FEDERATION OF SCOTTISH THEATRE

MEMBERS’ MEETING

Wednesday 24th June 2015

Horsecross, Perth Concert Hall

MEETING 11.00am-4.30pm

Chair: Alex McGowan Minutes: Mira Knoche

1. In attendance Ben Torrie, Helen Milne, Lesley Anne Rose and Lynne Macfarlan (Aberdeen Performing Arts), Rishaad Moudden (Ayr Gaiety / Borderline Theatre), Belinda McElhinney and Kj Clarke-Davis (Barrowland Ballet), Kathleen Benham (Benham Conway), Jan Harrison and Steph Hand (Birnam Arts & Conference Centre), Louise Gilmour Wills (Catherine Wheels Theatre Company), Sheena Miller (Comar - Mull Theatre), Eileen Wilson (Conflux), Fiona MacLellan (Creative Carbon ), Ian Stevenson and Lorna Duguid (Creative Scotland), Ailsa-Mary Gold (Dance House), Jemima Levick, Karen Busher and Pamela Reid ( Rep), Nick Parr (Festival City Theatres Trust), Hazel Wotherspoon and Verdi Clark (Fife Cultural Trust), Hannah Putsey (Fire Exit Ltd), Jackie McComish (HMRC - Creative Industries Unit), Anna Beedham, Christina McKenzie, Gwilym Gibbons, Louisa Evans, Noëlle Cobden and Wendy Niblock(Horsecross Arts Ltd), Paul Fitzpatrick (Imaginate), Callum Madge (Lung Ha Theatre Company), Julie Ellen (), Caroline Newall and Eileen O'Reilly (National Theatre of Scotland), Mark Jeary (New Room Theatre), Amy McCallum (Nutshell Theatre), John Durnin and Lynne Grant (Pitlochry Festival Theatre), Elspeth Murray (Puppet State Theatre Company), Michael Emans (Rapture Theatre), Alex McGowan (), Amanda Barnett and Liam Sinclair (Scottish Dance Theatre), Jessie Paterson (Scottish Youth Theatre), Shirley Monteith (Solar Bear Theatre Productions), Amy Briggs (Starcatchers), Gillian Shaw (Stellar Quines Theatre Company), Catherine Makin (), Fiona Miller (Tricky Hat Productions), Lesley Renton and Michael O'Neill (), Laura Penny (Visible Fictions), Susannah Armitage (Vox Motus), Carolyn Lappin (YDance) Alice McGrath, Ed Littlewood, Elsa Littlewood, Janis Claxton, Laura Pasetti, Margaret-Anne O'Donnell, Sam Eccles, Sarah Longfield, Tim Licata, Tony Mills

Agnieszka Swida (FST), Emma Beatt (FST/All or Nothing), Jon Morgan (FST), Katie Stuart (FST), Margie Jones (FST), Mira Knoche (FST)

2. Apologies Martin Latham (Aberdeen Performing Arts), Jen Patterson (All or Nothing Aerial Dance Theatre), Vince Hope (Ayr Gaiety), Pauline Kane (Beacon Arts Centre), Garry Robson and Robert Softley-Gale (Birds of Paradise), Diane Smith (Bodysurf), Susan Gillan (), Gill Robertson (Catherine Wheels Theatre Company), Ailsa Nazir and Viviana Checchia (CCA), Judith Kilvington, Lesley Davidson and Louise Brown (), Anna Porubcansky and Ewan Downie (Company of Wolves), Claire Moran (Cryptic), Catherine Murtagh (Cumbernauld Theatre), Vicky Rutherford-O’Leary (Dance Base), Matthew Zajac (Dogstar Theatre), Peter Renwick (Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival), Susie Crawford (Dundee Rep), Rachel Sanger (Edinburgh Festival Fringe), Kate Lindey (Festivals Office), Duncan Hendry, Jim Clark and Morven Pack (Festival & King’s Theatres, Edinburgh), Mari Binnie (Glasgow Life / Glasgow Arts), Viviane Hullin (Glas(s) Performance), Jude Doherty (Grid Iron), Bill Wright and Clare McGarry (Grinagog Theatre), Gemma Greig-Kicks, Magdalena Federation of Scottish Theatre is a charity registered in Scotland No. 59292. Charity No. SCO 14133. c/o Royal Lyceum Theatre, 30b Grindlay Street, Edinburgh EH3 9AX

