New funding to nurture the creative talents of young people and a new National Youth Arts Advisory Group for Scotland have been announced by Creative Scotland and Young Scot.
Over the next two years, a National Youth Arts Advisory Group (NYAAG) will issue £40,000 to support young people’s creativity through a new Nurturing Talent Fund. The fund will support a wide variety of projects by young people aged 14-20 and could be used, for example, to record a demo with their band, access training, build a portfolio of work or put on an exhibition.
Creative Scotland is working with Young Scot to select the new National Youth Arts Advisory Group for Scotland to administer the Nurturing Talent Fund. The group of 30 volunteers, aged 14-23, will evaluate and select all the successful applicants.
Applications for the fund are now open. The £40,000 will be distributed over twelve funding rounds taking place every two months. Applicants can apply for up to £600.
In addition to administering the Nurturing Talent Fund, the National Youth Advisory Group will provide challenge and guidance to Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government on youth arts policy.
Over the next two years they will be working with the Creative Scotland National Time To Shine Working Group and conducting research with their peers and stakeholders. The group will publish their research and a recommendations report in August 2018. They will also be organising events and promoting youth arts in Scotland.
The two initiatives form part of the Scottish Government’s Time to Shine youth arts strategy, which seeks to change the way the arts is viewed and help Scotland become an international leader in young people’s creativity.
Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop, said: “Through our National Youth Strategy, Time to Shine, we are enabling young people across Scotland to access and participate in the arts. The Nurturing Talent Fund has already supported hundreds of young people to take forward animation, theatre, music, fashion and design projects. Continuing the fund this year will help us build on this success.
“As we count down to the Year of Young People in 2018, we remain committed to ensuring that young people’s voices are heard in shaping the future of the arts in Scotland.”
Colin Bradie, TTS Programme Manager at Creative Scotland said: “Creative Scotland is delighted to be working in partnership with Young Scot and the National Youth Arts Advisory Group to deliver the Nurturing Talent Fund for Scotland’s young and aspiring artists. Since the launch of Time to Shine the Nurturing Talent Fund has provided over £39,000 worth of grants to over 150 young people and has had a real impact on the progression of ideas, projects and careers. We are confident this next cycle of the fund will have the same impact, acting as a mechanism to nurture ambition, enthusiasm and talent.”
Louise Macdonald, Young Scot’s Chief Executive, said: “Young people have told us that arts and culture play an important role in their lives and Young Scot is delighted to support their passion. Getting involved with the arts can build confidence and provide an opportunity to learn new skills and gain valuable life experiences so we’re delighted young people will play a crucial part in leading the future of the arts in Scotland.”