What We Do
Funding for the arts in Leeds
Arts Development administrates two grant schemes with the following aims:
To CREATE opportunities for local people to take part in the cultural life of the city
To SUPPORT local artists and arts organisations working in communities
To PROMOTE partnership working within the arts and cultural sector
Leeds Inspired Grant Scheme
The Leeds Inspired grant scheme has been launched to support current projects or create new work for the city’s vibrant cultural programme. All events are featured on the Leeds Inspired website, which is fast becoming the go-to guide for planning your free time in Leeds. You can download information about how to apply from the Leeds Inspired website (see external links to the right of this page). There are a variety of grants offered on a rolling system, with up to £15,000 available.
arts@leeds Grant Scheme
The arts@leeds grant scheme is a longer term funding option. It is administered on a three year cycle, with the next date for applications in 2015.
Arts Development Initiatives
In order to increase residents' participation in the cultural life of the city and to raise young people's aspirations, we organise projects and events throughout the year. We aim to provide new opportunities where there are few and reach new audiences across the city. Alongside a full programme of events in Leeds Town Hall we present:
Holocaust Memorial Day 27 January 2013
Join the Lord Mayor of Leeds and hundreds of other local people for an afternoon of commemoration in response to the international Holocaust Memorial Day theme which is Communities Together: Build a Bridge. The event includes a performance by young people from the Carriageworks Theatre Academy, live music from Leeds University, art work and presentations, a speech by keynote speaker Rev David Wilkes, and a traditional Hebrew memorial prayer sung by Rudi Leavor.
Breeze International Youth Festival 23 May – 2 June 2013
An established annual creative festival in June half term, aimed at young people aged 13 – 19 in Leeds. Find out more at the Breeze website (see external links to the right of this page).
Light Night 4 October 2013
A spectacular city-wide event featuring performance, installations, music and dance. For one evening, Leeds’ artists pool their talents in the city centre, exhibiting and performing their work on the streets and squares and in venues not usually open to the public.
If you would like to be added to our Light Night mailing list, please Contact Us via the tab below.
Lunchtime Talks Series
Working with Leeds University’s Brotherton Library, Leeds Central Library and the Town Hall, join us in a series of ‘one object, one hour’ lunchtime talks about the objects in the University’s Special Collections.
These talks, presented by people who work with the collections, will reveal some of the remarkable objects that make up our cultural heritage which the Brotherton collects and makes accessible, not just for the University, but for the benefit of everyone.
Friday 22 February, Leeds Town Hall: A Leeds Miscellany
by Katy Goodrum. Head of Special Collections, University of Leeds.
Friday 15 March, Leeds Central Library: Vile Bodies, Evelyn Waugh
by Chris Sheppard, Brotherton Fellow, University of Leeds.
Friday 12 April, Leeds Town Hall: From Glass Plate to Pixels: A digital journey through Godfrey Bingley’s Yorkshire by Beccy Shipman, Digital Content and Copyright Coordinator, University of Leeds.
All talks 12.30-1.30pm. Tickets: £4 (£3 concessions) To book please call City Centre Box Office on 0113 224 3801
Town Hall Tours
This tour is your chance to stand at the dock where prisoners once stood to hear their sentence, to descend the stone steps into the dank and dark prison cells below and climb the 203 steps to the top of the clock tower to see the clock itself. Get a view of Leeds unlike any other. In 2013, tours begin on 26th Jan and normally run on the last Monday and Saturday of each month.
Public Tours, £4 per person. To book your place please call City Centre Box Office on 0113 224 3801.
If you would like to book a private tour (£100 per group) please Contact Us via the tab below.
Town Hall Exhibitions
Open from 9.30am - 4.30pm, Monday to Saturday. Entry is free.
Current Exhibition: Landscapes of Memory by Dr Kate Vigurs
A collection of photos by Kate Vigurs to complement the programming of Holocaust Memorial Day.
Dr Kate Vigurs will be giving a talk about this exhibition and her research on Tuesday 19 March, 6.30pm at Leeds Town Hall. To reserve your free place please Contact Us via the tab below.
Next Exhibition: Space2 and Purple Patch Arts
Arts Development are working with two organisations on separate visual arts projects based in, around and about the Town Hall. The resulting work from these projects will be displayed from April-July.
Partners
We wish to acknowledge and thank our partners for helping us to deliver such a valuable and broad range of opportunities to the people of Leeds. The team are always looking for new ways to encourage participation in the arts and promote partnership working so if you have an idea please use the Contact Us tab below.
You can receive arts sector updates and information for arts organisations by signing up for the quarterly arts@leeds e-newsletter. To subscribe, please Contact Us via the tab below.
