Public Document Pack
To : Councillor Laing, Convener ; and Councillors Boulton, Cameron, Lesley Dunbar, Jennifer Stewart, Thomson and Townson.
Town House, ABERDEEN 11 February 2014
CULTURE AND SPORT SUB COMMITTEE
Members of the CULTURE AND SPORT SU B COMMITTEE are requested to meet in Committee Room 2 - Town House on WEDNESDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 2014 at 10am .
JANE G. MACEACHRAN HEAD OF LEGAL AND DEMOCRATIC SERVICES
B U S I N E S S
1 Minute of Previous Meeting (Pages 1 - 4)
2 Aberdeen Performing Arts Presentation (Pages 5 - 10)
3 Cultural Awards - Project Funding (Pages 11 - 26)
4 Sports Grants (Pages 27 - 42)
5 Community Sports Hubs Update - Information Bulletin (Pages 43 - 46)
6 Placemaking: Place Partnership Update - Information Bulletin (Pages 47 - 52)
7 Made In Aberdeen - Information Bulletin (Pages 53 - 56)
Website Address: www.aberdeencity.gov.uk
If you require any further information about this agenda, please contact Rebecka Coull, tel. (52)2869 or email [email protected]
This page is intentionally left blank Agenda Item 1
CULTURE AND SPORT SUB COMMITTEE
ABERDEEN, 1 July 2013 - minute of meeting of the CULTURE AND SPORT SUB COMMITTEE. Present : Councillor Laing (Convener ); and Councillors Boulton, Cameron, Lesley Dunbar, Thomson and Townson.
The agenda and reports associated with this minute can be accessed at the following link: http://committees.aberdeencity.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=470&MId= 3079&Ver=4
ORDER OF AGENDA AND DETERMINATION OF EXEMPT ITEM OF BUSINESS
1. The Convener noted that items 5 (Energy Cities Cup) and 8 (Sport Aberdeen – Business Plan) had been withdrawn from today’s agenda; and proposed that the Sub Committee consider the remaining report identified on the agenda as being for determination in private, with the press and public excluded.
The Sub Committee resolved : in terms of Section 50(A)(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to exclude the press and public from the meeting for item 9 of the agenda (article 7 of this minute refers) so as to avoid disclosure of information of the class described in paragraph 6 of Schedule 7(A) to the Act.
MINUTE OF PREVIOUS MEETING
2. The Sub Committee had before it the minute of its previous meeting of 8 March 2013.
The Sub Committee resolved : to approve the minute as a correct record.
DATES AND TIMES OF FUTURE MEETINGS
3. The Sub Committee had before it a proposed schedule for future meetings of the Sub Committee, which had been prepared by the clerk.
The Sub Committee resolved : to agree that the Sub Committee meet in the Town House at 10am on the following dates: • 2 October 2013 • 4 December 2013 • 19 February 2014 • 7 May 2014 • 18 June 2014 • 1 October 201 • 10 December 2014.
Page 1
SPORTS GRANTS
4. With reference to article 5 of the minute of its previous meeting of 8 March 2013, the Sub Committee had before it a report by the Head of Communities, Culture and Sport which presented applications for financial assistance from two sports organisations, and presented criteria for new sports grant funding streams as follows: • Coach and Volunteer Workforce Development - A fund aimed at supporting coaches and volunteers to obtain a higher level of coaching award in their chosen sport. • Club Development – The aim of this grant being to increase the availability of sporting opportunities in the city by assisting existing sports clubs to develop their sports programmes and by encouraging the establishment of new sports groups/clubs/sections. • Talented Athletes Development - The aim of this scheme being to recognise individual talented sports performers in Aberdeen and encourage them to develop their full potential by providing funding to assist with the costs associated with competing at a high level. • Significant Sporting Events - The aim of this grant being to help sporting, community and event organisations deliver significant sporting events within the Aberdeen City Council boundary. The programme, through the Event Assistance Grants and Event Development Grants categories would provide funding support for events that were national or international in focus, or that were regionally significant, and were recognised by the relevant governing body of sport. • Commonwealth 2014 Community Games fund – The aim of this fund being to help local communities in Aberdeen to celebrate Glasgow 2014 at a grassroots level by hosting events with a physical activity and sport aspect within Aberdeen between 23 July and 3 August 2014.
It was noted by members that further information and criteria requirements had been included in the additional circulation of agenda papers.
The report recommended: That the Committee – (a) consider the applications contained within the report and approves the following:
Funding Organisation recommended
Aberdeen Synchronised Ice Skating Club £5,000
Auchmill Golf Club £5,000
(b) agree the criteria relating to the new sports grant funding streams which would enable the local authority to target investment in line with the city’s sport and physical activity strategy.
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The Sub Committee resolved : to approve the recommendations.
CREATIVE SCOTLAND PLACE MAKING PARTNERSHIP – INFORMATION BULLETIN
5. The Sub Committee had before it an information bulletin by the Culture Policy and Partnership Officer which brought to the attention of members the proposed programme of cultural initiatives, as set out in Creative Scotland’s Place Partnership investment agreement with Aberdeen.
The Sub Committee resolved : to note the content of the information bulletin.
UK CITY OF CULTURE
6. With reference to article 7 of the minute of its previous meeting of 8 March 2013, the Sub Committee heard the Head of Communities, Culture and Sport, who provided a verbal update further to the announcement that Aberdeen did not make the shortlist for UK City of Culture 2017. Ms Cassidy advised that her team had received significant positive feedback further to the announcement, and that they were now looking to move forward by galvanising the momentum created during the process, building capacity in the community, and looking at different funding options.
The Sub Committee was advised that the bid documentation and comments would be shared with members when the team had analysed this, and that a report would be prepared in this regard in the near future. A discussion took place in relation to the opportunities now available to the city to expand the remit of the proposed year of culture, and it was noted that the Council was no longer constrained by the bidding process, and so could involve the technology and sports sectors in a fuller way.
The Sub Committee resolved : to thank officers for the huge amount of work undertaken in relation to the bid, and to note the update.
In accordance with the decision taken at item 1 of this minute, the following item of business was considered with the press and public excluded.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Councillors Boulton, Townson and Thomson declared interests as Trustees of Aberdeen International Youth Festival, and withdrew from the meeting prior to consideration of the report.
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ABERDEEN INTERNATIONAL YOUTH FESTIVAL – ORGANISATIONAL REVIEW
7. The Sub Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport which provided members with an update on the organisational review of Aberdeen International Youth Festival, and highlighted financial risks, progress on ongoing development work, and a time line for the conclusion of this.
A discussion took place in relation to the personal liabilities of Trustees, and officers indicated that they were in discussions with colleagues in Legal Services in this regard.
The report recommended – that the Sub Committee: (a) note the identified financial risks associated with Aberdeen International Youth Festival; (b) instruct officers to prepare a report for the meeting of the Audit and Risk Committee on 24 September 2013; (c) note the progress made on reviewing the organisation and its future direction; (d) note the potential outcomes of this work and the intention to present these to the board of Aberdeen International Youth Festival on 18 November 2013; and (e) instruct officers to report back on progress
The Sub Committee resolved : to approve the recommendations. - COUNCILLOR JENNIFER LAING, Convener
Page 4 Agenda Item 2
ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL
COMMITTEE Culture and Sport Sub Committee
DATE 19 February 2014
DIRECTOR Gayle Gorman
TITLE OF REPORT Aberdeen Performing Arts
REPORT NUMBER: ECS/14/012
1. PURPOSE OF REPORT
This report provides some background information on Aberdeen Performing Arts in support of the Chief Executives presentation to the Culture and Sport Sub Committee.
2. RECOMMENDATION(S)
The Culture and Sport Sub Committee is asked to note the content of this report and the work of the organisation in delivering on the city’s cultural ambitions and providing leadership for the sector.
3. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Aberdeen Performing Arts (APA) receives £935,993 from Aberdeen City Council as a contribution to its activities as part of their Service Agreement with Aberdeen City Council. This is due to reduce to £890,993 in 2014/15 as part of PBB option ECS C_10 Root and Branch review of culture and sport, with standstill funding provided in the years 2015/16 and 2016/17.
In addition, an allocation of £36,000 is made from the Common Good Fund towards the rental costs of The Lemon Tree, and up to £75,000 can be reclaimed from Stage 1 funding to offset the costs of premises and facilities hire for not for profit groups. Pending the decision of the Council budget meeting on 6 February £10,000 has been incorporated for the rental costs of the office space adjacent to The Lemon Tree in Shoe Lane, also to be funded from Common Good.
Aberdeen City Council has committed to a contribution of £1,000,000 towards the refurbishment of the Music Hall, pending a successful application to Creative Scotland and some additional public and private contributions. Creative Scotland has confirmed that Aberdeen Performing Arts has achieved a Round 1 pass and will receive £100,000 towards developing a Round 2 bid for a total £1.5m.
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If funding is not provided for organisations such as APA they will not be able to continue their work.
4. OTHER IMPLICATIONS
There are no other implications at this time.
5. BACKGROUND/MAIN ISSUES
5.1 Background
In March 2004, Aberdeen City Council transferred the governance of His Majesty’s Theatre, the Music Hall and Aberdeen Box Office, to Aberdeen Performing Arts. Staff previously employees were transferred under TUPE. The first 12 months of the business plan agreed a service payment of £1,518,206.
Whilst Aberdeen City Council retains ownership of the assets, APA is responsible for the majority of aspects of repair of the three venues, His Majesty’s Theatre, the Music Hall and The Lemon Tree, which became the responsibility of APA in April 2008. The investment relating to these facilities is jointly provided through the Common Good Fund and the Education, Culture and Sport services Contributions to Trusts budget. A service provision agreement drawn up at the transfer in January 2004 is now the subject of revision.
5.2 Organisational profile
APA is a company limited by guarantee with charitable status, operating at arms length to ACC. The organisation stands as the largest of its kind in the North East, currently employing around 250 staff with an FTE of 136.
APA’s board comprises twelve directors, four of whom are nominated by the Council.
5.3 Services summary
In addition to managing and programming the three venues, APA provides a central box office for the North East of Scotland and the city of Aberdeen. The box office sells tickets for all of the Company’s venues, and those operated by third parties. APA delivers a diverse programme of performing arts including drama, musical theatre, children’s theatre, opera, ballet, dance, comedy and music across the spectrum. Alongside the programme, APA offers creative learning activity for all ages and abilities including workshops, masterclasses, seminars, talks and talent development for young people.
Annual cultural attendances are in the region of 500,000 with almost 7,000 creative learning participations.