Schamberger and Rachel Aisling Smith (Hearts & Minds), Graeme Wallace (Horsecross Arts), Nick Bone (Magnetic North Theatre Productions), Gillian Gourlay (National Theatre of Scotland), Emyr Bell (North East Arts Touring), Christine Martin and Craig Elliott (Paisley Arts Centre/Renfrewshire Arts), Aisla Cullen and Siobhan Cain (plan B), Emma McKee and Fiona Sturgeon Shea (Playwrights’ Studio, Scotland), Jen White and Simon Hart (Puppet Animation Scotland), Euan Martin (Right Lines Productions), Ros Maddison (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland), Catherine Shaw, Douglas McGill and Vivienne Wood (Scottish Opera), David Hutchinson (Sell A Door), Muriel Romanes (Stellar Quines), Yolanda Aguilar (Shaper/Caper), Rhiannon McIntyre (The Touring Network), Carol Metcalf and Tangee Lenton (Theatre Broad), Amanda Liddle (Toonspeak Young People's Theatre), Orla O'Loughlin (Traverse Theatre), Kate Bell (Tron Theatre), Séverine Wyper (Vanishing Point Theatre Company)

Amanda Chinn, Claire Dow, Suzie Ferguson, Mike Griffiths, Susan Hay, Suzanne Lofthus, Eszter Marsalkó, Gerry Mulgrew, Emma Jayne Park, Konrad Siller, Donna Sluggett, Ellie Stewart, Diane Torr, Cat Tyre,

3. Minutes of Previous Meeting (10th December 2015) The Minutes were approved by Nick Parr and Carolyn Lappin.

4. Matters Arising

E-Cigarettes Jon Morgan gave an update on the Scottish Government Consultation on E-Cigarettes and Tobacco Control regarding the use of e-cigarettes in venues. Following a members’ survey in December, he proposed to the government on behalf of the sector, to include an exemption that allows the use of e-cigarettes on stage in performance. There has still not been any clarification but JM will update members when this comes in.

ACTION: FST to update members on the consultation outcome on E-Cigarettes and Tobacco Control.

Meeting topics JM invited members to submit their thoughts on pertinent topics for future Members’ Meetings including issues we should be discussing as a sector and examples of great artistic or management practice which members would benefit from hearing about.

In the meantime, FST has identified the following potential topics and would welcome members’ feedback on these, including thoughts on any potential speakers:  Audiences and audience development  Diversity and inclusion in our practice (artists, employment, audiences, participants)  Sustainable models of working and new ways of generating income  The use of volunteers and unpaid interns

The topic of diversity and inclusion is likely to feature at the September Members’ Meeting as it ties in with Creative Scotland’s Equality Review, due to be completed in Quarter 3. If members have any suggestions for speakers or case studies as examples of good practice, please drop an email to Jon.

ACTION: Members’ to feedback on proposals above and any other topics for future Members’ Meetings to Jon.

All outstanding matters arising are to be covered in the Agenda.

5. Director’s Report JM spoke to his report which had been previously circulated highlighting certain areas. It can be found on FST’s website in the Resource and Research section here once you have logged in as a member. 2

Euan Turner – FST Health & Safety Advisor JM regretted to tell members of Euan Turner’s recent and untimely passing away and spoke about the huge legacy that Euan’s expertise and well-loved personality has left within the sector. A memorial service was held on 23rd June which was well attended by many friends and colleagues from across the sector. JM is now looking into the possibility of creating a legacy project in recognition of Euan’s unique contribution to our sector and will confirm this with the members in due course.

