will want our Arts Associates to participate in workshop or conference activity and our programme of Sgwrs/ Creative Conversations.
• Occasionally we will use Arts Associates in conjunction with internal Task and Finish Groups addressing particular issues for the development of the arts providing advice to officers and Council.
• We want this to be an engaging involvement with us and the organisations we fund and develop. Our Sector Development Groups may identify particular engagement we would want an Arts Associate to take up with one or more organisations in the various sectors.
• We will need some Associates who are experienced in international working and can offer particular expertise to our Cymru Yn Fenis Wales in Venice Advisory Committee and potential occasional project management of international arts activity.Some practical matters

  Remuneration for half day or whole day sessions involving Arts Associates will be based pro rata on a £300 day (£150 per half day) fee. Some activities will only attract expenses ( such as attendance at Annual Conferences or more general regionally based Sgwrs or Creative Conversations.) Our travel and subsistence policy and allowances are based on Welsh Government rates and will be available to selected Associates).

  We need to assure we have Arts Associates who can advance our work supporting Welsh language culture.

  We will be looking to have a geographical spread of Associates throughout Wales. Overall time commitment could be up to 10 days in a calendar year on average.

You will still be able to apply for other work offered by Arts Council of Wales during this period. Being an Arts Associate will not disqualify you from applying individually or being part of an organisation applying for an Arts Council grant.

Interested?

You can make your expression of interest in a variety of ways at this stage. We need a short biography and a statement of interest in the role. This can take any form, written, spoken or filmed) (maximum 500 words or 3 minutes spoken or filmed.)

A series of selection workshops will be programmed in the New Year to finalise invitations to individuals to become an Arts Council of Wales Arts Associate – 22 January (in Swansea) 23rd January (in Wrexham).

Nawr Yr Arwr / Now The Hero, Brangwyn Hall, Swansea (image: Warren Orchard)