Arts Council announces Annual Funding Programme awards for 2025-26

The AFP awards will support the core and programming costs of organisations which are central to the arts infrastructure in Northern Ireland today.

With £8.15m exchequer funding from the Department for Communities allocation, and £5.82m from Arts Council’s National Lottery sources, the total public investment offered is £13.97m.

Chair of the Arts Council, Liam Hannaway, said, “Today’s formal announcement of the Annual Funding Programme awards is welcome news and I want to thank the Minister for the Department for Communities, Gordon Lyons, for securing an extra £500,000 for the Arts Council’s baseline allocation for this year. This allows us to give a modest uplift from standstill funding to 80 hard-pressed organisations dealing with the inescapable pressures from increased core costs. We are grateful for the Minister’s recognition of the positive value of the arts in our society and for his help in securing this additional investment. I also want to thank The National Lottery, who this year marked 30 years of supporting good causes, and the game-changing impact that National Lottery funding brings to so many of our arts organisations, who simply couldn’t do without it.”

Note: The AFP awards are the single biggest funding announcement made by ACNI in any one year. The Arts Council makes other funding announcements throughout the year which benefit many organisations and communities across NI. This particular announcement is not a reflection of overall arts funding invested by ACNI. Please visit our website for more funding information: www.artscouncil-ni.org

To view the list of all 25/26 AFP awards offered visit – Annual-Funding-Programme-Awards-2025-26.pdf 

A sample of organisations offered AFP 25-26 funding follows:

Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA), Derry-Londonderry

AFP funding offer: £126,223

The Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA) fosters a wide range of artistic, curatorial, and critical practices through five programme streams: research and production, exhibition-making, public Programmes, publishing, and residencies. Since its conception in 1992, the gallery has exhibited emerging artists from Northern Ireland alongside international peers. In 2021 CCA was honoured to be one of the Finalists for the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2021, the world's largest museum prize for CCA's work supporting artists and audiences over the pandemic. CCA is a member of Plus Tate, a network which comprises thirty-five cultural institutions – including the Tate galleries – that have strong artistic vision, a focus on contemporary art, outstanding public programming and a commitment to local community engagement through art.

The Millennium Forum, Derry-Londonderry

AFP funding offer: £107,202

Situated in the heart of Derry/Londonderry and nestled within the historic City Walls, the Millennium Forum is a leading cultural venue and one of the largest purpose-built theatres in the country. It offers a wide range of music, comedy and theatre events. The Millennium Forum has just launched a brand-new website that offers a more user-friendly experience for customers, in particular, those with accessibility needs. https://millenniumforum.co.uk/

Glasgowbury, Draperstown

AFP funding offer: £37,616

Glasgowbury, based in rural Draperstown in Magherafelt, is an arts organisation which supports and enhances the profile of new and emerging artists from Northern Ireland. The team make arts accessible and available to all at a local level, through the delivery of a series of creative programmes to people of all ages. One of their recent programmes ‘Heart of the Community’, offered free DJing workshops to young people, electronic music production, samba drumming, photography, podcasting, pottery, sewing and more.

The Armagh Rhymers, County Armagh

AFP funding offer: £60,107

The Armagh Rhymers deliver quality arts to a variety of sectors in society, many from the most deprived backgrounds. A lot of their work takes place in schools providing quality storytelling & bespoke interactive plays using music, song, dance, puppets and masks. They also take part in a wide range of events and festivals across NI such as the Belfast Mela and Halloween in Derry-Londonderry. The Armagh Rhymers have also toured internationally in USA, China and Europe and have featured in the popular BBC TV series, The Repair Shop.

Seacourt Print Workshop, Bangor, Co. Down

AFP funding offer: £67,340

Seacourt Print Workshop is an open access printmaking studio in Bangor with fantastic resources, courses and workshops. Users of the studio include master printmakers, multidisciplinary artists, amateurs and those who print to improve their wellbeing. Seacourt Print Workshop offers membership, courses and resources for all, as well as their self-arranged residency programme. They also have a comprehensive health and wellbeing programme as well as an educational resource for schools.

Dylan Quinn Dance Theatre, Fermanagh

AFP funding offer: £65,415

Dylan Quinn Dance Theatre supports the development of dance and is a professional and participatory dance organisation based in a rural Fermanagh. The company has three primary areas of work including, professional dance performance locally and internationally, a programme of participatory and community development, and a schools education programme that runs in conjunction with curriculum needs.

NI Piping and Drumming School, Belfast

AFO funding offer: £46,963

The Northern Ireland Piping and Drumming school offers tuition and certified courses that are available to all ages, regardless of musical experience and ability. The school focuses on developing standards in both the theory of music and practical playing, and the history of piping and drumming is also included as an integral part of the course. The practical playing programme includes piobaireachd and bass and tenor drumming, while classes in Highland Dancing are also offered.

Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association NI (RSPBNI), Lisburn

AFP funding offer: £35,555

The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association Northern Ireland Branch (RSPBA NI) is a governing body to oversee Pipe band competitions in Northern Ireland. The organisation has 70 pipe bands in full membership of the association in Northern Ireland, representing over three thousand individual members. The RSPBA NI organises and delivers all Championship Pipe Band and Drum Major Contests in Northern Ireland and the Ulster Solo Piping and Drumming Championships. They are dedicated to the promotion of the culture and advancement of Pipe and drum music and the encouragement of arts and cultural tourism across Northern Ireland.

Kids in Control (KIC), Belfast

AFP funding offer: £58,854

KIC is a professional theatre company that values children and young people of all abilities and backgrounds. The organisation celebrates and nourishes the shared imaginings of any group of young people. KIC is the foremost professional physical theatre company working with young people in Northern Ireland and is inclusive, cutting through traditional divisions of physical and learning ability, religion, culture and social background.

Drake Music Project Northern Ireland, Newry, County Down

Drake Music Project Northern Ireland is based in Newry but works across NI and also has a studio in Belfast. The organisation provides access to independent music making for children and adults with complex disabilities. Workshops in composition and performance skills are afforded by the provision of adapted computer interfacing technology. This allows people with disabilities the opportunity to express their creativity in an independent and controllable environment.