Arts Council England has launched a “more straightforward” application process for its redesigned, longer National Portfolio programme, but has warned applicants that “money is tight”.
The grantmaker has published the details of its redesigned National Portfolio funding programme, ahead of applications opening next month.
For the first time, the programme will last five years, from April 2028 to March 2033, as opposed to the current three-year period – although the 2023 to 2026 programme was extended to the end of March 2028.
ACE said this would give organisations “greater stability and certainty to plan ahead”, but it warned applicants that it expects demand for investment will “significantly exceed the funding available”.
As a result, decisions will be based not only on application quality, but also on the ambition for a “balanced and complementary” National Portfolio that collectively “supports excellence, delivers for everybody and reaches everywhere across England”, ACE said.
The funding programme will invite applications from arts organisations, museums and libraries for grants of up to £50,000 per year.
It is not yet clear how much funding will be distributed to successful organisations but the 2023 to 2026 funding round had £1.3bn available.
The changes to the National Portfolio seek to deliver on ACE’s commitments made in response to the independent review of the grantmaker led by the Labour peer Baroness Hodge.
The review, which concluded in December, urged ACE to make its funding practices less prescriptive and reduce bureaucracy for applicants.
ACE said the changes to its National Portfolio would allow organisations to make a “straightforward application, with less paperwork” where they can describe their work and ambitions in their own words.
The application would not require any attachments or detailed delivery plans unless funding was offered to the organisation, ACE said.
The grantmaker said the new programme would also involve more regional and citizen voices in funding decisions, including via a survey of 20,000 people.
ACE has established 32 new regional boards, drawn from a range of public policy and civic sectors, to provide insights into local priorities and support its final funding decisions.
The grantmaker will also gather feedback from the mayoral strategic authorities for the first time, to ensure the new National Portfolio reflects local need.
Organisations will be able to apply for the programme from 20 October to 15 December via ACE’s online portal, with final funding decisions expected in July 2027.
Potential applicants can begin planning their application using a document published on the grantmaker’s website, which sets out all the questions that will be asked during the process.
Darren Henley, chief executive of ACE, said: “For this National Portfolio process we’ve said we want organisations to focus on the work, not the paperwork.
“We’ve designed it with applicants, and they’ve told us it feels much more streamlined.”
But Henley warned applicants that “money is tight”, adding: “This is going to be a really competitive investment round, and we’ll have to make tough decisions.”
He said: “We’re giving organisations an opportunity to tell us about their ambition in their terms, and we’ll support as much of that ambition as we can.”