Arts Council England Review – Have Your Say

An independent review of Arts Council England (ACE) was announced in December, offering a chance for a national conversation about the future of ACE and how creativity is supported moving forward.

We’re encouraging all artists, arts workers, and organisations to take part and share your views before the deadline, which has been extended to 30 June 2025. Complete the survey now.

It’s crucial that we all contribute to shaping the future of arts funding, ensuring a sustainable and thriving cultural landscape for years to come. Your voice matters!

Check out some of this month’s opportunities, the latest jobs and open calls in the East Midlands, or accessible to artists in the region: 

Haarlem Artspace: Perennial Open Call
Deadline Friday 16 May
please apply if you have a geographic (Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire), academic or spiritual connection to the town or the gallery.

Clore Leadership: Emerging Leaders
Deadline Thursday 22 May

Arts Council England: Developing Your Creative Practice
Deadline Thursday 22 May
£2,000-£12,000
This fund supports individual creative and cultural practitioners to focus on their development and take them to the next stage of their practice.

Nottingham Contemporary: Families Programme Manager
Deadline Thursday 22 May 

Two Queens: Artist Open Call
Deadline Sunday 25 May
Two Queens invites artists with a connection to Leicester/shire to submit their work for a new curated exhibition project.

Film London: FLAMIN Animations
Deadline Tuesday 27 May
FLAMIN Animations is a commissioning programme for early-career Black and global majority* artists working with animation.
£3,500 to create a new 3 minute animation (includes £500 fee for additional support with animation, e.g. colour, compositing etc.)

The Space: Commissioning Opportunity
Deadline Thursday 29 May
• Arts and cultural organisations based in England are invited to apply for funding for a digital creative project of between £5,000 and £16,000 inc. VAT (maximum funding for audio-only projects is £8,000 inc. VAT).
• Museums, libraries, community organisations and local councils are eligible to apply, providing the proposed project is culturally focused.
• This is an opportunity to develop and deliver a creative project for online or in-person audiences, using digital elements that your organisation has perhaps not worked with before.

Animate projects: Road Call for Artists
Deadline Thursday 29 May
Animate Projects invites expressions of interest from animation artists based in England to take part in our early career programme, Roam.
There is a £4,000 fee for each artist to cover all production costs and fees. Some additional travel expenses and creation of deliverables will be covered.

Film London: The FLAMIN Fellowship
Deadline Monday 2 June
Film London and Arts Council England present The FLAMIN Fellowship, a major development programme for early-career artist filmmakers living in England.
Development bursary of £2,500 towards a specific project

British Ceramics Biennial: Fresh 2025
Deadline Wednesday 4 June
Emerging artists are invited to apply for the 2025 British Ceramics Biennial Fresh exhibition, taking place in Stoke-on-Trent from 6 September to 19 October 2025.

Michael O’Pray Prize 2025
Deadline Friday 9 June
£750 prize for the winner.
£350 each for two further awardees.
All three awarded texts will be published online by Art Monthly and FVU.

Open School East: Open Call for Associate Artists 2025-26
Deadline Friday 20 June

ARTCRY Funding
Deadline rolling 

Creative Debuts: Black Artist Grants
Deadline rolling

Funding and Resources for UK Based Artists and Artist-Led Organisations
Funding signposting

White Pube Creatives Grant
Ongoing opportunity for working class creatives

The Uncultured: ACE Application Templates
Funding resource

Successful Funding Application Library
Developing resource