Art Fund Reimagine Grants Programme (United Kingdom)

Priority Areas

• Their priority areas are:
  • Activity related to exhibitions or collections designed to engage underrepresented audiences or to grow audiences.
  • Initiatives that support organisations to deliver on environmental sustainability/responsibility.
  • New or strengthened partnerships between museums, galleries and arts organisations.
  • Strategic partnerships with organisations outside the sector (e.g. in health, education, community or commercial settings).

Funding Information

• Through this programme they can offer grants of £10,000 up to £50,000.
• Generally, Reimagine projects last up to two years.

Eligible Projects

• By way of example, funded projects might include:
  • Joint programming or knowledge and skills-sharing via a professional network.
  • Reviews of services, departments, spaces or assets to identify new approaches to delivery.
  • Shared training, resources or wellbeing offers for staff and volunteers to boost skills, morale and retention over the longer-term
  • New advocacy or advisory groups, or toolkits and updated best practice guidance for the sector.
  • Joint initiatives that deliver on environmental sustainability/responsibility.
  • Co-production or co-curation of exhibitions with community groups.
  • Increasing access to and use of collections through innovative partnerships or activities.
  • Partnering with external agencies or specialists to promote existing activities or identify new opportunities.

Eligibility Criteria

• Their funding is available to formally constituted, not-for-profit organisations.
• Many organisations they support will hold collections, which may include fine and applied art and design, archaeology and/or social history. They will also be committed to delivering activity that increases public access to these collections, which has public benefit and aligns with Art Fund’s charitable objectives.
• Organisations without collections need to be committed to delivering activity that increases public access to the visual arts. These activities must provide public benefit and align with Art Fund’s charitable objectives.
• Organisations may include, but are not restricted to, museums, galleries and historic houses. Subject Specialist Networks (SSNs) and other professional networks can be involved in Reimagine projects, but they will not be eligible to lead on applications in 2024.
• You can apply as a single institution, in a partnership, or with a collective.
• They will ask you to identify a lead applicant if two or more organisations are applying together.
• Your organisation(s) should:
  • Operate to standards of best practice and/or have a strong track record in delivering high quality public activity. You could demonstrate this through accreditation schemes (such as those managed by Arts Council England), endorsement by partners, successful past projects, or awards you have received.
• If you are a non-accredited museum, they may seek advice from trusted sector partners (such as MDUK) to better understand your organisation and needs.
• If your organisation is long-established or you have worked with them before, they will expect your project to develop your practice or deepen relationships.
• They will also be keen to hear that you are telling new stories or making stronger connections with underserved groups

Ineligibility Criteria

• Unfortunately, they are unable to receive applications from:
  • Organisations that are not reliant on local authority support.
  • Organisations that exist to make profit, including Private Limited Companies, Public Limited, Companies, Unlimited Companies, or Sole Traders.
  • General Partnerships, Limited Partnerships, or Limited Liability Partnerships.
  • Commercial organisations.
  • Organisations with a focus on music, drama, dance and art forms outside the visual arts.
  • Individuals or unincorporated bodies directly
  • Hospitals and places of worship.
  • Schools or higher education institutions.

For more information, visit Art Fund.