Creative Production and Technical Skills (CPTS) Leadership Forum This forum is slightly different from the other FST specialist forum events in that it used to be by invitation only. At the recent CPTS Leadership Forum at Dundee Rep on 15 June it was decided to open it to anyone with an interest in Technical and Production matters. If you know of anyone, or are interested yourself in attending the meetings and wish to hear more about them, please contact Emma on either 0131 248 4842 or [email protected] to be added to the mailing list.

Advocacy

Creative Scotland JM did not speak in detail to his report around Creative Scotland as a Creative Scotland update on Regular Funding, Open Project Funding and the Arts Strategy would be given by Lorna Duguid. JM assured members that he has been in very positive meetings with Janet Archer and Iain Munro to continue the constructive dialogue and feedback with CS. Please see the Director’s Report update for further information.

Arts Strategy CS aims to complete the Arts Strategy by the end 15/16 in order to inform the RFO renewal process. A key element of the strategy will be to focus on how they work with individual artists as well as with organisations and looking at how they can support the sector to maximise income from multiple sources. They confirmed that there would be opportunities for sector input including, a sector reference group, a series of roadshows in autumn 2015, online drafts and feedback. Additionally, they confirmed that the Strategy would be informed by the various Artform Reviews.

Other Strategies and Reviews This year CS will also be undertaking an International Strategy (due to complete Q3) a Capital Review, a Research Plan, a Creative Learning Review (due to complete Q2), and developing a Quality Service Standard. They are also doing an Equalities Review (due to complete Q3) and in the meantime, Creative Scotland have published their Equalities Report for 2015 which monitors progress they are making in this area.

FST 10 Year Vision for Dance, Opera and Theatre FST had a successful working group meeting on 10th June to further develop the Outcomes and Actions for the 10 Year Vision. There is still more work to do and a final draft will be shared with members towards the end of the year. There will be a little longer to work on this as Creative Scotland have announced that the Arts Strategy will not be completed until the last quarter of 15/16.

Culture Counts Culture Counts is a cross arts and creative industries grouping of umbrella and membership bodies which FST coordinates and which advocates for the importance of culture. This involves lobbying at local and national level. Members are encouraged to contribute to this and can find out how through the CC website.

JM spoke on behalf of Culture Counts at the Cross Party Group for Culture at the Scottish Parliament on 31 March on the topic of “What makes good cultural policy?” Other speakers, focusing on the topic how the arts benefit society, included artists and leading figures in education, health and communities. The debate at the CPG was very successful and the focus now is on strategy and resources to influence manifestos for the May

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2016 Scottish Parliament elections. Christabel Anderson, part-time coordinator for Culture Counts, has given a brief update report in the Director’s Report (appendix 1).

ACTION: Members are encouraged to follow Culture Counts on Twitter, to sign up to the newsletter and to look out for Culture Counts resources to support advocacy work.

Construction Design and Management (CDM) Regulations FST has continued to engage with the HSE around the implementation of CDM 2015 which came into effect on 6th April 2015. We have contributed our views on the industry-specific guidance which HSE are currently drafting and which they expect to publish in September 2015. In the meantime, Steve Green has produced an FAQ sheet for FST members to assist in members’ high level understanding of CDM2015 which can be downloaded from the FST website once you have logged in. Steve and a representative from HSE also gave a briefing on CDM at the Technical and Production Leadership Forum on 15 June.

Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Bill Following FST’s evidence session to the Local Government and Regeneration Committee and the assurance at a subsequent meeting of the committee from Cabinet Secretary for Justice Michael Matheson that the Scottish Government will include explicit direction around the question of legitimate artistic performance in the guidance accompanying any legislation, FST has consulted with stakeholders and sought further advice on next steps. FST’s view is that the likelihood of achieving sufficient support for a specific amendment to the Bill is slim, given the assurances from the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, and in view of the fact that very similar legislation has already been in place in England and Wales since the Policing and Crime Act 2009, with no reported instances of any issues around artistic censorship, FST has taken the approach of ensuring we can help draft the accompanying guidance. After contacting the Bill team at Scottish Government, they have confirmed FST will be invited to contribute to the drafting of the accompanying guidance.