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5.4 Review of external investment – findings
In January 2013 the Culture and Sport Sub Committee approved the ECS C_10 PBB budget option, the Review of External investment in culture and sport. The review, carried out over an eighteen month period, concluded:
APA is a well run organisation which has demonstrated that it can deliver an extensive cultural programme successfully in both artistic and financial terms. This review has found, in relation to ACC investment, that risks associated are generally limited to the future of The Lemon Tree and Music Hall, both of which require attention and investment in order to stem the physical decline of the buildings and falling audiences. There is no current or future agreement in place with Creative Scotland regarding the Lemon Tree, presenting the organisation with a challenge in terms of enabling the effective programming of both venues in the future.
Resulting recommendations were: • To reduce investment to APA for the Music Hall and His Majesty’s Theatre by 5% in 2013/14 and 5% in 2014/15, subject to the submission and review of a revised business plan • To provide standstill funding for The Lemon Tree during 2013/14 to allow alternatives to be explored during this period, including the benefits of transferring the city’s dance development agency, citymoves • To revise the existing agreement between APA and the Council to reflect the revised Business Plan and changes to both parties objectives • To note the identified requirement for Capital redevelopment of the Music Hall and Lemon Tree • To instruct officers to report progress to the Culture and Sport Sub Committee, and upon any conclusion, to the Education, Culture and Sport Committee
5.5 Review of external investment – progress
• The reduction investment has been agreed by Council as part of the budget setting process • Standstill funding for The Lemon Tree has supported the Chief Executive of APA to lead significant change in how the venue is programmed • The matter of the revision to the existing agreement remains outstanding, but the parameters of the review have been agreed, with a business plan in place • Aberdeen City Council has agreed a capital contribution to the Music Hall and made significant revisions to the heating system and repairs at The Lemon Tree. To the value of circa £100,000 with £13,000 contributed from APA. APA also expects to contribute capital investment of around £200,000 over the next five years to The Lemon Tree.
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• The lease on The Lemon Tree is being finalised and discussions have been concluded about the adjacent office.
5.6 Aberdeen Performing Arts Business Plan
APA’s business plan was approved by the board of APA in 2013. It runs from 2013-2018 and provides a comprehensive overview of the direction of the organisation, the strategic context, its goals and development priorities:
• Presenting, producing and creating a distinctive high quality artistic programme • Investing in talent and providing an inspirational creative learning resource • Contributing to the City vision and a Creative Scotland
The business plan successfully articulates a relationship to Aberdeen City Councils priorities in terms of the Community Plan, the Cultural Assets Map, the EC and S service plan and Vibrant Aberdeen, the city’s Cultural Strategy.
It is of note that the Chief Executive of APA sees the leadership potential of the organisation as being key to the successful direction of the wider development of our cultural aspirations, as articulated through the bid for UK City of Culture 2017 and the development of a cultural action plan for Aberdeen (the subject of another report to this Sub Committee). Jane Spiers, Chief Executive of APA, is a member of the Culture Network for the city, which has been established to monitor the contribution of culture to the Single Outcome Agreement and to provide leadership and support for the development of the cultural action plan.
6. IMPACT
This report relates to ‘Aberdeen – the Smarter City’
• We will improve access to and increase participation in the arts and culture by providing opportunities for citizens and visitors to experience a broad range of high quality arts and cultural activities
• We aspire to be recognised as a City of Culture, a place of excellence for culture and arts by promoting Aberdeen as a cultural sector hosting high quality and diverse cultural events for the whole community and beyond
The development of the cultural programme will provide opportunities for community engagement with schools and communities to enable citizens to actively shape what a city of culture can mean for them. This can provide opportunities for innovative approaches to budgeting and decision making to transform local communities. This will link to the city’s learning strategy, support the experiences and outcomes of the curriculum for Excellence, and impact on the outcomes of the city’s anti- poverty strategy.
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The report also has a significant impact on our ability to support the city’s cultural strategy, ‘Vibrant Aberdeen’. This strategy is aspirational in its outlook, ambitious in its plans for improving the cultural life of the city, and the social and economic benefits associated with the arts and cultural activity. The strategy enhances the city’s strong cultural tradition and develops the cultural life and tourism for the benefit of practitioners, residents and visitors.
The report relates to the draft EC & S Priorities and Detailed action plan for 2013/14 to 2015/16 Service priority 4 ‘Extend quality cultural opportunities’.
Finally, the report relates to the Community Planning Aberdeen Single Outcome Agreement 2013: Multi lateral priority-City of Culture: Aberdeen delivers a year of culture in 2017 which can be seen to impact every aspect of the 2022 vision
7. MANAGEMENT OF RISK
In this context, risk primarily relates to the reputational damage should the level of Council investment fall significantly below the requirements to maintain a high quality theatre experience for the residents of the North east. This is mitigates by forward planning.
8. BACKGROUND PAPERS
Aberdeen Performing Arts Business plan 2013-2018 Review of External Investment in Culture and Sport – organisational and general findings Culture and Sport Sub Committee 10 January 2013
9. REPORT AUTHOR DETAILS
Lesley Thomson Culture and Sport Commissioning Manager [email protected] 01224 522499
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Page 10 Agenda Item 3
ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL
COMMITTEE Culture and Sport Sub Committee
DATE 19 February 2014
DIRECTOR Gayle Gorman
TITLE OF REPORT Cultural Awards – Project Funding
REPORT NUMBER: ECS/14/011
1. PURPOSE OF REPORT
This report provides the Co mmittee with recommendations for the allocation of Cultural Awards – Project Funding
2. RECOMMENDATION(S)
It is recommended that Committee:
[a] Approves the allocation of Cultural Awards – Project Funding as presented within the body of the report.
3. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
For the financial year 2014/15, the total budget for the Cultural Awards Programme is £315,000. Should the recommendations in this report be approved, the available budget for future application rounds will be £184,280.
4. OTHER IMPLICATIONS
Should the Committee approve the allocation of Cultural Awards – Project Funding a total of eight applicants will not receive the requested financial support at this time. Officers will provide support to resubmit in future application rounds and, in some cases, to identify other appropriate sources of funding.
5. BACKGROUND/MAIN ISSUES
5.1 Cultural Awards Programme
Aberdeen
Page 11 City Council’s Cultural Awards - Project Funding is a funding programme which aims to support the creation and/or development of high quality arts and culture activity in the city. Any voluntary or not for profit body who lead the delivery of arts and culture projects within Aberdeen is eligible to apply for an award of up to £10,000.
The awards are an important source of funding for the cultural sector in the city, in particular in supporting voluntary bodies to deliver community based activity.
5.2 Criteria
The Project Funding criteria is adapted from the priorities within the city’s Cultural Strategy, Vibrant Aberdeen and is relatively simple; we are looking for projects which are high quality, aspirational and accessible for all. The Panel which reviews applications will consider:
• Is the quality of the project clear? • Is there evidence of a clear demand and/or need for the project? • What difference will this project make to its participants and/or audience? • Is the project aspirational, is the applicant seeking to develop, to try new things or take risks to support development? • Ιs it clear that the project is actively promoting engagement with hard to reach groups such as people living in the city’s regeneration priority areas or from an ethnic minority group? • Does the project appear well planned and deliverable? • Is it clear that the requested level of financial support is required to deliver the project? • Is there an understanding of the other activity taking place in the city, avoiding unnecessary duplication and promoting partnership working? • Is the applicant being proactive in sourcing a range of different funds to support the project? • Is the application well presented and is a sufficient level of information provided?
5.3 Cultural Awards Panel
The recommendations contained within this report come from an officer facilitated Cultural Awards Panel which meets to review all applications. The Panel is made up of individuals external to the Council who have an active interest in, and knowledge of, cultural activity but whom also have no relationship with applicants. For this application round, the Panel consisted of one:
• Two senior cultural academics • Community representative • Fundraising professional • Private sector representative
Page 12 5.4 Recommendations for Awards
Presented below is a summary of the applications recommended for an Award. A table outlining all applications and recommendations is included as Appendix 1 of this report. All applications are available in the Members Library.
5.4.1 Ab Choir Theatre Company – An Evening of Modern Theatre
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £8357 £4000 £0
AbChoir Theatre Company is a locally based voluntary group which is open to residents of Aberdeen aged sixteen and over. They produce an annual programme of performances which aspire to address contemporary issues and offer an alternative to mainstream productions. This application is seeking support for two performances and one small festival to take place between April and June at the Somebody Care’s Conference centre in the Hazlehead area of the city.
5.4.2 Aberdeen Barbershop Harmony Club (Granite City Chorus) – Enriching Local Barbershop Singing
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £9740 £4870 £4870
Established in 1990, the Granite City Chorus is a voluntary body which deliver an annual programme of musical performances, workshops and coaching seminars. This application is seeking support for several different projects across 2014 in order to help the group to recruit new members and continue towards its goal of becoming one of the tope Barbershop Choruses in the UK. The funding requested is towards supporting the costs for attending national teaching and coaching forums, including the Harmony College in Nottingham, and a series of ‘Learn to Sing’ Coaching sessions for residents of the city.
5.4.3 Aberdeen Chamber Music Concerts – Concert Series 2014/15
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £12,450 £1500 £1500
For over eight years, the Aberdeen Chamber Music Concerts have been responsible for delivering an annual season of prestigious chamber concerts to the city. Run by a voluntary committee, the organisation is seeking support for the 2014/15 programme. This will see six concerts take place between October and March at the city’s Cowdry Hall. The funding, if approved, would be used towards the overall costs of putting of hosting these concerts including artists fees, marketing and administration.
Page 13 5.4.4 Aberdeen Choral Society – Aberdeen Choral Society
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £33,000 £3000 £0
Since 1946 Aberdeen Choral Society has been performing two concerts annually at the Music Hall. This includes an annual performance of the ‘Messiah’ in December and a spring concert in late March. This application is seeking support for the costs associated with the preparation and performance of these concerts. This includes costs for rehearsal space, venue hire and marketing.
5.4.5 Aberdeen Multicultural Centre – Culture & Linguistic Diversity Enhancement Project
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £9700 £7625 £0
The Aberdeen Multicultural Centre is a voluntary organisation which, through delivering a series of different programmes and events, seek to celebrate and promote the cultural diversity of Aberdeen, to strengthen unity and integration amongst these diverse communities and, more specifically, celebrate International Mother Language Day (IMLD). This application seeks support for delivering the Aberdeen Mela, an outdoor cultural festival and an IMLD event scheduled to take place at the Beach Ballroom. The funding, if approved, would be allocated towards associated costs including logistical costs, venue fees and publicity. The funding requested exceeds the criteria for this funding programme whereby only 50% of total costs can be applied for. On this basis, the maximum amount the Panel could consider recommending was £4850.
