Our statement on Arts Council England’s NPO funding decision

Following the recent outcome of our Arts Council England (ACE) National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) funding bid, we are disappointed to announce that our application has been unsuccessful on this occasion. Our dedicated Senior Leadership Team and Board of Trustees are currently exploring alternative options and funding opportunities that will ensure the long-term sustainability of the charity. We remain confident that our plans will continue to make a difference to the lives of children and young people at the heart of our organisation.

The Mighty Creatives team is incredibly proud of the work we have achieved over the past 10 years as the ACE Bridge organisation for the East Midlands. Since 2018 (to July 2022), this has included:

Generating £1.4 million in match funding for Partnership Investment – including an additional £4.5 million to develop programme beyond ACE funding such as Splash!, Kickstart, and Creative Mentoring.
Supporting the development of 9 Local Cultural Education Partnerships.
Delivering 19,357 Arts Awards.
Supporting 16.5% (363) school settings to embark on their Artsmark journey in 2022 and engaging 52% of schools (1172) in wider activity across all programmes.
Engaging 48 NPOs, 708 ‘other’ arts and cultural organisations, 48 Heritage sites and Libraries, and 1172 schools across Primary, Secondary, Special Schools and Pupil Referral Units (PRUs).
Delivering over 850 training, events and workshops to support our partners, and empowering 530 young people to move from Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) to in Education, Employment or Training (EET).
Engaging 2,402 children and young people in direct delivery, reaching a further 218,000 through our programme delivery and partnerships.

The Mighty Creatives would like to thank Arts Council England for their continued support over the past 10 years. We express our ongoing thanks and respect to our dedicated, knowledgeable, and ‘mighty’ staff team who work tirelessly and with devotion to make our vision a reality. Our deepest and wholehearted gratitude is sent to all the inspiring organisations, schools, funders, artists, consultants, freelancers, and fundraisers, across the region and beyond, who have worked with us to help transform the lives of so many children and young people. Of course, we would like to especially thank the region’s young people who remind us every day why our work matters.

The Mighty Creatives remains steadfast in our commitment to our vision and mission, and to supporting young people in need across the East Midlands region. Our focus for the future centres on continuing to deliver our work as a Bridge organisation until 31^st March 2023, and our commitments to other funders, while making plans for the transition period that will follow. Since our Creative Mentoring programme has confirmed funding from Children in Need, we are able to reassure our partners, mentors and mentees that this service will continue to be provided. We are also exploring new funding options to ensure the sustainability of this and all our other programmes in the long term.

If you would like to speak to us about how your organisation could work with us in the future, please email our CEO, Nick Owen, at nick@themightycreatives.com

read our FAQS on Arts Council’s funding decision

Our statement on Arts Council England’s NPO funding decision

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