Creative Steps for Organisations

Creative Steps for Organisations is about supporting the organisational and/or business development of arts organisations that are led by ethnically and culturally diverse people, Deaf, disabled or neurodivergent people. This scheme focuses on these particular groups because research, both internally and externally, tells us that we are not engaging enough with organisations led by people from these backgrounds. It also tells us that people from these backgrounds, and lived experiences, have not been able to access our funding easily and have faced barriers and/or discrimination.  

We define ‘led by’ as at least 51% of your organisation’s senior managers, management committee, board, governing body or council identify as being a member of one of these groups. 

Please see the next drop down for our full definitions.

We advise that you read our eligibility criteria to find out if you’re eligible to apply for this fund. Take a look at our eligibility criteria for organisations.

Your organisation should be delivering arts activities to participants and audiences. We may also consider applications from organisations that are aspiring to deliver arts activities to participants and audiences. We may decide to fund you based on your organisation’s potential. We are keen to support organisations with a strong creative vision that demonstrate the potential to diversify the arts sector in Wales. 

Your organisation must be based in Wales. 

You must clearly articulate the barriers you’ve had in your organisational journey and how Creative Steps funding can help to remove those barriers. We recognise that it can be difficult to talk about negative or harmful experiences so we will do our best to ensure that applicants are able to share their experiences in a safe environment.

We define ‘ethnically and culturally diverse’ as: 

• Anyone from the African, Asian, Caribbean, Hispanic, Latino, Eastern European or Middle Eastern diaspora in Wales
• Anyone who identifies as being from an ethnic group that is not exclusively White
• Anyone from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Communities 

 We define ‘disability’ using the Social Model of Disability: 

• The social model of disability is a framework that was developed by disabled people to identify and take action against their oppression. The framework states that people are disabled by barriers in society and not necessarily by their impairment. Barriers could be physical such as a lack of disabled toilets or they can be attitudinal such as assuming disabled people can’t do certain things.
• The social model of disability was developed to directly counter the traditional, medical model of disability which perceived disabilities and impairments to be a medical problem to be prevented, cured or contained, making the disabled person feel like the problem instead of society 

 We define ‘neurodiverse’ or ‘neurodivergence’ as: 

• Viewing neurodevelopmental differences as a natural and normal variation
• We all have unique nervous systems with a unique combination of abilities and needs
• We recognise that there is no ‘right’ way of thinking, learning and behaving and these differences should be celebrated rather than be perceived as deficits 

Creative Steps for Organisations is focused on supporting your organisational and/or business development. It is not about supporting artistic delivery. We want organisations to identify exactly what they need to strengthen and progress their organisation, and to remain open to exploring different ways of doing this with us. 

We recognise that every organisation’s needs are different and that organisational or business development varies from organisation to organisation. However, these are some of the things that your proposal could include:  

• Working with someone with a similar experience to your organisation to help you work out what steps you need to take if you are unsure (peer-to-peer learning)
• Training courses related to your organisational or business development (but not formal education courses such as degree courses)
• Setting up groups with other organisations to learn together and from each other (building networks, building communities etc.)
• Working with someone with professional experience to support your organisation as you take the next step in your business development journey (mentorship, coaching etc.)
• Making your practice more professional (business development advice, social media and marketing advice etc.)
• Developing any practical resources or tools to help professionalise your organisation (website development, marketing materials, equipment or materials etc.) 

You can also include the following: 

• Salaries or fees for roles directly linked to the delivery of the organisational or business development work. These are roles not funded by other sources, and a clear rationale should be included as to why this role is crucial to your organisational journey.   

We expect all applicants to pay freelancers the standard industry rates as a minimum. If people are providing their time in-kind, we would expect to see a rationale as to why this decision has been taken. 