5.4.6 Aberdeen Performing Arts – International Youth Theatre
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £30,190 £10,000 £10,000
This application is seeking support to continue the development of Aberdeen Performing Art’s Youth Theatre. It incorporates two main events, The Tin Forest International Theatre Festival, delivered in association with the National Theatre of Scotland, and a new writing theatre exchange with the American Conservatory Theatre based in San Francisco. The Tin Forest Festival forms part of the Glasgow 2014 cultural programme and will see APA’s Youth Theatre, as one of ten international youth groups, rehearse and perform at the Lemon Tree before taking this to Glasgow. The international exchange will see commissioning of two new theatre pieces which, through workshops and classes to be held in Aberdeen, will be developed and performed collaboratively with the American based group. The funding requested would, if approved, by allocated towards associated costs including tutor and assistant fees, travel costs and overall production costs.
Page 14 5.4.7 Aberdeen Performing Arts – Singer Songwriter Festival
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £102,000 £10,000 £10,000
Aberdeen Performing Arts are seeking support for the delivery of a new weekend long singer-songwriter festival scheduled to take place in September 2014. Drawing on Aberdeen and wider North-East’s songwriting heritage, the Festival aims to celebrate the art from in all its various guises with programme containing open mic sessions, curated tributes to great songwriters, headline acts, songwriting workshops and masterclasses and a local singer-songwriter competition. The application is seeking support for costs which include marketing and artists fees.
5.4.8 Aberdeen Sinfonietta – Music Hall Concert Series 2014/15
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £34,250 £10,000 £3000
This application is seeking support for a Series of 3 concerts to take place within the Music Hall between November 2014 and May 2015. This incorporates an opening concert in November, delivering in partnership with the sound festival, a performance by the Haddo House Choral & Operatic Society in March 2015 and final summer concert in May 2015. Aberdeen Sinfionetta, a city based voluntary group, also aim to involve talented you musicians and will deliver workshops with Aberdeen’s music schools. The funding, if approved, would be primarily allocated towards orchestra fees and conductors and soloists.
5.4.9 ACT Aberdeen – ACT International
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £24,262 £9250 £0
ACT Aberdeen is the trading name of Castlegate Arts who manage and operate Aberdeen Arts Centre. This application is seeking support to employ a professional researcher to investigate and engage with the widest range of minority groups and communities in the city, to establish their cultural needs and aspirations. This information will be used to support the development of a programme of work which meets these requirements and, in turn, extends ACT’s current provision. The final report for this activity will be launched as ACT International, a one day, multi-cultural festival celebrating the cultural diversity within the city. The costs associated with this application include the researcher fee and marketing.
Page 15 5.4.10 Aurora Scottish Dance and Music – International Festival of Traditional Dance & Music
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £9880 £1500 £1500
Established in 1996, Aurora Scottish Dance & Music was created to promote traditional Scottish dance and music. Aurora holds Scottish dance classes, performs at events, has an active ceilidh band which performs locally, and has a strong track record of both organising and attending international festivals to promote Scottish traditional dance and music. This application is seeking support for an International Festival of Traditional Dance and Music to be held in the North east between the 7 th and 12 th of August 2012. The Festival will include a series of international performances and workshops and aims to build on an exchange programme which includes countries from France, Belgium, Romania and Spain. If approved, the funding will be allocated towards costs such as the accommodation and travel costs of visiting performers.
5.4.11 Elementz Adult Community Dance Company – Choreographic Developments 2014
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £6000 £3000 £3000
Elementz Community Dance Company, established from a weekly community contemporary dance class, has been learning new choreography and performing at community shows in Aberdeen since 2008. This application seeks support for the Company to undertake three major dance projects. This includes a site specific dance film, delivered in partnership with students from Gray’s School of Art, at a Historic Scotland site and a project of creating new work with the group’s choreographer. A total of 24 workshops will be delivered in which they hope to broaden the groups dance experience and skills, helping support the overall development of contemporary dance in the city. The project costs include fees form Choreographer and production costs.
5.4.12 Fitlike Records – Fitlike Records
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £12,000 £5000 £5000
Fitlike Records is a small, local independent record label which seeks to promote and showcase Aberdeen’s talented musicians and bands. Through supporting artists to collaborate, communicate, perform and record, the label seeks to improve the overall support for, and national recognition of, the city’s local talent. If the recommendation for this application is accepted, a total of six showcase performances, two exhibitions and four albums will be managed
Page 16 and delivered. The costs associated include marketing, promotion (including website development) and venue hire.
5.4.13 Grampian Hospitals Art Trust – Suttie Space for Arts Exterior Commission
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommen dation £22000 £10,000 £10,000
Grampian Hospitals Art Trust (GHAT) are seeking support to commission a vision artist who, in collaboration with NHS Grampians estates and project manages, to create an ambitious public art installation outside the GHAT Suttie Space. The Suttie Space, scheduled to open in Autumn 2014, is a purpose built for arts which is situated within ARI Foresterhill. They aim to appoint an artist with the vision and experience to create an artwork which creates an exciting and accessible identity for the space. If awarded, this funding would contribute the overall costs of the project which include the artist fee, research and marketing.
5.4.14 Grampian Youth Orchestra – Summer Courses 2014
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £15,000 £7,500 £7500
Grampian Youth Orchestra is a regional youth orchestra which started as parted of the Aberdeen International Youth Festival in 2006. The orchestra brings together talented young musicians from the Grampian Regions, offering them the opportunity to work with leading conductors and to perform with international and local peers. This application is seeking support to host summer course with a closing concert at the Music Hall in June 2014. From this they aim to develop players’ experience of working with a conductor, a soloist and enjoy the experience in performing in one of Aberdeen’s most established music venues, performing challenging and educationally rewarding Classical pieces of music. The award, if approved, would be used towards costs which include a conductor fee, venue hire and tutor fees.
5.4.15 Granite City Highland Dancing Association – Granite City Highland Dancing Festival
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £5,750 £1600 £1200
The Granite City Highland Dancing Association is a voluntary run group who deliver an annual programme of workshops and a Festival. This application is seeking support to continue this programme with aim of providing a basic introduction for beginners, intensive coaching for experienced dancers and to deliver a Festival which encourages participation in dance, provides entertainment and promotes members of the community to volunteer in the organisation and management of cultural activities. An estimated forty
Page 17 participants will take part in the workshops, while a total of 530 competitors will compete within the Festival itself. The application seeks support for costs which include fees, travel of judges and venue hire.
5.4.16 The Learig Orchestra – Orchestra for All
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £3600 £1000 £1000
The Learig Orchestra, founded 23 years ago, is an inclusive amateur orchestra which invites anyone in the North East of any age or ethnic background to play music together. It is open to anyone of any level playing an orchestral instrument. Weekly rehearsals are held throughout each school year and no audition is required. The Orchestra performs three times per year, raising hundreds of pounds which is given to charity. This application is seeking support to continue the programme for 2014. The Orchestra’s current rehearsal space at Woodend Hospital will shortly no longer be available and there is a concern that the cost of hiring an alternative could cause serious financial difficulties. This award, if approved, would be used to support costs associated with a new rehearsal space while allowing time for future plans to meet increased costs to be put in place.
5.4.17 The North East of Scotland Music School (NESMS) – Series of Music Workshops
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £1600 £800 £800
The NESMS is a seeking support to deliver a programme of ten jazz workshops which are open to range of different student musicians across the academic year. These jazz workshops aim to develop practical skills in jazz piano improvisation and are directed at musicians who have no experience in this particular area. They aim to help students gain a knowledge of specialised jazz concepts by supporting them to create there own arrangements and improvisations. If approved, the award would be used towards tutor fees.
5.4.18 Peacock Visual Arts – Intelligence Report
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £23,150 £10,000 £10,000
Peacock Visual Arts have submitted an application seeking support for a film festival, titled Intelligence Report. The festival programme, under the direction of independent curator Jay Murphy, draws on new work from the Middle East and North Africa and will see a series of screenings take place across October and November 2014 at the Belmont Media Centre. Alongside this screening programme, the festival will also host an exhibition of video installations at Peacock Visual Arts, a film programme publication, workshops
Page 18 and artists talks. If this recommendation is approved, the award would contribute towards festival costs which include curator fee, screening charges, exhibition costs and the publication.
5.4.19 Quids in Theatre Company – Quids in 2014
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £20,650 £9510 £9510
Quids In Theatre Company is an Aberdeen based professional theatre company which are seeking support to produce three new theatrical performances during 2014. This includes a production titled Macbeth – Son of Light, Mad about Muir which is about the life of environmentalist John Muir and a climate change related TIE show for primary schools and S1/2 entitled ‘Getting Hotter’. Each performance, which will also include a programme of workshops, will take place at the Aberdeen Arts Centre, within local schools and in public spaces throughout the city. If this recommendation is accepted, the award would be used against costs which including actors fees, venue hire, sets and costumes and marketing.
5.4.20 The Robert Gordon University – Open House
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £24,000 £10,000 £6000
This application seeks support for the ‘Open House’ project which, by appointing an artist in residence, will seek to improve community engagement and exploration of the University’s Garthdee Campus. It aims to deliver a range of cultural activities, such as working with local school-age communities in developing a series of films and a participatory dance series, to increase access to, and awareness of, the University’s facilities. This includes workshop spaces, digital media equipment and library. This award, if approved, would be set against costs which include an artists in residence fee and the organisation of different events and workshops.
5.4.21 Scottish Community Drama Association (Aberdeen District) – One Act Play Festival and workshops
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £7170 £3390 £3390
The SCDA is national body which continually organise and promote popular and successful festivals, run playwriting competitions and offer training in all aspects of theatre including: acting, set design and construction, costume and make up. This programme includes an annual national One Act Play festival and this application comes from the Aberdeen District to support a regional festival with supporting workshops at the Aberdeen Arts Centre. This festival acts as a regional outpost and all performances are reviewed by an adjudicator with the aim of progressing towards a Scottish and overall British
Page 19 Final. The project costs associated with this application include venue hire, district festival entry fees and marketing.
5.4.22 Scottish Culture and Traditions Association – Sing Aberdeen Project
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £4000 £2000 £2000
Scottish Culture and Traditions Association (SC&T) aims to promote awareness and growth of Scottish traditional culture, and to do so in a way which brings enjoyment, encouragement, enthusiasm and a sense of community. They deliver a programme of traditional music, song and dance including evening classes for adults, weekend workshops, family ceilidhs and public performances. This application is seeking support for to produce an audio-visual web-resource, for singers from across the North-East, which will be selected and performed by local performers. The project will be developed through a series of singing workshops, including within local schools and the existing SC&T singing class. The costs associated with this application include web design, workshops and the publication of the book.
