Travel Award for Bands and Choirs
Rolling programmeThe Arts Council is currently transitioning to a new application portal.
As and when new funding programmes open and you apply using the new application portal for the first time, you will be required to create a new application account.
Guidance on how to create a new application account is available here: https://artscouncil-ni.s3-assets.com/How-to-sign-into-the-new-Grants-portal-guidance.pdf
Travel Award for Bands and Choirs
The Arts Council has designed this programme to provide support to enable established bands and choirs based in Northern Ireland to travel outside of Northern Ireland with the following aims:
- To develop their performance skills, networks and audiences via opportunities to showcase outside of Northern Ireland.
- To contribute to the growth of equality of access to and opportunities in the arts for choirs and groups within the Bands’ and Choral sectors in Northern Ireland
Particular priority will be given to applications which can demonstrate
- high quality musicianship;
- a commitment to training and musical education, particularly of young people; and,
- a commitment to repertoire and technique development in relation to the band/choir’s existing repertoire and technical standards.
Who can apply?
The Arts Council welcomes applications from the widest possible range of eligible organisations and from applicants whose projects benefit individuals categorised under Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.
Specifically, the following organisations are eligible for funding under this scheme:
Bands based in Northern Ireland which are formally constituted and of the following types*
- Accordion Orchestra/Band (part, melody or marching)
- Brass Band
- Concert Band
- Flute Band (part, melody or marching)
- Pipe Band
- Wind Band
Choirs of at least 10 members based in Northern Ireland, which have been formally constituted for at least 2 years and of the following types
- Professional choirs
- Amateur choirs
- School Choirs
Applicants must provide evidence that they have been invited to showcase or perform by a relevant organisation, event, festival, promoter, tour operator in the location to which they intend to travel.
Who Cannot Apply?
- Individuals
- Bands or choirs who are not of the types listed above*
- Bands or choirs not based in Northern Ireland
- Bands or choirs established less than 2 years prior to the date of their application
- Organisations who are in breach of the terms of any previous ACNI grant awards.
What you can apply for
- Travel costs, including flight/boat/train/bus tickets
- Vehicle hire
- Fuel Costs
What you cannot apply for
- Travel booked before the date of submission* of your application, or any element thereof (e.g. if return travel has been booked prior to application submission, no element of the travel is eligible for funding, even if the return element of your travel is after the date of application submission).
- Travel costs outside Northern Ireland where departure is not from Northern Ireland (e.g. if your band is already abroad, you cannot make an application for the cost of returning to Northern Ireland.)
- Travel costs within Northern Ireland
- Travel costs unrelated to performances or showcasing
- Insurance costs related to the travel project detailed in your application
- Accommodation costs
- Subsistence costs
- ACNI will only contribute to agreed travel costs paid for by the band/choir directly as evidenced by the band/choir’s bank account transactions and will not contribute towards travel costs paid for by individual band/choir members.
Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you have any queries about eligibility, you should contact and speak with the relevant art form officer before submitting an application
Frequently Asked Questions
ACNI will accept Credit Union accounts for the payment of grans, provided that applicants can meet the following conditions:
- The Credit Union has the facility to accept payment by BACs
- The CU account must be in the name of the applicant organisation as per the name on their constitution document
- The CU account must have the facility for statements to be produced that show Credit Union details, Account holder name, Account number, Sort code – and importantly,transactions, dates, payees etc as we’d expect to see on a bank statement.
- The CU account must be covered by the Financial Service Compensation Scheme and be regulated within the UK – the following websites will assist the group to determine that issue https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/prudential-regulation/authorisations/which-firms-does-the-pra-regulate and https://register.fca.org.uk/s/
It is the responsibility of the applicant themselves to ensure that their Credit Union account meets all the above criteria, and that there are no restrictions on the account that might prohibit payment by ACNI. ACNI can only make payments by electronic BACs transfer and will not be held responsible if for any reason BACs transfers cannot be made to the Credit Union account.
It is important to note that in the event that a group receives an award, has confirmed to ACNI that the account conditions above are met and is then unable to receive a BACs transfer or produce appropriate statements as described above, awarded funds would be decommitted and no costs paid – in addition, ACNI would seek repayment of any funds already paid where these could not be vouched via the requested statements.
How to apply?
You must apply using our online system. We will not accept applications in hard copy or by email.
- Online applications may be edited, saved and returned to up to date of submission. Please note: You must apply at least four weeks before your anticipated date of departure.
- You must submit all mandatory enclosures associated with the application at the same time as your application, i.e. they must be uploaded to your online application prior to its submission. These enclosures are listed on the attachments page within the online application and are detailed below.
- You must submit all mandatory enclosures associated with the application at the same time as your application, i.e. they must be uploaded to your online application prior to its submission. These enclosures are listed on the Attachments page within the online application and are detailed below.
- When you submit your application, you will receive an automated email advising that your application has been successfully submitted to the system. If you do not receive this email, your application has not been submitted.
Online Applications
You must apply using our online system. We will not accept applications in hard copy or by email.