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Form of work
SalaryContract: Permanent, working 35 hours per week (Arts Council also recognises the benefit of flexible working as a valued part of the way we work, and welcome applications from individuals who require flexibility)
Salary: £60,488 per annum plus benefits including a final salary pension scheme, generous annual leave, and flexible and hybrid working.
Location: London (The role will be based at the office base listed; however, we are operating a hybrid way of working and support our staff to make use of remote working options when combined with regular on-site contact days with other members of the team, normally 1-2 days a week)
Thank you for your interest in joining the Arts Council.
Having launched our ambitious 10-year strategy Let’s Create, you find us at a moment of being able to celebrate all that the first Delivery Plan under that strategy has helped achieve between 2021 - 24. However, we are also keenly aware of the many challenges the cultural sector is currently facing.
As Director for Individual Practitioners and London, you will play a key role in developing our national ambitions whilst playing your part in a regional team. London, as our country’s capital and a global city, has a vital and exciting role to play in delivering this vision. London is England’s most diverse city. One of our challenges is that the artists, organisations and audiences that benefit from our funds don’t reflect this diversity. You will play an important role in helping us change this. We want people in London, from every community, to see themselves reflected in the work that we fund. We also want to help nurture the next generation of cultural practitioners, participants and audiences so our work with children and young people is a central part of our new Strategy.
As a Director in London you will have responsibility for leading the Visual Arts, Museums and New Technology and Innovation Team in London of approx. 10 staff who support activities and oversee a portfolio of visual art, museum and new technology organisations that receive regular funding from Arts Council.
You will be responsible for overseeing funding processes and decisions and leading our relationships with a range of stakeholders including the Greater London Authority, London Councils, local and national politicians, cultural organisations and their leaders and National Lottery distributors.
Along with the other London Area Directors, you will take a lead on addressing challenges and maximising opportunities in support of the city’s cultural sector, by taking responsibility, for example, for the overview of our work in a Priority Place, our relationships with the city’s universities, optimising affordable workspace, or other priorities in our annual operational plan for the London area.
As leader of the Arts Council’s work supporting Individual Practitioners nationally, you’ll take ownership of a key area of focus for the organisation. There hasn’t been a dedicated National Director post for this area of work to date, so it’s an opportunity to build on our existing commitments and activity, and to shape and deliver the future direction of our work in relation to the large and vital freelance part of the cultural sector.
There are significant opportunities and challenges facing freelancers, and evidence shows that, for many, it is a precarious career path. We recognise issues including a lack of a talent pipeline, particularly for those with under-represented protected characteristics and from a lower socio-economic background, pay and working conditions, and challenges in developing and sustaining careers. These issues span the artforms and disciplines we support and reach across the country.
The role will include being the programme lead for our Developing Your Creative Practice programme which currently has a £14m annual budget and ensuring that National Lottery Project Grants is as accommodating as possible to individual applicants and recipients.
Externally, there are opportunities to develop and strengthen partnerships and relationships, to listen and learn, to share and collaborate, and to improve the position for the freelance community working in the cultural sector in England. This will include working with key industry bodies, unions, other funders and government.
As well as sitting within the London Area Team, the post holder will also sit within our Policy Team, led by the Director, Strategy. You will work alongside colleagues focusing on Policy, Strategic Partnerships, Skills & Workforce and Business Development. You will be supported on the Individual Practitioners work by a 50% Senior Manager, Individuals.
You will have the support of your colleagues but will also have a high degree of autonomy to ensure the successful delivery of our strategy.
We are looking for candidates who know about and are passionate about culture in London and can lead on our policy agenda for Individual Practitioners nationally. Leadership experience in a complex organisation, at scale, is important, though you might have gained this outside of the cultural sector in a charity, local authority, creative industry or a grant-giver, for example.
This is an exciting and challenging role. Come and join us in creating a bold and inclusive future.
Equality Diversity and Inclusion Statement: Arts Council are committed to building an inclusive employer and workplace and recruiting a workforce that is as diverse as the communities we serve. However, you identify, and whatever background you bring with you, we welcome you to apply for a role at Arts Council.
If there are any adjustments that would help support you in your application, please do let us know when you apply. If you are disabled Evenbreak are able to provide support with your application, for further information please visit their website at here
Disabled, D/deaf and/or neurodivergent people and those from Black, Asian and Ethnically Diverse backgrounds are underrepresented in our workforce so we particularly encourage applications from people in these groups.
About us: Arts Council offers a range of benefits to our employees including hybrid and flexible working, a generous annual leave allowance and the Arts Council Retirement Plan - a final salary scheme. To find out more, click here.
Please note that, we are currently consulting on our Staff Code of Ethics and changes which will avoid conflicts of interest. The changes would mean that employees of the Arts Council would not be able to receive an Arts Council grant, investment or loan funding - either in person, as a member of a partnership, or for any organisation they own. There are also limitations on board or CEO positions employees can hold in organisations we fund. For more information on this, please talk to the recruiting manager or contact recruitment@artscouncil.org.uk
We believe our recruitment process should be inclusive and transparent. Find out what to expect with our application guidance and more about our commitment to diversity on our website here.
To view the recruitment pack and job description which outlines more details about working for Arts Council please click here
Job ref: LL69
Closing date: 12:00p.m. Tuesday 02 April 2024
1st Interviews (Virtual): Monday 15th or Tuesday 16th April
2nd Interviews (In person in London): Wednesday 1st May
Please note: We do NOT accept CV’s or cover letters as part of our recruitment process. If you require any documentation in an alternative format, please contact recruitment@artscouncil.org.uk