5.4.23 Scottish Opera – Opening up Opera in Aberdeen
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £28,290 £5000 £5000
Scottish Opera is Scotland’s national opera company and the largest performing arts company in Scotland. The Scottish Opera is dedicated to opening up opera to new audiences and as part of this commitment it will deliver a portfolio of 15 highly accessible events in Aberdeen. If this recommendation is accepted, the award will contribute towards the cost of three projects. “Opera Unwrapped” is an one-hour long, free of charge exploratory versions of mainstage productions. “Under 26 Tickets” is an initiative that allows young people to purchase any seat in the house for only £10. “A Little Bit Of..” takes opera out of the theatre and into unlikely places by performing live 20-minute versions of mainstage productions.
5.4.24 Special Collections Centre (The University of Aberdeen) – New Found Land
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £12,936 £4950 £4950
The New Found Land project is an public programme of events which will accompany the Special Collections Centre’s summer exhibition New Found Land: Scottish Emigration to Canada. The Special Collections Centre is home to the University’s collection of historic rare books, archives and manuscripts. In the two years since the Centre relocated to its current base at the Sir Duncan Rice Library, a successful programme of exhibitions and public outreach activities has been established to encourage community
Page 20 engagement with the collections. The New Found Land exhibition will explore the experiences of Aberdonians who left Scotland for Canada in the 19 th and early 20 th centuries, with a particular focus on individual stories, the processes of emigration, the pioneer experience of emigrants in Canada and the effect of emigration on cultural identity. If approved, the award would be used towards marketing and the hiring of facilitators and speakers. 5.4.25 Station House Media Unit - 57°North
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Rec ommendation £31,250 £10,000 £10,000
57º North is a local online music hub which promotes all music activity in the city. SHMU have applied for a Cultural Award to continue the project with the aim developing how it promotes and support the city’s music culture. They aim to use the Award, if approved, to use the online resource to engage with over 100 key music-related organisations and individuals and producing over 200 written pieces such as interviews and reviews. Within this development SHMU aim to train, support and inspire a team of 30 volunteers to generate content resulting in over 1,000 hours of volunteering. This will includes 4 music journalism training courses, which take the form of a 7 hour interactive full-day sessions incorporating writing, audio and video, and fortnightly drop-in workshops for all volunteers, totalling 25 support sessions during the year. The costs associated with this project include project staff, marketing and volunteer expenses.
5.4.26 Station House Media Unit – shmuFM – Band of the Week Project
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £23,500 £7,500 £3500
This application is seeking support for SHMU to continue to develop its shmuFM Band of the Week Project. This project offers local musicians platforms for performance, promotion and support through love performances and online publicity. Every Monday evening, a selected act (group or solo) appear live on air from 8-10pm On shmuFM (and online), playing live in the studio and being interviewed about their music. The project has been running for four years and has established itself as the city’s primary source for discovering new talent, with shmuFM broadcasting 950 hours of local music each year. If this award is approved, a total of 48 broadcast performances, 4 concerts, 4 compilations and 80 live tracks will be produced with costs attributed toward project staff, marketing and volunteer expenses.
5.4.27 Tete a Tete – Grind
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £31,250 £5,000 £5000
Blending skateboarding and choral singing, Grind is a participatory project which forms part of the PRS for Music Foundation’s first ever New Music
Page 21 Biennial and Culture 2014 – the Glasgow Commonwealth Games Cultural Porgramme. The project will see Tete a Tete Opera Company and composer Samuel Bordoli working with skaters and choirs in Aberdeen, London and Glasgow, culminating in a live ten minute site specific public performance which will premier in Aberdeen on the 1 st of June 2014. If approved, the award would be allocated against costs including travel costs for the Composer and Conductor.
5.4.28 Transition Extreme – Extreme Art School
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £24,000 £10,000 £8,000
Transition Extreme is a social enterprise which delivers engagement projects for young people mainly via sports. “Extreme Art School” is a pilot 10-weeks full time programme designed for young people who are not in education, training or employment and have an interest in the arts. If this recommendation is accepted Transition Extreme will employ professional artists to train and work with the participants and deliver four core art modules along with other activities such as visits to cultural venues and a final exhibition to celebrate and showcase participant’s works created during the programme.
5.4.29 University of Aberdeen – May Festival
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £24,000 £10,000 £0
The University of Aberdeen May Festival is a multi-platform Festival showcasing the city’s creativity and innovation. This year’s festival offers over 100 events. The festival aims to involve a set of creative elements to convey complex areas or ideas such as education, transport, community, environment, health and wellbeing. Some of the events will challenge, others will involve hands-on creative fun and some will feature high profile figures from arts, music and science. Many events will be free of charge to remove barriers for attendance.
5.4.30 University of Aberdeen – Directors Cut
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £12,000 £6000 £4000
Director’s Cut is a programme of events which aims to showcase innovative and international filmmakers, broadcasters and composers talking about their work. The series will offers events on campus and community outreach including Director’s Cut Masterclasses at the Belmont Media Centre, where students and guests have an opportunity to hear first-hand about topics on the film industry from leading professionals. This application is seeking support for three main events at Kings College and four masterclasses at the Belmont. This Series will include leading film composers, and directors and presenters
Page 22 involved in the production of popular films and television series with science and sci-fi themes of enquiry. The costs associated with this application include speakers fees and marketing.
5.4.31 Wild Dolphins – Wild Dolphins
Total Project Cost Funding Requested Recommendation £181,700 £9000 £0
Wild Dolphins is a city-wide public art event led by the Archie Foundation and Whale and Dolphin Conservation. The project aims to create around 50 colourful life-sized dolphins produced by local artists to be placed around Aberdeen City for a period of 10 weeks over the summer. The programme is realised by the support of sponsors and at the end of the programme the sculptures will be auctioned. This application is seeking support to focus to increase community engagement with the project.
5.5 Applications not recommended for an Award
A total of eight applications have not been recommended for an Award at this time.
The rationale for this recommendation is specific to each application, however will generally fall into one or more of the following:
• Does not fully align with the arts and culture focus for this funding programme • Fails to demonstrate it meets the core principles of this funding programme (Quality, aspiration and accessibility) • Insufficient information supplied • Match funding requirements have not been met • Application does not clearly demonstrate quality of activity • Limited evidence of demand or need for activity • Ineligible costs • Limited evidence of requirement for support • Evidence that the activity would represent unnecessary duplication • Plan for activity appears unrealistic
If the recommendations are approved all applicants will be provided with written feedback and the opportunity to meet with an officer. Each will be encouraged and supported to re-apply for future application rounds.
6. IMPACT
This report relates to ‘Aberdeen – the Smarter City’, in particular to:
• We will improve access to and increase participation in arts and culture by providing opportunities for citizens and visitors to experience a broad range of high quality arts and cultural activities
Page 23 • We aspire to be recognised as a City of Culture, a place of excellence for culture and arts by promoting Aberdeen as a cultural centre hosting high quality and diverse cultural events for the whole community and beyond
The report is also aligned to the city’s Cultural Strategy, ‘Vibrant Aberdeen’ which includes the key objectives of:
• Establishing a cohesive cultural sector • Increasing community engagement in cultural activity • Improving the city’s cultural profile • Increasing investment in culture • Effectively monitoring and evaluating the impact of culture
7. MANAGEMENT OF RISK
Local cultural organisations and bodies, in the main, pursue a range of different avenues for supporting their activity however the Cultural Awards Programme remains a fundamental source of funding for many.
Should the Committee approve the recommendations officers will provide each unsuccessful applicant with written feedback and the opportunity to meet to discuss this further. Where appropriate, support will be provided to resubmit for future application rounds and/or to identify other potential sources of support.
8. BACKGROUND PAPERS
None.
9. REPORT AUTHOR DETAILS
Gary Cameron Cultural Policy & Partnerships Officer [email protected] 01224 522744
Page 24 Appendix 1: Cultural Awards 2014/15 – Project Funding
Total Project Amount Amount Applicant Project Name Cost Requested Recommended AbChoir Theatre Company An Evening of Modern Theatre £8,357 £4,000 £0 Aberdeen Barbershop Harmony Club Enriching Local Barbershop Singing £9,740 £4,870 £4,870 Aberdeen Chamber Music Concerts Concert Series 2014/15 £12,450 £1,500 £1,500 Aberdeen Choral Society Aberdeen Choral Society £33,000 £3,000 £0 Aberdeen Multicultural Centre Cultural & Linguistic Diversity Enhancement Programme £9,700 £7,675 £0 Aberdeen Performing Arts International Youth Theatre £30,190 £10,000 £10,000 Aberdeen Performing Arts Singer Songwriter Festival £102,000 £10,000 £10,000 Aberdeen Sinfonietta Music Hall Concert Series £34,250 £10,000 £3,000 ACT Aberdeen ACT International £24,262 £9,250 £0 Aurora Scottish Dance & Music International Festival of Traditional Music & Dance £9,880 £1,500 £1,500 Elementz Adult Community Dance Co Choreographic Developments £6,000 £3,000 £3,000 Fitlike Records Fitlike Records £12,000 £5,000 £5,000 Grampian Hospitals Art Trust Suttie Space £22,000 £10,000 £10,000 Page 25 Grampian Youth Orchestra Summer Courses 2014 £15,000 £7,500 £7,500 Granite City Highland Dancing GCHD Festival £5,750 £1,600 £1,200 Learig Orchestra Orchestra for All £3,600 £1,000 £1,000 North East Scotland Music School Series of Music Workshops £1,600 £800 £800 Peacock Visual Arts Intelligence Report £23,150 £10,000 £10,000 Quids in Theatre Company Quids in 2014 £20,650 £9,510 £9,510 RGU Open House £24,000 £10,000 £6,000 Scottish Community Drama Assoc. One ACT Play Festival and workshops £7,170 £3,390 £3,390 Scottish Cultures & Traditions Association Sing Aberdeen Project £4,000 £2,000 £2,000 Scottish Opera Opening Up Opera in Aberdeen £28,920 £5,000 £5,000 Special Collections Centre UoA New Found Land £12,936 £4,950 £4,950 Station House Media Unit 57˚ North £31,250 £10,000 £10,000 Station House Media Unit Band of the Week £23,500 £7,500 £3,500 Tete a Tete Grind £10,500 £5,000 £5,000 Transition Extreme Extreme Art School £24,000 £10,000 £8,000 University of Aberdeen May Festival £88,000 £10,000 £0 University of Aberdeen Director's Cut £12,000 £6,000 £4,000 Wild Dolphins Wild Dolphins £181,700 £9,000 £0
£849,955 £202,195 £130,720
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Page 26 Agenda Item 4
ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL
COMMITTEE: Culture & Sport Sub Committee
DATE: 19 th February 2014
DIRECTOR: Gayle Gorman
TITLE OF REPORT: Sports Grants (Under £5,000)
REPORT NUMBER: ECS/14/014
1. PURPOSE OF REPORT
This report brings before Committee, nine applications for financial assistance and makes recommendations accordingly.