Arches Theatre Most people in the sector were shocked to hear that The Arches has gone into administration. In FST’s view the loss of The Arches is a major blow to the dance, theatre and performing arts sector in Scotland. We understand that both Glasgow Life and Creative Scotland have been supportive to the Arches Board and Management Team over these last few weeks, but that the Arches Board feel there is no alternative option in the current circumstances. FST will endeavour to keep up to date with the process and offer support where appropriate and possible.

Organisational Development

FST Board Retirals and Elections At the AGM in September 2015, FST will be holding elections for the FST Board. JM encouraged members to consider standing for election to ensure there is a diverse range of practitioners, job roles, artforms, locations etc. working on behalf of the whole membership and informing the leadership of the organisation.

After over 10 years of dedicated service Julie Ellen has now stepped down from the Board. She has served the organisation variously as Chair and Vice Chair and led the Board with passion and integrity during her time in these roles. JM and the current FST Board thanked her for her great contribution.

In addition to Julie Ellen stepping down, five Board Members will come to the end of their first 3 year term in Sept 2015 and have offered to stand for re-election: Laura Cameron-Lewis, Sam Eccles, Alasdair McCrone, Alex McGowan and Jackie Wylie.

This means that we will be voting for six places on the Board at the AGM on 30th September. As a membership organisation FST relies on the active participation of members both to guide the overall work through dialogue

4 and discussion at members’ meetings and to oversee the governance of the organisation for the benefit of the members by serving on the Board.

ACTION: If you would like to find out more about what being on the FST Board involves, please contact Jon or Alex. If you would like to receive a nomination form (2 other FST members need to nominate you), please contact Katie. The deadline for submitting your completed nomination form is 4th September, allowing for papers to be sent out 21 days prior to the AGM.

Staff Update

Training and Professional Development Manager JM welcomed Emma Beatt as Training and Professional Development Manager (Maternity Cover). She works 4 days a week (usually Tues-Fri). Kirsty is now on maternity leave and JM wished her all the best for her second baby.

General Manager Jo King, who is currently on maternity, will be leaving FST in August to join Starcatchers as their General Manager. JM was sorry to lose her but wished her all the best with her exciting new post. FST is currently recruiting for the Post of General Manager, with interviews being held on 16 July. The hope is to appoint someone to start before Katie Stuart, who is covering Jo’s maternity leave, finishes her contract in October.

Upcoming Events, Training and Deadlines

Membership Renewals

The FST Membership year runs from April to March and renewal reminders were sent out in the beginning of April. JM thanked those members who sent their 13/14 turnover figures and paid their renewal subscription in time and also reminded members with outstanding subscription fees to pay these as soon as possible. He also highlighted that renewals are an opportunity to update FST on staff/address changes and to send new contact details to Mira. If you have any questions about membership, please contact Mira.

Training and Bursaries

Upcoming courses include:  IOSH Managing Safely on 7-11 September  IOSH Managing Safely Refresher on 17 September  Negotiating International Tours: How to Arrange a Successful Visit on 21 September  Delivery of an International Visit and Sustaining Overseas Work in the Long Term on 22 September  IOSH Managing Safely Refresher on 7 October

JM asked members to let Emma Beatt know if there were any aspects of HR/Employment Law on which they would like a future training event, such as the recent introduction of Shared Parental Leave. If members are interested in training on these changes, please contact Emma.

The second deadline for the Directors and Producers Bursaries will be on 16 September 2015. If you are interested in participating or in finding out more about these, please contact Emma.

The Creative Production and Technical Skills training support welcomes applications from all areas of production or technical theatre. It consists of two strands:

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1. The CPTS Training Fund aims to help technicians, electricians, operators, crew, stage management, prop makers, wardrobe staff, workshop staff, casual staff - anyone working in a technical theatre or production role in Scotland, at any stage of their professional career to access training (in a production or technical skill area) by helping to cover the cost of courses and (reasonable) travel expenses. People working on freelance basis can apply for up to £200 and those employed on a full- or part-time basis can apply for up to £100 towards their training costs.