Applicants can apply for £500 up to £75,000 (plus access costs) 

Applications are invited at three funding levels: 

1. Early-stage/Exploratory Phase (£500-£10,000) 

2. Second Stage/Testing and Development Phase (£10,001-£50,000) 

3. Third Stage/Development of a Sustainable Business Model (£50,001-£75,000) 

Early-stage/Exploratory Phase applications are for organisations that are currently exploring new ideas or new ways of working including those that are newly formed or have never received funding from Arts Council Wales before. This stage provides a great opportunity to test out new ideas and to work with people that can help you become a more sustainable organisation. Being funded at this level should provide you with the foundations to develop your organisation further along its journey.  

Second Stage/Testing and Development Phase applications are for organisations that are further ahead on their development journey and have a more established track record or that have successfully completed an Early-stage/Exploratory Phase Creative Steps project. This stage provides a great opportunity to build on the learning from previous funding, to strengthen your organisation’s foundations and to become more robust as an organisation. Being funded at this level should significantly contribute to the business development of your organisation and should take you to the next level of your journey. 

Third Stage/Development of a Sustainable Business Model applications are for organisations that have a notable track record and are at a crucial stage of their development journey or that have successfully completed both an Early-stage/Exploratory Phase and a Second Stage/Testing and Development Phase Creative Steps project. An applicant, at this stage, would have to demonstrate what they have learned from previous funding and previous development, and how they plan to use this funding to become a more sustainable organisation. We would expect to see the development of longer-term relationships and ways of working at this stage as well. This stage provides a great opportunity to really establish a sustainable business model, to become a more resilient organisation, to potentially scale-up your organisation and to put all your previous learning into practice. Being funded at this level should significantly contribute to your organisation’s long-term sustainability. 

Arts Council Officers will be able to assist you on what the appropriate amount to apply for would be. 

Applicants are able to apply for up to 90% of the project cost. The remaining 10% should come from a non-Arts Council Wales or National Lottery source. This can be in-kind support, cash or both. Support in-kind can be a non-cash contribution to your proposal such as donated studio or rehearsal space, equipment or somebody’s time for example. 

Your organisation must be at a tipping point in its journey. Whether you are at the Early-stage, Second Stage or Third Stage, we expect your organisation to be ready to take the appropriate steps in its long-term development and we would expect Creative Steps funding to make a substantial contribution towards your organisation reaching the next level of its development. 

Further help notes on budget information can be found here

The deadlines for submitting your application to Creative Steps for Organisations will be 12pm on the following dates:

Wednesday 12th March 2025

Wednesday 8th October 2025

Please bear in mind that you need to allow a minimum of 10 working weeks between the deadline date and the start date of your project.

We cannot fund proposals that are already happening so we won’t accept your application if your proposal’s start date will come before we’ve had the opportunity to assess your application.

The following are the things that we are looking for in your Creative Steps for Organisations application that demonstrate what makes a good proposal for the scheme: 

Early-stage/Exploratory Phase

• A clear understanding, and a clear articulation, of where you currently are in your organisational journey, and how this funding can help you to progress to the next level 

• A clear explanation of the barriers that you have faced in your organisational journey, and how this funding can help to address those barriers 

• A clear explanation of why this is the right or appropriate time for you to be receiving this funding 

• A clear explanation of what you will be using this funding for, and why this is important for your organisation 

• Including an action plan and/or a timeline of activity for this stage of your organisation’s development 

• A clear budget that has all your eligible costings 

Second Stage/Testing and Development Phase

As above and also:

• Evidence of demand for the work that you do (e.g. audience engagement, community engagement/involvement, critical acclaim etc.) 

• A clear understanding, and a clear articulation, of the steps needed to make your organisation more sustainable, and how this funding can help you achieve this

 Third Stage/Development of a Sustainable Business Model Phase

As all of the above and also:

• Identifying, and articulating, opportunities for long-term partnerships 

• Identifying, and articulating, any opportunities to scale-up your organisation in a way that is appropriate to you 

• A clear understanding, and articulation, of how you aim to become a more robust and resilient organisation that can sustain itself long-term 

In addition, we will also consider these factors across all three funding levels of Creative Steps for Organisations:  

• The potential for your organisation to have a wider impact on the arts sector  

• The geographical importance of your organisation  

• The impact your organisation may have on a specific artform 

• How your proposal fits with our wider corporate priorities and principles

An application form can be accessed via an Arts Council Wales Development Officer once it's been agreed that you're ready to submit an application.