2. RECOMMENDATION(S)
That the committee: (a) considers the applications through the development grants and approve the following recommendations:
Applicant Fun ding Recommended School of Football – St Machar Academy £978
Aberdeen Roughnecks American Football Club 2,000
Games for Scotland – a day to celebrate £5,000
Total Award £7,978
b) considers the application through the coach and volunteer workforce development grant programme and approve the following recommendation:
Applicant Sport Funding Recommended
D Fraser Table Tennis £80
D Webster Trampolining £130
A Pearson Cycling £147.50
Total Award £357.50
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c) considers the application through the talented athlete grants programme and approve the following recommendations:
Applicant Sport Funding Recommended
P Gillespie Touch Rugby £247
L Thomson Weightlifting £690
J Steel Rowing £1,000
Total Award £1,937
3. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
The sports grants budget for the 2013/14 is £90,000 in addition to this there is £140,000 allocated this year from the Common Good budget. There is currently £106,854 committed within this budget. Assuming that the recommendations contained within this report are agreed, there will be £96,581.50 remaining in this budget. Please see appendix 1 for previous awards of grants funding in the current financial year.
Officers within Education, Culture and Sport redefined the sports grant criteria in June 2013 and capacity has been identified to support community sports clubs and organisations through the application process.
4. OTHER IMPLICATIONS
Local sports groups and organisations adopt a variety of methods to attract funding, however some groups would be unable to host an event or develop further without the financial assistance available from the City Council. Groups who do not meet the criteria will be assisted by officers to source alternative solutions.
5. BACKGROUND/MAIN ISSUES
Aberdeen City Council’s Sports Grants is a funding programme which is open to any voluntary or not-for-profit organisation or club who deliver sport or physical activity within the city.
The grant criteria is aligned to the key objectives of “Fit for the Future” the Sport and Physical Activity Strategy for Aberdeen (2009-2015). Each application is assessed against the criteria, with recommendations developed and put forward to the relevant Committee for a decision.
All applicants are provided with support from officers before and after applications have been considered. This includes the offer of individual support sessions, resulting in detailed feedback on how to improve the quality of their application. For more information about common reasons for resubmission, deferral or rejection please see Appendix 2.
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5.1 Club Development Grant Programme
The aim of this grant is to increase the availability of sporting opportunities in the city by assisting existing sports clubs to develop their sports programmes and by encouraging the establishment of new sports groups/clubs/sections.
5.1.1 School Of Football- St Machar Academy
The SFA school of football, based within St Machar Academy, is one of eighteen such schools in Scotland covering six regions. The aim of the SFA School of Football is to develop the social and academic skills of young boys and girls during the first two years of their secondary education. The cost of running the St Machar School of Football is £16,000 per annum and this is funded by The Cashback Initiative.
Currently the School of Football pupils only have access to an outdoor astroturf to play on. The children don’t get the opportunity to experience top class facilities. This is due to a lack of funding available within the school. This funding would allow The School of Football to reward the children within the programme by allowing them access to a 3 rd of the 3G indoor football arena at their neighbouring sports facility-Aberdeen Sports Village.
The proposed funding will allow the use of the Sports Village facilities for 16 weeks and would entail a licensed SFA coach accompanying the children twice a week for one hour sessions to the Sports Village. Funding would also assist with costs associated with transporting the children safely to and from football in a mini bus.
Training in such a facility will maintain the pupils interest not only in the programme but in sport as a whole as they will experience the buzz of what it is like to participate in a top class sporting facility. It will also attract new participants to the programme as they will see the opportunities which are available to them as part of this programme.
The outcomes of the project include developing young boys and girls socially, academically and physically, primarily through training them as professional footballers for the first two years of their secondary education. Partnership working between Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeen Sports Village and SFA School of Football will inevitably raise the profile of sport in the city.
Support which would allow the School of Football to access the facilities at Aberdeen Sports Village would increase opportunities for participation in sport and physical activity for the children of Aberdeen. Familiarising the children with their local facility will encourage them to use the facility out with The School of Football and into the adult lives. This will help to develop pathways which nurture local, regional and national sporting people to reach their potential.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
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£1955 £978
5.1.2 Aberdeen Rough Necks American Football Club
In November 2013 the Aberdeen Rough Necks American Football Club were accepted into the British American Football association as full members, having previously been associate members. As a member of the governing body they are required to set up a youth section within their club by the start of 2015. However their goal as a club is to have junior and youth teams up and running from summer 2014.Youth teams (14-16 year olds) and Junior teams (17-19 year olds) will run as separate entities, as they will enter separate youth leagues when launched successfully.
American football is a sport where there truly is a role for everyone, regardless ability. Launching an effective youth program will result in children and young people participating that may otherwise not play any other form of sport. The main emphasis placed by coaches is on the “team”, rather than the individual therefore all who participate are treated with collective responsibility which will allow for an extremely positive learning environment for the participants.
There are a number of costs associated with starting up a youth section- these include buying kit, paying for coaching courses and qualifications, pitch rental, promotional costs etc. The development grant would help support the club to purchase essential equipment. This in turn will allow the club to maximize any initial interest shown from youths in the city. In addition this will mean that the youths who do want to participate can do so in the safest possible environment.
The aim of the club is to set up a youth, a junior and a full adult team. Once initial start-up costs have been met the junior and youth teams should be self- sufficient as a result of local business support and general fundraising. The club intends to have a specific sponsorship partner for youth development to ensure sustainability in the future, alongside reasonable membership fees for children and young people. In addition, the club is currently projected to run at a surplus, with the adult team being self-sufficient. This allows any sponsorship/donations to be used solely for club improvement and sustainability.
This grant will be used to purchase essential kit, coaching courses and disclosure checks for volunteers, training equipment and coaching materials. The club have estimated the start-up costs for each team to be £4000 each, with total costs to be under £10,000 at year end.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£5000 £2000
5.1.3 Games for Scotland- A day to celebrate
Event Scotland has allocated £10,000 from the Games for Scotland Fund to Aberdeen City Council for the Queens baton Relay, which will arrive in the
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city on Monday 30 th June 2014. A requirement of this funding is that match funding must be provided to be spent on the provision of cultural and sporting activities within the city.
A series of co-ordinated events are being organised to give all of the citizens of Aberdeen the opportunity to be involved in this celebratory day which will take place from 8am-7pm. This will give existing partners in the city an opportunity to collaborate and provide high quality cultural and sporting experiences for everyone in all communities to enjoy. Key partners will plan, co-ordinate and deliver Commonwealth Games themed activities using a variety of resources. Activities will take place across the city targeting all communities and encouraging everyone to participate.
By bringing sporting and cultural activities into a variety of communities there are extended opportunities to break down barriers with inactive and harder to reach groups, and this will create opportunities to increase physical activity participation and create positive experiences for the citizens of Aberdeen. The day of activity will raise the profile of current activities and clubs in the City; it will offer opportunities for continued engagement in sport, physical activity and cultural activities. Also having key partners engaging with communities will provide an excellent opportunity to encourage a change in those who are inactive.
By involving as many communities and individuals as possible in a national Commonwealth Games event it is hoped that this will encourage more people to get involved and take part in some activities which they may be unaware of and in turn decrease the inactivity levels in the city.
Funding will be used to cover the costs of coaches, equipment and marketing materials.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£5000 £5000
5.2 Coach and Volunteer Development Grant
Aberdeen City Council values personal and professional development, recognising that the establishment of new skills and knowledge is at the heart of improving the quality and sustainability of sport and physical activity opportunities within the city.
This fund aims to support coaches and volunteers to obtain a higher level of coaching award in their chosen sport.
5.2.1 David Fraser- Coach and Volunteer Development Grant
David is a table tennis coach who currently coaches at Aberdeen Sports Village, at local schools and at club level. He is looking to progress with his coaching from UKCC Level 1 to UKCC Level 2. This coaching course will
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provide him with the skills to further his knowledge and will allow him to fully support some of Aberdeen’s best table tennis players in reaching a higher level.
Table tennis is a commonwealth sport and it is therefore important to recognise that Glasgow 2014 may encourage new participants into the sport. In order to ensure that the city is well place to make the most of this it is important that we have a sufficient number of well-trained coaches to deliver quality coaching.
The course which David hopes to attend is being held at Hazlehead Community Centre and takes 4 days to complete. The total cost of the course is £300 however he has already received £135 of funding from another contributing source.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£150 £80
5.2.2 David Webster- Coach and Volunteer Development Grant
David is currently a voluntary coach at Donside Trampolining Club. He coaches gymnasts from the ages of 5 to the age of 20 and his coaching sessions are twice per week. He is currently qualified to UKCC Level 2 and is looking to further this qualification by completing his level 3 course.
This qualification will allow David to be an assigned coach during competitions. To date the availability and the cost of the course has prevented him in gaining this qualification at an earlier date however he feels that it is now essential for him in continuing his role.
The course will take place in Banchory Sports Centre and will last a total of 4 days. The total cost of the course is £260 and David applied for a grant to cover the full cost of the course. Inline with the conditions of the grant the maximum that can be supported is 50% which equates to £130. This contribution will enable David to progress as a trampolining coach.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£260 £130
5.2.3 Ashley Pearson- Coach and Volunteer Workforce Development
Ashley has been a member and coach of the Deeside Thistle Cycling Club for a number of years and for the past three years has sat on the club’s committee. The club would like to expand their provision of cycle sessions for under 12’s and Ashley has volunteered to lead on this development. The club plans to hold sessions on a Saturday morning and Monday evening targeting children aged from 7 to 13 years old.
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In order to deliver this programme the club requires sufficient coaches. Ashley will play an integral role in the coaching of these youngsters and therefore this course is essential in her own personal development but also for the development of the club.