2. The CPTS Placement Bursary is designed for companies, organisations, venues and employers. It allows them to engage a recent graduate from a technical or production skills course in a work placement for up to 12 weeks. This opportunity has no closing date. Proposals may be submitted at any time for placements taking place up to 18 months from the date of application. Please note that previous recipients of the bursary are not eligible to apply again.

The next round of the Step Up – Mentee programme will open for applications on 7 September.

Further dates and events

Made in Scotland Showcase Made in Scotland is a curated showcase throughout August of Scottish performance on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, supported through the Scottish Government's Edinburgh Festivals Expo Fund. Made in Scotland 2015 is an exciting mix of 21 shows featuring dance, theatre, shows for young audiences and music across all the musical genres. Members are encouraged to see the shows and can subscribe to the e-newsletter here.

Festival Reception FST’s Festivals Reception will take place on 25 August (5-7pm) at Our Dynamic Earth. Please save the date, more information will be sent out soon.

Members’ Meeting The next Members' Meeting and AGM will be held on 30 September at the CCA in Glasgow.

Next Dance, Producers, Technical and Touring Forums – Dates TBC Programming for the next series of Specialist Forums in the autumn will be announced to all those who have noted interest. If you are interested in attending the meetings or wish to hear more about them, please contact Mira on either 0131 248 4842 or [email protected].

Different Stages 11 & 12 November 2015, CCA, Glasgow FST is partnering with Playwrights’ Studio Scotland and the Scottish Society of Playwrights to present a new 2- day conference for playwrights, theatre-makers, directors and producers. The aim of the event is to improve knowledge and practice between producers, directors and playwrights. As well as practical directing workshops, there will be opportunities to explore new developments in writing and theatre making practice and how these affect the way we work together.

6. Creative Scotland Update plus Q&A – Lorna Duguid LD gave an update on current developments at Creative Scotland (CS).

Job titles As part of a move towards simplifying and making CS’s structure more transparent and accessible to applicants, CS officers’ job titles have recently changed:

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 Laura Mackenzie-Stuart is now Head of Theatre. (Email: [email protected], Telephone: 0131 523 0002)  Anita Clark is now Head of Dance. (Email: [email protected], Telephone: 0131 523 0052)  Lorna Duguid is now Multi-Artform Manager, including Touring (Email: [email protected])

The CS Annual Plan 2015/16 is about to be published on the CS website. LD encouraged members to read this once it is uploaded.

Open Project Funding (OPF) This is now the main route of funding available for non-RFOs and was developed in response to feedback from the sector that previous funding routes were too complex. The OPF opened on 31 October 2014, with an overall budget of £3.1m for the remainder of 2014-15, and going forward there will be a monthly budget of around £1m. However, the monthly amount can differ slightly, depending on applications accepted, with some of the budget potentially being carried forward to the next month.

Support is available from £1,000 to £100,000, and up to £150,000 by exception and only with prior written approval, for activity and projects of different size and scale – and for up to 2 years in duration. OPF is open to both individuals and organisations to apply to on a rolling basis, so applicants are encouraged to apply in relation to the timing of their proposed project.

The fund supports: • Projects that develop skills or artistic practice • Projects that create something new and of high quality • Projects which either present work to audiences, or which try to develop and reach new audiences (including those hard to reach) • Projects which encourage more people to get involved in artistic and creative activity.

The full criteria and details for OPF can be found on the CS website.

The list of OPF awardees has recently been published and can give members a good indication of how the first £2M of this funding strand has been distributed. The statistic of 50% of OPF funding awarded to individual artists shows an interesting development from company to individuals’ funding.

LD noted there is still a very heavy demand on available resources, with 1 in 5 project applications receiving funding therefore CS do have to turn down some good projects. Part of the OPF budget was also pulled into the increased allocation of Regular Funding.

CS is currently reviewing the OPF funding route with a view to making the application process clearer. No major operational changes are anticipated in the autumn although analysis of 12-18 months will allow for a better overview of how this funding route is working out.

‘Culture 2014’ – Cultural Programme Evaluation LD encouraged members to read the evaluation of this big nationwide cultural celebration that took place in 2014. It can be found on the CS website here.

