Cultivate Commissions - Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I apply if I am a creative practitioner who does not live in County Durham?

A: YES! The Cultivate Commissions are open to creative practitioners living AND/OR working in County Durham. Because of the nature of Into the Light and it’s ambition to grow and galvanise the cultural sector of our place we are particularly interested in applications from creative practitioners from County Durham but not being a resident of County Durham does not exclude you from applying. Please remember the work must happen in County Durham and engage with County Durham People. For more information about what areas are classed as County Durham visit here.

Q: Can our collective and/or organisation apply?

A: Yes - we use the term ‘creative practitioner’ to encompass all varieties of deliverers. Please note if you are applying as a collective that is not constituted or has a nominated standalone organisation (e.g. an organisation like a CIC with a bank account) then an individual practitioner would need to be named as the lead recipient and this creative practitioner could not then apply separately for their own project. Remember you can only apply for one commission during this round of Cultivate Commissions for 2024/25.

Q: Can I apply for more than one commission from the different commission types?

A: No - applicants can only apply for one commission of one commission type. If you are applying as a collective then the lead creative practitioner cannot apply separately as themselves (but creative practitioners named in the bid who are not going to be the contracted individual could - see question above).

Q: Do I need to have attended one of the sessions in order to apply for the commission?

A: No. The sessions are provided to offer support and opportunity for enquiry and development ahead of the applying for the commission. You can apply without attending a session but you must ensure you read the guidance document included in the application pack. You can receive this by emailing hello@nomorenowt.org. Please ensure you request this in good time ahead of the application deadline.

Q: Will you (No More Nowt and Northern Heartlands) support me to connect with communities?

A: We cannot support any application in advance of submission however if you have an idea but have yet to create connections with communities you may want to factor some time and capacity into the application to support this area of development. We would encourage you to think carefully about who you would like to work with and why. Be clear and specific in the application about how you intend to connect with them.

Q: Will you (No More Nowt and Northern Heartlands) support me to get a DBS and/or PLI?

A: If you do not currently have a DBS and/or PLI you can include costs associated with securing these within the application budget. DBS requirement will depend on the connected community/organisation but are likely to be required if working with vulnerable adults and/or children. No More Nowt’s host organisation East Durham Trust can support with DBS if required. Please factor in time required to organise this documentation when considering the timeline (DBS can take at least 4 weeks to turnaround and costs £45). Creative Practitioners would be expected to source their own PLI and will not be covered by the PLI of our organisations.

Q: Can I deliver a project within a different timeline/timescale than between September 2024 - January 2025?

A: No. Due to the nature of the funding we are not able to offer alternative timelines for the project - all delivery will be required to happen between September and 10th January 2025. Please think carefully about all the criteria before you apply. This includes all outputs (exhibition, screenings, performances etc) however you may choose to show the work again past the deadline as part of your own creative practice.

Q: Which commission should I apply for?

A: We cannot advise on individual commissions but here is some specifics to think about the commission types:

• Seed commissions are being treated as a test and try commission, with the expectation on engagement being much lower than the bigger commissions. You might want to take a risk and do something different with this commission. This is also the most broadly available with 10 commissions total.

• Germinate commissions are likely to be the most oversubscribed as there are only 4 commissions and the context of this delivery can be much broader than Harvest which is place specific.

• Harvest commissions are place specific, aiming to engage across our 6 key places (Peterlee, Stanley, Shildon, Weardale, Durham City and Digital) so if you have a commission in one of these places then you might consider applying to Harvest as there are 6 commissions available.

  Q: What do you mean by Digital as one of the places for the Harvest Commission?

  A: As a large and broadly dispersed County we are interested in exploring how ‘digital’ can be utilised to increase participation and be considered as a place in and of itself. This might include:

  • Creating work that is purely digital e.g. A new game space on a digital platform

  • Creating work that uses digital as a way to connect with participants who might not be able to access culture and creativity in other ways through interventions we all got familiar with during the pandemic e.g. zoom sessions that engage with those unable to leave the house.

  • Creating work were digital plays an integral role for example work that includes digital integration such as QR codes.