The UKCC Level 2 Course which Ashley would like to attend will take place over 3 days at the Sir Chris Hoy Veledrome in Glasgow and will require Ashley to stay in Glasgow for 2 nights. The total cost of this course is £395 pounds, with £100 pounds being returned to Ashley on completion of the course as she is a member of an affiliated club.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£147.50 £147.50
5.3 Talented Athlete Grants
The aim of the scheme is to recognise individual talented sports performers in Aberdeen and encourage them to develop to their full potential by providing funding to assist with the costs associated with competing at a high level.
5.3.1 Pamela Gillespie (Touch Rugby)
Pamela has been playing touch rugby for three years with the Aberdeenshire Leopards Touch Rugby Club who train and play at Woodside Sports Complex. She was selected for Aberdeen’s regional squad last autumn and as part of this team became National Champions. On the back of her performances in the tournament, she was selected for the Scotland national training squad which is preparing for the forthcoming European championships to be held in Swansea in August 2014.
Pamela will be required to make frequent trips to training camps and overnight stays in the central belt, as well as undertaking a busy personal training schedule in an effort to gain selection for the final women’s open team which will compete in the European championships.
Pamela is looking for grant funding to support with travelling costs, accommodation costs and kit which would help her on the road to achieving her goal of representing Scotland.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£494 £247
5.3.2 Lewis Thomson (Weightlifting)
Lewis is a final year student studying politics and international relations at Aberdeen University. Lewis has demonstrated an impressive talent in
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weightlifting and along with his studies Lewis funds the time to fit in an intensive personal training programme, training 14 hours per week.
Due to his dedication to training Lewis has been successful in a number of regional and national weightlifting events. He was the winner of the Scottish Under 23’s, Scottish Open and Scottish seniors in the 105kg+ class. He is currently ranked 16 th best weightlifter in Scotland and best in 105kg+. Due to these excellent results Lewis has qualified for the U23 British Championships which take place this year and he has made it to phase 2 of the British Weightlifting Talent assessment.
Competing at such a high level has a number of costs associated with it and Lewis is looking for support with Travelling expenses, equipment, cost of lodgings and facility use.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
£2000 £690
5.3.3 Jamie Steel (Rowing)
Jamie is a Harlaw Academy former pupil and currently in her 4th year at the University of Aberdeen. She has a great talent in rowing and has been a member of Aberdeen University’s High Performance Programme for talented athletes for the past 4 years. This programme gives talented athletes support during their studies in order to maintain and improve their high level of sporting standard.
Jamie is an extremely focused and determined athlete and it are these key attributes which have helped her in her success as a rower. Jamie was selected to represent the Scottish Senior rowing team in 2011 and 2013, she won a silver medal in the woman’s lightweight single scull at 2013 Scottish Championships and also won a silver medal in the British University Championships in 2011 and 2013.
Jamie’s goals include being selected to represent Scotland at the Commonwealth regatta this year, as well as being selected for the European University championships. Jamie also hopes to medal at the Scottish Championships and British University Championships this year, hopefully moving from silver to gold.
These goals are all well within Jamies reach should she continue to progress as she has been over coming months.
In order to attend essential training camps and competitions Jamie requests support to help with travel, accommodation expenses and competition entrance fees.
Funding Requested Funding Recommended
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£1000 £1000
5.3.4 Allocation of Talented Athlete Grant funding
A panel was developed in order to assess the application forms which were received. This panel consisted of a Scottish Institute of Sport Manager, a Performance Lifestyle Advisor and two officers from the City Council. In addition all applicants had to provide a supporting statement from the governing body for their specific sport. The applications were then reviewed against the set criteria and consideration was given to the level at which the athlete was performing and the associated costs to their training and competition.
A high proportion of the athletes applied for the full amount of £2,000 however the panel felt that given that we are part way through the financial year and season that in certain instances following review of the costs submitted that the athletes did not require this full amount in order to develop to their full potential.
6. IMPACT
This report relates to ‘Aberdeen – the Smarter City’: • We will promote and improve opportunities for physical activity and sport to enable Aberdeen’s citizens to lead more active, healthier lives.
The report relates to the Arts, Heritage and Sport strand of the Community Plan, specifically in relation to the Sports, Leisure and Recreation vision of developing Aberdeen as an “Active City”.
The report relates closely to the objectives of “Fit for the Future, the sport and physical activity strategy for Aberdeen City (2009-2015)”. These objectives are:
• Promote and increase opportunities for participation in sport and physical activity for everyone in Aberdeen. • Provide a comprehensive and high quality range of sports facilities in Aberdeen. • Maximise social, educational, health and economic benefits of sport and physical activity in Aberdeen. • Develop and sustain pathways which nurture local, regional and national sporting people to reach their potential. • Raise the profile of sport in Aberdeen.
7. MANAGEMENT OF RISK
Local sports groups and organisations adopt a variety of methods to attract funding, however some groups would be unable to host an event or develop further without the financial assistance available from the City Council.
All successful applicants are expected to agree to terms and conditions which mitigate any risk of exposure to the Council and that all supported activity
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meets Council Policies, processes and the Following the Public Pound guidelines.
8. BACKGROUND PAPERS
The application forms and business plan will be available in the members lounge prior to the Education, Culture and Sport committee.
9. REPORT AUTHOR DETAILS
Jo Hall Sports and Physical Activity Strategy and Partnerships Manager [email protected] 01224 523798
Applications Coordinated by
Hannah Leslie Sport and Physical Activity Development Officer [email protected] 01224 523370
Appendix 1
Summary Table of Financial Assistance Sports Awards 2013/14
Organisation Funding Committee Approval Awarded
Development Grants
Grampian Institute of Sport £8,000 Education, Culture & Sport 30/05/13
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Games for Scotland (match funding £5,000 Education, Culture & for council application to Event Sport Scotland) 30/05/13 Aberdeen Synchronized Ice Skating £5,000 Culture and Sport Sub Club Committee 01/07/13 Auchmill Golf Club £5,000 Culture and Sport Sub Committee 01/07/13 Bryon Amateur Boxing Club and £2,000 Education, Culture & Fitness Club Sport 21/11/13 Cove Boys Football Club £2,000 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Aberdeen Amateur Athletics Club £4,000 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Dyce Boys Football Club £1,214 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Granite City Wanderers Hockey Club £1,131 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Northfield Academy £1,000 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Scottish Gymnastics £1,500 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 School of Football – St Machar £978 Culture & Sport Sub Academy Committee 19/02/14 (pending) Aberdeen Rough Necks American £2,000 Culture & Sport Sub Football Club Committee 19/02/14 (pending) Games for Scotland – a day to £5,000 Culture & Sport Sub celebrate Committee 19/02/14 (pending)
Significant Sports Events Grants
Commonwealth Water Polo £30,000 Education, Culture & Championship 2014 Organising Sport Company Ltd 12/09/13 The Northern Trophy Day – £850 Education, Culture & Dancesport Scotland Sport 12/09/13 Scotland v England Cricket £30,000 Education, Culture &
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International – Cricketscotland Sport 30/01/14 Coach and Volunteer Workforce Development Grant
Colin Sim – Aberdeen Wheelers £150 Education, Culture & Cycling Club Sport 12/09/13 David Fraser – Table Tennis £80 Culture & Sport Sub Committee 19/02/14 (pending) David Webster - Trampolining £130 Culture & Sport Sub Committee 19/02/14 (pending) Ashley Pearson - Cycling £147.50 Culture & Sport Sub Committee 19/02/14 (pending) Talented Athletes Grants
Findlay Bremner (Freestyle £2,000 Education, Culture & Snowboarding) Sport 21/11/13 Iona Riley (Rowing) £1,800 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Lewis McCue (Rowing) £1,500 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Gary Wilson (Rowing) £1,500 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Yifel Fang (Table Tennis) £1,156 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Joe Yeoman (Swimming) £700 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Ross Soutar (Gymnastics) £1,500 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Angus Rennie (Rugby) £700 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Zoey Clark (Athletics) £1,500 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Rebecca Bees (Rhythmic £1,500 Education, Culture & Gymnastics) Sport 21/11/13 Richard Hollins (Squash) £1,500 Education, Culture &
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Sport 21/11/13 Mark Speed (Waterpolo) £700 Education, Culture & Sport 21/11/13 Andrew McGovern (Swimming) £850 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Katie Knowles (Modern Pentathlon) £1000 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Emily Merry (Hockey) £200 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Christine Cahu (Hockey) £300 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Sofia Gambro (Hockey) £200 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Millie Skidmore (Hockey) £200 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Siobhan Cowie (Hockey) £875 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Rebecca Kelsey (Curling) £1500 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Suleman Butt (Swimming) £2000 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Grant Donald (Skiing) £2000 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Rebecka Tippling (Archery) £850 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Julie Erskine (Cycling) £200 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Shaun Barnes (Football) £70 Education, Culture & Sport 30/01/14 Pamela Gillespie – (Touch Rugby) £247 Culture & Sport Sub Committee 19/02/14 (pending) Lewis Thomson – (Weightlifting) £690 Culture & Sport Sub Committee 19/02/14 (pending)
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Jamie Steel – (Rowing) £1,000 Culture & Sport Sub Committee 19/02/14 (pending) Total Grant Funding Awarded if recommendations approved £133,418.5
Grant Funding Remaining £96,581.50
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Appendix 2
Sports Grants – Please find below frequent reasons for resubmission, deferral or rejection of funding applications
• Application forms not fully completed or illegible • The benefits of the initiative do not clearly show the primary benefit is to residents of the City, but to a wider demographic • Projects do not have clear outputs or outcomes • Match funding is either not confirmed (in which case an application is deferred) or indicated. • There is no evidence of need ascertained, of wider benefit, and/or there is evidence of duplication of services already supported by Aberdeen City Council • The organisation or Club has outstanding debt with Aberdeen City Council • The club cannot meet FTPP (Following the Public Pound) guidance and/or has not submitted reports against previous grant allocations • The group or club is not constituted as required by the grants criteria • The group or club does not have a bank account with two authorised signatories • Applications for transport represent a significant proportion of the grant with no evidence of participants subsidising travel • Requests to visit or train at facilities out with the City may be rejected if similar facilities are available locally • Projects or requests for staffing do not evidence any forward planning recognising future stability • Standards of coaching or volunteering do not meet acceptable standards • There are inadequate or no monitoring and evaluation plans
Feedback and additional support
Council Officers from a variety of backgrounds and knowledge work together to assess the wider value to the sports sector of each application.
Where time permits, Aberdeen City Council staff will contact organisations on receipt of their applications to seek clarification or further information. This is not always possible when applications are received very close to the deadline for Committee reports. Organisations are offered a telephone call or a face to face meeting to help improve their applications.