If members can share examples of projects that have had a lasting legacy from the 20th Commonwealth Games cultural programme, please contact Janice Kelly [email protected]. Janice is interested in documenting any legacy from Culture 2014.

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Momentum – International Delegate Programme – 1-31 August 2015 LD explained Momentum is a delegate programme, based in Creative Scotland’s office at Waverley Gate during Edinburgh’s August Festivals, that provides a platform for key cultural figures from across the world to engage and build relationships with the world’s leading Festival City and the wider Scottish cultural sector.

It is delivered by Festivals Edinburgh on behalf of British Council Scotland, Creative Scotland, and Edinburgh’s Festivals with additional support from City of Edinburgh Council, Event Scotland and Scottish Government, as part of their commitment to a year-round integrated Cultural Diplomacy working model.

In August 2015 they will be hosting delegates from: Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Canada, USA, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, Pakistan, India and Iran. Delegates are often Heads of Arts and Arts Council representatives from their respective country.

LD functions as the conduit between delegates and Scottish arts organisations and organises network lunches and info sessions in order to facilitate a two-way conversation between Scotland and the world: to bring Scotland to the world and to bring the world to Scotland, creating opportunity for touring and collaboration.

Dates for network lunches are 12th, 18th, 19th, and 26th August with exact countries present at each lunch to be confirmed. There will also be a Festival City Networks event with representatives from Adelaide, Barcelona, Berlin, Buenos Aires and Montreal.

LD encouraged members to engage with the Momentum events and a call for notes of interest to engage with MOMENTUM can be found on FST’s website here once you have logged in as a member. The deadline for noting interest in accessing networking opportunities is 5pm on Friday 24th July. Please send an email to [email protected] with information as requested in the document above.

Q & A with Lorna Duguid:

Members asked a range of questions particularly around prioritising of CS resources and the upcoming Annual Plan.

LD confirmed that the Annual Plan will include information on how priorities will feed into Open Project Funding to make the process as transparent as possible. She noted that Targeted Funding will be very limited going forward and also includes a number of ring-fenced funds from Government such as the Youth Music Initiative and Cashback for Communities.

JM explained that the 10-year Arts Strategy is now due to be published by December and will also influence funding decisions going forward. The Arts Strategy is a key document for the sector which is currently in development. It sits within a strategy framework alongside the Screen and Creative Industries strategies.

The Arts Strategy will be delivered over the next three years and aims to:  Build on all the art form sector reviews plus Equalities, and Creative Learning  Be developed with and through the sector  Explore CS remit across arts, screen and creative industries and consider the opportunities and challenges for the arts within this  Create a set of clear and tangible overarching priorities for the arts

Part of this process will be to identify recommendations from the sector reviews and to set out what needs to be done to protect and nurture the arts. This will involve:  Considering and redefining excellence and engagement and the relationship between them both  Placing the arts within a broad social context and looking at value and benefit in a deep and relevant way 8

 Embedding into the authentic context of all that Scotland has – traditional arts, languages, contemporary practice  Properly asserting the critical role and contribution of individual artists – as leaders, thinkers, creators etc.

7. Discussion – Sector Feedback on Open Project Funding

JM invited members to discuss OPF and voice points they considered key feedback to submit to CS (in writing). LD responded to some of the points raised.

 decision turnaround too long: By show of hands, around half the members in the room felt that the 8- week (for under £15,000 applications) and 12-week (£15,000-£100,000 applications) decision turnaround times were too long. (NB: A large number of those who didn’t show hands receive Regular Funding so were not affected by this.)

LD responded in saying that there may be a change implemented whereby applications for under £5,000 will be processed more quickly. It is unlikely that a shorter turn around period can be delivered for the larger funding decisions.

 need to be able to submit more than one application: By show of hands, more than half the members in the room signalled they need to be able to submit more than one OPF application at any one time and this was considered to be more important question than decision turnaround times.

 resubmitted applications turnaround too long: It was also commented that having to wait up to 12 weeks for decisions on resubmitted applications, after incorporating CS feedback, was too long. It was suggested to allow for fast-track route for resubmitted applications.

 feedback could be more elaborate: Based on her positive experience with clear application feedback from the European Culture Fund, a member suggested that CS’s application feedback could be more specific and refer to the numbers of relevant sections that they felt needed revisiting.

