The Scottish Arts Council has today launched AmbITion Scotland, a new £800,000 programme to support digital development and change in arts organisations throughout Scotland.
By simply signing up to the programme online, AmbITion Scotland can provide FREE workshops, events, online material, case studies and online tools to arts organisations striving for digital development.
Financial support will also be available from the AmbITion Scotland programme to fund ideas for digital development. When selected, specialist advisors will audit the digital activity of all successful organisations and help map and develop a business case for digital development with organisations accepted through the programme.
Iain Munro, Co-Director of Arts, Scottish Arts Council said:
"AmbITion Scotland is a flexible and exciting new programme that will ensure that digital support is available to all arts organisations, no matter what their scale. We greatly look forward to seeing the benefits snowball through the entire arts sector and wider community. Ambition Scotland also addresses our key corporate aims head on, as we strive to encourage resilience and support sustainable organisational development in the arts. We hope this significant investment will raise the overall level of digital technology base in the arts sector and encourage Scotland’s competitiveness in a 21st century market.
Based on a pilot programme supported by Arts Council England, this flexible and innovative new programme aims to help achieve sustainable organisational change and improve capacity for audience engagement, through implementing integrated IT and digital development."
Sarah Fisher, Head of Visual Arts, Arts Council England NW said:
"We are delighted that the Scottish Arts Council has decided to take on and develop the AmbITion programme. Over the last two years Arts Council England has worked closely with 15 arts organisations from around the country to pilot the programme and develop case studies to help the arts sector embrace digital opportunities. In the last six months the AmbITion roadshow has visited every region in England ensuring its findings become a national resource and we are sure AmbITIon will be invaluable to arts organisations all over Scotland too."
Working with Glasgow Grows Audiences and Rudman Consulting, the £800,000 investment from the Scottish Arts Council’s National Lottery Fund will support and encourage organisations with ambitious, holistic, digital development aspirations and raise the overall level of the digital technology base in the arts sector in Scotland.
For more information visit: http://www.scottisharts.org.uk/1/professional/audiences/ambitionprogramme.aspx
Notes to editors
AmbITion Scotland launched in August 2009, following the recommendations set out by the ‘getting digital’ report (2008), which was commissioned by the Scottish Arts Council’s Audience & Organisational Development department in late 2007.
The Scottish Arts Council has funded Glasgow Grows Audiences to work in partnership with Rudman consulting to customise the programme for Scotland.
AmbITion Scotland is based on pilot programme run by Arts Council England. For more infotmation about the pilot programme visit http://www.getambition.com/
The Scottish Arts Council serves the people of Scotland by fostering arts of excellence through investment, development, research and advocacy. Our corporate aims are: to support artists to fulfil their creative and business potential; to increase participation in the arts; and to place the arts, culture and creativity at the heart of learning. The organisation was established by Royal Charter in 1994 and is a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB) investing over £61m each year, including £12.4 million of National Lottery funding. A new organisation, Creative Scotland, will be established in 2010, subject to the passage of legislation.
Creative Scotland will grow out of the Scottish Arts Council and Scottish Screen by working with those organisations’ staff. www.scotisharts.org.uk