Where applications are recommended for deferral or rejection, organisations are contacted and offered verbal or written feedback to support a resubmission.
In addition, Officers provide advice and support to sports organisations with application to Awards for All, and other small sports grants funding streams.
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Page 42 Agenda Item 5
BULLETIN REPORT
Name of Committee: Education, Culture & Sport Committee
Date of Meeting: 19 th February 2014
Title of Report: Community Sports Hubs Update
Lead Officer: Gayle Gorman
Author of Report: Mark Pain
Summary of Purpose of Report
This report provides members with an update on the development of sport scotland’s Community Sports Hubs initiative within Aberdeen City.
Report
Community Sports Hubs are a key part of sport scotland’s contribution to Legacy 2014. They are designed to increase the number of people participating in sport within local communities by improving access to sport for local people and by supporting local sports clubs to work together. The aim is to establish at least 150 hubs operating across Scotland by 2015. Aberdeen City Council are currently receiving funding to the tune of £56,200 per annum to fund the development of hubs across the city.
The exact set up of a Community Sports Hub will vary from area to area. They can be based around local facilities (e.g. sports centres, community centres, the natural environment and/or schools) or can be a network of sports clubs sharing best practice and CPD. They will bring local people together and provide a home for local sports clubs and sports organisations. Each hub must be sustainable and as a result the majority of hubs have set up steering groups to provide strategic direction and ensure the aims of the hub are met.
Each Hub will be unique but the common thread is that each hub works to the following five principles:
• Growth in participation • Understanding community needs • Supporting community leadership • Offering a range of sports • Ensuring all of the appropriate groups are working together
In October 2013, a full time Community Sports Hub Development Manager was appointed to lead the development of new sports hubs within Aberdeen City, as well as support the existing hubs previously developed. Since that time the following key priority areas have been identified:
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1) Review and support of the three existing hubs:
Aberdeen Disability Hub (based at Aberdeen Sports Village):
The Disability Sports Hub is unique within Scotland as it is the only hub focused on disability sport. While it is nominally based at Aberdeen Sports Village, it serves the disability sport community across Aberdeen.
The hub has an operational steering group, which is staffed mainly by professional officers from a range of partners (including ACC, Sport Aberdeen, Aberdeen Sports Village, Aberdeen University and RGU). However, going forward (and to encourage greater sustainability), the plan is to open up this steering groups to more voluntary groups to ensure that aims and objectives of the hub are more relevant to them.
It has also been agreed that the hub will run an inclusion event in partnership with the universities as part of this year’s Granite City challenge in order to improve the profile of the hub, and showcase inclusive sport within a university setting.
Rubislaw Community Sports Hub:
The Rubislaw hub has brought together Aberdeen Grammar School with a number of local sports clubs that use school facilities to improve pathways between the school and local clubs, and to provide a platform for joint training and CPD opportunities for club members, volunteers, school staff and pupils.
Progress with this hub has been slow, but the member clubs and the school met on 5 th February to begin discussions around fresh aims and objectives, allowing the hub to be able to start to build momentum and really push forward development over the coming year. A further meeting is planned for Wed 26 th February to allow club representatives to get feedback from their committees on how the hub should progress.
Albury Outdoor Sports Centre:
The Albury hub is based around an outdoor sports centre which houses tennis courts, bowling putting & croquet greens. Aberdeen City Council and Sport Aberdeen have worked in partnership with a local volunteer management committee to allow them to operate the facility on a day-to-day basis and provide new sporting opportunities for the Ferryhill community. The centre now has LTA Beacon status and enters teams in the North East of Scotland Tennis League.
The management committee recently won Tennis Scotland’s Community Tennis Award for their work to increase tennis participation at the facility, and given their rapid growth, the committee are currently working with partners to investigate the potential for resurfacing and re-marking the courts at Albury to upgrade them for increased usage and make them more suitable for youth development.
2) Identification of potential new areas to develop hubs:
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A strategic steering group has been set up to support the identification of new hub locations over the next 18 months. This group includes representatives from Aberdeen City Council, Sport Aberdeen and sport scotland and provides experience in the following areas which are vital to hubs development – sports development, facilities management and education. The group’s remit is to agree locations for a number of new hubs over the course of 2014.
As a result of the initial steering group meeting, it was agreed that a fourth community sports hub would be investigated within the Bucksburn area. This decision was based on:
1) Interest from Bucksburn Academy in developing a hub 2) The range of facilities available within the area (based around the Beacon / Bucksburn Academy campus) 3) The provision of sports clubs currently based within the Bucksburn area.
As a result of this, and positive feedback from clubs and organisations within the Bucksburn area, a meeting was held on 20 th January to discuss the aims and objectives of the hub and how it can be structured moving forward. This was a very positive meeting, and a steering group involving representation from Bucksburn Academy, local sports clubs and Sport Aberdeen has since been set up to develop a development plan for the hub for the new financial year. The first meeting of the steering group is planned to take place on Mon 24 th February.
Briefing notes were also sent out to all secondary schools and all sports clubs who had gone through club accreditation were invited to a hubs information evening to gauge interest for further hubs development. A number of schools and clubs have expressed an interest in being part of new hubs, which is currently being followed up and will be discussed at the next strategic steering group meeting in February.
3) Development of other support mechanisms:
Work is on-going to develop branding for Aberdeen City’s community sports hubs programme. ACC Design and Marketing are currently working on a logo which will be used on all future generic marketing materials, with the intention being that individual hubs may look at developing their own hub specific branding over the longer term.
A small grants fund has also been developed, which will allow clubs and organisations who are members of hubs to access funding of up to £1000 to develop programmes within their member hub area. This will be officially launched in January 2014.
The Community Sports Hubs Development Manager is also working in partnership with Sport Aberdeen to develop a coach education programme which can be accessed by members of hubs clubs. The first CPD course – “Recruiting, Retaining & Developing Coaches” was run at the end of January at Aberdeen Sports Village.
Further Information:
If you would like more information on community sports hubs, please contact Mark Pain, Community Sports Hubs Development Manager at Aberdeen City Council.
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Mark Pain Community Sports Hubs Development Manager
Aberdeen City Council Education, Culture & Sport Business Hub 13 Second Floor North Marischal College Broad Street Aberdeen AB10 1AB
Email: [email protected] Direct Dial: +44 1224 522027 Blackberry: 07919 218632
Page 46 Agenda Item 6
BULLETIN REPORT
Name of Committee: Culture & Sport Sub Committee
Date of Meeting: 19 February 2014
Title of Report: Placemaking: Place Partnership Update
Lead Officer: Gayle Gorman
Author of Report: Mark Bremner
Summary of Purpose of Report
This report provides members with information on the programmes developed through the Creative Scotland Place Partnership investment agreement. The aspiration of this joint agreement is to strategically develop the city’s creative and cultural sector, enhancing the current artist production, increasing access and sustaining a more robust and professional creative sector.
Report
Bac kground
Creative Scotland is the national body for the arts and creative industries in Scotland. Their Place Programme is a managed investment programme (not open for application), operating at a strategic level with local authorities and other partners. The Place Programme includes Place Partnerships with Local Authorities and devolved funding for Visual Arts and Crafts awards. The investment from the Place Partnership is £250,000, which the Council has matched financially £159,000 through cultural investment from 2012/13 agreed at the Education, Culture and Sport Committee. Combining in-kind and third party support the total investment value for the Place Partnership programme is £613,000. This purpose of this investment is for strategic initiatives which will support the professional development and nurturing of the city’s cultural sector and creative industries. The funding is not intended for projects or general revenue of cultural organisations.
Aberdeen City Council Place Partnership investment plan is founded on the strategic objectives, priorities and requirements identified by Vibrant Aberdeen, the city’s cultural strategy: the plan is further supported by consultation with artists and organisations and issues raised by the council’s Review of External Investment in Culture and Sport.
Aberdeen has taken a strategic approach to investment and has proposed a joined up programme approach which aims to address the city’s cultural issues and empower the creative community. This approach allows for a more sustainable pathway to long term benefits as opposed to quick wins or one-off successes
Page 47 The Programmes
Cultural Mapping
In 2012, the Service commissioned BOP Consultants to undertake research and prepare a Cultural Assets Map for Aberdeen. This work was developed to help provide a more comprehensive understanding of the city’s current cultural offer, including the physical assets and intangible strengths as well as identifying local cultural and social needs. A draft report was presented before it went through a further period of fact checking and correction which was completed on the 3 December 2013.
The report findings and recommendations were presented at the E, C&S Committee meeting on 12 September 2013 and have since been reviewed in order to identify further research required and inform future cultural investment priorities. The principle step is to build on the findings of the research and develop a long-term Cultural Master Plan which will succeed the city’s current cultural strategy, Vibrant Aberdeen (2010-2015).
The research gathered is an important step in creating a more robust evidence base for culture: however officers recognise that it currently has limitation and gaps, which require further follow up research and analysis. Key areas which officers propose to follow up on are:
• Audit and analysis of city based practitioners and creative small and medium enterprises, to be progressed through desk based research by officers and the commissioning of discrete targeted consultation work.
• Development of creative industry art form specific plans aligned within a City Cultural Master plan process.
• Assessment of sector audience development needs matched to increasing participation.
The second phase of the Cultural Mapping process will be to conduct research (commission, consultation and desk based research) to inform these current gaps in knowledge and develop a platform to disseminate the information to wider sector through an online portal. The online Aberdeen Cultural Map portal will be user orientated, giving visibility to artists, venues organisations but with a filter search system allowing users to find the relevant information for them; be it a musician looking for venues to perform in, artists seeking collaborations or a family wanting to find art activities to do on a weekend. Strategically, the map presents a number of opportunities, including; the development of a more effective evaluation and evidence base for culture, raise awareness of cultural offer and opportunities, support planning and investment development through identifying ‘creative clusters’ and correlation between user groups and cultural organisations.
Creative Hub
Seventeen, the city’s creative hub, was established in March 2013. The venue has provided a much need service to the sector and public, hosting cultural partners and cultural support services events as well as offering meeting facilities for cultural groups, practitioners and
Page 48 entrepreneurs. The space has programmed exhibitions, cultural activity, workshops and training but is also available to be booked by groups and organisations to host events. To date Seventeen has hosted over 60 exhibitions, workshops and events within the nine months and has been well received by both the sector and general public.
Seventeen has been temporarily closed to the public over January 2014 in order for building upgrade work and improvements to access to be made. This work will both improve the quality of facilities the space can offer for presentations and events but also ensure that it meets current disability access legislation which will increase the potential usage of the venue.