LD commented in saying that CS’s capacity is very stretched but recommended arranging a meeting with the relevant CS art form manager to ask questions on resubmissions and to obtain more detailed feedback. Applicants can also request to see the assessment forms.

There was a majority show of hands in the room signalling that the provision of the assessment form should be standard part of CS’s feedback procedure and should be shared with applicants at the same time as informing them of their funding decision.

 application guidelines need to be clearer: LD commented that application guidelines need to be shorter, to be clearer on expectations and to allow people to self-assess before they submit.

 more transparency on decision making panels: LD explained that panels are made up of an art form team consisting of one member representing each art form. For up to £15,000 applications, decision panels meet weekly and all applications are read by the panel. For applications between £15,000 to £100,000, the panel meets fortnightly and applications are used to refer to during the meeting.

 peer assessment process: The idea for peer reviews as part of the funding decision process has come up at several FST meetings in the last year. LD told members that CS will be introducing peer reviewers for RFOs from 2016/17. With the added admin time, organising peer assessment more widely poses a challenge on

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capacity, however, LD encouraged applicants to undertake their own peer review and to include these in funding applications.

A handful of people showed hands when asked if peer review should also be part of OPF funding decisions. It was suggested that peer reviews would be very valuable as part of the pre-application process and that such a process could be facilitated by FST. LD suggested that RFOs could also have a role to play in this. Members recommended peer reviews as a topic for an FST Members’ Meeting.

ACTION: Members to submit ideas on how FST could facilitate peer reviews to Jon.

 further guidelines on matched funding: Members asked whether clearer and more consistent guidance could be made available on specific amounts expected for matched funding and also remarked that it was difficult to identify guaranteed match funding for tours when these were most often based on box office split agreements.

LD said matched funding requirements are often art form dependent and that the larger the project, the more matched funding was expected to be coming through partners. Smaller projects, for example for professional development, can apply for the full amount with no match funding.

It was asked if TTR (Theatre Tax Relief) could be stated as matched funding. LD said the tax credit is beneficial for the reason that it does not replace CS funding but adds further funding to future projects. JM pointed out that because TTR credit is mainly paid out after projects, it releases money for projects going forward.

 clearer definitions of what can / cannot be included under one project: Members felt that information on what can go into an OPF application as one project is inconsistent and confusing and needs further clarification.

8. Open Exchange Members took the opportunity to share news on current projects, opportunities, and more in one-minute slots.

9. Any Other Business

Dates of Next Members Meetings: Wed 30th September 2015 (AGM), CCA, Glasgow Wed 9th December 2015, Edinburgh (venue tbc)

All Members’ Meetings will be held all day with exact times to be confirmed.

Afternoon Session

10. Briefing Session on Theatre Production Tax Relief (TTR)

In the afternoon Ian Stevenson, Director of Finance at Creative Scotland, gave an overview of TTR, followed by Jackie McComish from the Creative Industries Unit, HMRC, giving a presentation on ‘Principles of TTR and how to make a claim’, with guidance on how TTR works. Members then had the opportunity to ask questions.

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The HMRC presentation slides can be found in the Research & Resource section of FST’s website here. Further up to date guidance will be published in due course and circulated to FST members.

Members can contact the HMRC Creative Industries Unit at [email protected].

Further agenda points in the afternoon included:

Practical Case Studies:  Lynne Grant, Head of Finance, Pitlochry Festival Theatre  Elsa Littlewood, Partner, Monahans – for Ed Littlewood Productions  Q&A

Discussion Panel / Q&A:  Ian Stevenson, Director of Finance, Creative Scotland  Jackie McComish, Creative Industries Unit, HMRC  Lynne Grant, Head of Finance, Pitlochry Festival Theatre  Elsa Littlewood, Partner, Monahans – for Ed Littlewood Productions  Kathleen Benham, Partner, Benham-Conway & Co Chartered Accountants

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