We require you to submit an application form, a proposal and a budget. These are all mandatory.

We allow you to submit additional attachments to support your application, please click here for more information. 

The template for you to fill out your budget can be found here.

Guidance on how to write your proposal can be found here

Further help notes on budget information can be found here

An example of the online application form can be found here

An example of the Completion Report can be found here

Creative Steps for Organisations aims to be as flexible as possible, and this funding aims to provide you with support every step of the way. We will offer guidance to help shape your ideas and your application to meet your organisation’s needs. This will be provided by an Arts Council Wales Development Officer and a Creative Steps Mentor, if you choose to have one.

The Arts Council of Wales Development Officer will: 

• Discuss your ideas and confirm whether your organisation is eligible to apply for Creative Steps funding and if so, at what level. They can also answer any questions you may have about Creative Steps and how it could support your organisation’s development.
• Connect you with one of our Creative Steps Mentors. You will be able to choose from a list of mentors that your Development Officer will share with you.
• Be a point of contact at Arts Council of Wales if you, or your Creative Steps Mentor, have any questions as you are developing your application.
• Provide feedback on your draft application when you and your Creative Steps Mentor think it is ready to be submitted.
• Release a link to an application form when it’s agreed that your application is ready to be submitted.
• Provide information about how to apply in a different medium such as submitting a video application if you would prefer this.

If you choose to work with a Creative Steps Mentor, we will pay for up to 6 hours of their time. These Mentors come from a variety of different backgrounds and have a diverse range of lived and professional experiences. They will have also received training from Arts Council Wales to be able to mentor you on your ideas and your application. If you require more than 6 hours with your Mentor, let us know and we will do our best to ensure you get an appropriate amount of time with them. 

We’ll offer support and guidance to help you shape an application that’s focused on you taking the next steps in your organisational journey. 

The Creative Steps Mentor will:

• Provide guidance, support and any information pre-application focussing on your professional development ideas
• Provide you with a list of consultants with expertise in several different areas that could help support you on your journey. You can also choose to work with a consultant and/or other specialists that you identify yourself. The fees for anyone who will work with you after a grant has been awarded should be included in your project costs.
• Support you to develop your ideas into a Creative Steps Proposal. 

Think about where you are currently, where you want to be, and the things that need to happen next for you to get closer to that goal. That will be the basis for your application. 

These options are available for all three of our funding levels for Creative Steps for Organisations. 

These are optional. You do not have to have a Creative Steps Mentor if you do not want or need one.

Arts Council of Wales makes information available in large print, braille, audio, Easy Read and British Sign Language. We’ll also try to provide information in languages other than Welsh or English on request. 

If you need access support, you can find out more about what we can do and how to arrange it here. 

If you think Creative Steps for Organisations is for you then the most important thing to do is to talk to an Arts Council Officer. This will help us work with you to find out whether this scheme is right for you and will help us to meet your needs. If you decide that this is the route for you, we’ll support you as best as we can to apply for Creative Steps funding.

If you’re thinking of applying, please contact us so we can work together on the next steps. 

When you contact us, please include the following information:

• Your name
• Where you are based
• Your artform and information about your artistic practice. You can include any links to your work or your website (if you have one)
• A brief overview of the barriers you've faced and how you are eligible for Creative Steps

You can contact us here:

Email – creativesteps@arts.wales / camaucreadigol@celf.cymru 

Telephone - 03301 242733

One of our officers will introduce themselves and start conversations in your preferred medium. You need to make contact with an Arts Council Officer before you can submit an application.

Eligibility for individuals

Eligibility for organisations

Budget help notes

Access support

Supporting documents

Art form definitions

Application process