In addition to the building works the reopened hub will also see the establishment of ‘MAKE’ a new six month pilot initiative delivered by Peacock Visual Arts and MAKLAB, supported through the ‘Production’ programme. MAKE will be an open access digital fabrication workshop, providing affordable access to manufacturing and production technology for artists, makers, creative SMEs, students, schools and members of the public. The pilot will be reviewed and assess to consider the value of establishing a full time lab or expanding the project further to develop new incubation spaces.
Finally, after the re-launch, Seventeen will house the Aberdeen International Youth Festival (AIYF) staff within the lower office space. This arrangement will provide AIYF with a more central space to operate from and diversify and enhance the range services provided by Seventeen.
Production
Suitable production spaces are one of the key areas for development identified through the Cultural Assets Mapping Report, which is supported by previous research and consultation. To respond to this the ‘Production’ programme has been established as a devolved investment programme supporting the development of creative spaces within existing premises and sites. These spaces will facilitate and incubate multi-art form original production and activity to support individual practitioners, creative SMEs and learners.
MAKE at Seventeen was selected as pilot for the programme, which is to be followed up by the development of a new ‘Moving Image’ learning space and filmmaking hub at the Belmont Picturehouse. The latter will provide not only new facilities but support better networking and collaboration between producers of moving image and presenter outlets such as the Belmont.
The programme will be evaluated and inform future long term initiatives under the Cultural Master Plan, funding for small capital or start ups to develop new production spaces which support the creation of new work in the city.
Culture Matters
To further support the professional development of the sector, the profile of culture in the city’s cultural priorities, and to increase the prominence of creative thinking, a series of ‘Cultural Talks’ and forum series are being developed. Currently discussions are being held with university partners for the potential of co-hosting events.
Page 49 These talks seek to connect the local sector with national and international discussion, challenging insular perceptions and notions, to place Aberdeen within a national placemaking context. Effective networking and partnership working has been identified as a weakness in the local sector: the talks and forums seek to address some of these issues. Speakers will be selected on a thematic basis and a seminar style format to allow debate and cultural partner forum discussion will be incorporated. A ‘Cultural Support’ package will be developed in response to the issues and barriers identified through the cultural talks series.
Culture Matters ‘Cultural Support’ is a strategic coordinated package approach to the cultural sectors challenges, using Seventeen as a base and drop in centre, information sessions, training programmes and services being delivered based on the needs of the cultural sector, coordinating with other support services (Arts and Business, Cultural Enterprise, AmbITion etc) to ensure the right expertise and aligned with the work of the new audience development agency for Scotland.
Encounters
Encounters seeks to address three of Aberdeen’s current issues: a lack of showcase spaces for contemporary artists within the city: a lack of opportunities for the public to ‘be informed on’ or experience contemporary art: and perceptions of Aberdeen’s city centre. Encounters pilots a more curatorial and joined up approach to arts marketing in the city, looking at innovative ways of exposing the public to culture, piloting new first time activity and events, incorporate traditional and viral marketing tools as well as public art.
During November 2013 the Encounters programme supported the Sound Festival to develop a series of ‘public encounters’, presenting renowned and respected artists from the festival programme in non traditional performances spaces both outdoors and indoors (Aberdeen Railway Station and Aberdeen Central Library for example). These events created spectacle and created awareness of the festival to a much wider audience and demographic than their traditional audience base. The series has been evaluated and is now being considered as part of the Sound Festival’s future core activity.
The Encounters programmes key initiative has been to pilot SPECTRA, Aberdeen’s first festival of light. The festival ran from Thursday 6 th to Sunday 9 th February, and was developed in response to the Cultural Asset Mapping Report assessment and UK City of Culture consultation process that Aberdeen needs to apply ‘a more imaginative use of public spaces’ and ‘to transform less hospitable public spaces into cultural spaces by embedding the arts into the public realm’. SPECTRA showcased it’s distinctive built environment, developing participation events which break barriers to engagement towards a new contemporary signature event for the city.
The festival programme included projections and installations around the city centre created by local, national and international artists: the Light Garden, a presentation of 2000 ‘light flowers’ created by primary 5 and 6 children from Aberdeen schools and ‘Reclaim the Night’, a participatory promenade parade which used light, music and movement to encourage the public to ‘reclaim’ the city centre’s less hospitable spaces for the public. The festival programme offered both family friendly spectacle as well as presenting more cutting edge or risk taking examples of light art forms.
Page 50 SPECTRA was delivered by Peacock Visual Arts in partnership with Aberdeen City Council, supported by the Encounters programme, Aberdeen Inspired, Lively Cities Interreg IVB programme with in-kind support from the City Events Team and Visit Aberdeen. As well as the outdoor programme, Peacock Visual Arts, Seventeen and Aberdeen Art Gallery presented interior based light artwork. More information on the programme is available at www.aberdeenfestivaloflight.com
Background Papers
Place Making Partnership, Culture and Sport Sub Committee, 1 July 2013 Cultural Mapping , Education, Culture & Sport Committee, 12 September 2013 MAKLAB, Education, Culture & Sport Committee, 12 September 2013
Mark Bremner Cultural Policy & Partnership Officer [email protected] 01224 523805
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Page 52 Agenda Item 7
BULLETIN REPORT
Name of Committee: Culture & Sport Sub Committee
Date of Meeting: 19 February 2014
Title of Report: Made In Aberdeen
Lead Officer: Gayle Gorman
Author of Report: Mark Bremner
Summary of Purpose of Report
This report provides members with information on ‘Made in Aberdeen’, a new initiative to profile and support the development of individual creative practitioners who live in Aberdeen.
Report
Made in Aberdeen has been initiated in response to both the relatively low degree of retention in emerging creative talent in the city and low levels of cultural content being produced in Aberdeen. This has been identified in both the recently completed Cultural Asset Mapping Report and UK City of Culture bid research and consultation. The Cultural Asset Mapping Report comments, “ it is noticeable that the breadth and depth of venues is not matched by similar riches in terms of producers and practitioners ”. The report as well as other consultation conducted with emerging graduates indicates several reasons for this including; cost of living in the city, lack of suitable or affordable production spaces, lack of opportunities and support networks.
Made In Aberdeen seeks to address some of these issues by more actively supporting emerging talent, not just through direct funding but through creating greater awareness of the city’s talented practitioners to the wider public, introducing practitioners to key organisations and networks that can help them to develop and sustain, and offering them both space and exhibition opportunities at Seventeen, the creative hub. The objective is to foster a producing culture within the city, which makes Aberdeen a more attractive destination for creative talent, develops new creative SMEs and improves the city’s cultural reputation and identity. Made in Aberdeen is funded from existing resources.
The Made In Aberdeen initiative will comprise of the follow elements:
• Artists Bursaries • Artists Commissions • Emerging Talent Prize • Profile Raising – Made in Aberdeen Films
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Artists Bursaries
The ‘Made in Aberdeen’ Artists’ Bursaries aim to both increase the support for, and profile of, this talent. The programme is designed to illustrate confidence in the city’s creative individuals, nurturing and supporting our talent and finding new ways of showcasing it to a much wider local, national and international audience.
This programme is open to any individual artists or collectives across any art-form and at any stage of their career. It aims to support personal and artistic development, encourage artistic risks and innovations and the creation and promotion of exciting and high quality artistic activity.
The bursaries can be used by practitioners to create, develop and/or present new work, take part in development opportunities such as residencies or training courses and to facilitate new collaborations which support artistic development and experimentation. It is proposed that Artists Bursaries of up to £2,000 will be available from March 2014 through an open application process. A selection panel comprising of cultural professionals and community representatives will review and make recommendations for award.
Artists Commissions
It is proposed to launch two thematic annual artists commissions of up to £5,000 to support Aberdeen based artists within any art-form, to produce significant work as well as supporting new residencies by national or international artists in Aberdeen, whose presence will develop the city’s cultural reputation and present new development opportunities, skills training for resident practitioners.
As well as increasing production in the city and offering work opportunities to artists, the commissions have the potential to encourage and embed more quality artistic practice and exchanges within the city, through national or international artists offering skill sharing to city based artists through residencies or emerging artist working at the cutting edge of their respective practice collaborating with more traditional based arts organisations, groups or institutes.
Emerging Talent Prize
As part of the 2013 Arts and Business Awards a new cultural prize was trialled, the Emerging Talent Prize. Sponsored by Aberdeen City Council, The Made in Aberdeen: Emerging Talent Prize aspires to recognise, celebrate and support emerging local cultural and creative talent. The Prize comes with a commission up to the value of £5000 to create and present a new piece of work in any art form and, for those who are nominated, a professional development bursary of £1000.
Five emerging artists working within different artistic disciplines were nominated for the prize by senior representatives of leading cultural organisations and institutes within the city. The representatives were brought together to form a selection panel, in order to select one nominee for the final prize.
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The 2013 award winner was Amber Robertson, an Aberdeen based Visual Artist who graduated from Gray’s School of Art with BA (Hons) Sculpture before returning to the University as a Graduate in Residence.
Being awarded the prize can have significant impact on the artist, developing their confidence, increasing their network, access to mentoring and raising both artists and city’s profile within the wider cultural sector. The award winners are also offered the chance to use the facilities at Seventeen in order to develop or produce their work, using it for meetings, work spaces or for presentations.
Profile raising - Made In Aberdeen films
A series of films profiling local artists and facilitators who have been previously supported directly or indirectly by Aberdeen City Council’s cultural investment programmes were jointly commissioned by Aberdeen City Council and the Belmont Picturehouse. The film subjects were chosen because of their individual contribution to the cultural sector and commitment to quality in their respective practices. The purpose of the films is to:
• Raise the profile and public awareness of the quality and range of practitioners in the sector and to the wider public.
• Develop marketing material which the individual subjects can use to promote their work and at the same time the city, through a variety of other showcase platforms and networks.
• Establish the Made in Aberdeen brand, developing a reputation for the city as a hub for creative talent and to be a conducive environment for producers to create new work within.
• Creating opportunities for emerging filmmaking talent to develop their skills and experience to create material which showcases their filmmaking work.
The final films will be showcased at a launch event to be held at the Belmont Picturehouse to tie in with the launch of the proposed Artist’s Bursary scheme. The films will then go on to be screened alongside the trailers for all films presented in the Belmont, potentially offering regular exposure to wide audiences. In addition the films will be uploaded to the Council’s website to raise awareness of the Made in Aberdeen Initiative and demonstrate both the quality level the scheme aspires to but also highlight the Council’s commitment to supporting its resident creatives.
Mark Bremner Cultural Policy & Partnership Officer [email protected] 01224 523805
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