Welcome to the first edition of Blueprint Fringe where we’ll be sharing all the latest news from the Arts & Business NI Blueprint Programme, and exciting updates from organisations that are taking part.

Blueprint June 2023 Round-up

An update from Sarah Jones, Blueprint Programme Manager

It’s been a busy and exciting quarter on the Blueprint programme. We were thrilled to award our Blueprint grants back in March (read more below) and alongside these grants, we have continued to hold a series of capacity development workshops, which have remained crucial to the programme.

Throughout April and May, we’ve been focussing on ‘Impact,’ and we were fortunate to have expert facilitators—Fiona Bell from Thrive, Mark Robinson from Thinking Practice, and Annabel Turpin from Stockton Arts Centre—join us. Each facilitator explored a different aspect of this topic, examining what ‘impact’ truly means for an organisation in terms of driving change and ensuring sustainability.

In our workshops, we emphasised the use of practical tools to examine the changes our programmes and activities can bring and why they matter. We explored the impact our Blueprint organisations are already making, identified opportunities for growth and also explored different methods of capturing and presenting this information to help drive change. While we may intuitively understand our organisation’s impact, unless we can effectively communicate it to our audiences, participants, staff, board members, and funders, we miss out on an opportunity to maximize our potential.

Throughout the Blueprint programme, we have witnessed the immense value of these sessions for participants. Not only do they have the chance to engage with new learning, but it also provides an opportunity for connection with one another. As Blueprint continues to develop, we recognise the significance of this network in fostering peer support and facilitating ongoing learning.

Investing in the Future

We are delighted that our 17 Blueprint arts organisations have received their first round of investment grants, which will total £765,000 over the next two years. The investment will support the arts organisations to take a long-term approach to generating income and test ideas and models for growth. This will include the development of new creative projects, building skills, reviewing business models, and growing organisational capacity. You can read more about the story here and we’ll be sharing more updates throughout the year. as the projects progress.

Onwards and Upwards

Thanks to Blueprint investment, In Your Space Circus are unlocking their ambitions to create a new venue for innovative performances, collaboration, and community engagement in the heart of Derry’s Cathedral Quarter.

In a unique partnership with St Columb’s Cathedral, IYSC has taken a lease on the stunning Cathedral School building with plans to refurbish the building into a Circus School and circus arts venue. The support received through Blueprint has allowed In Your Space Circus to take their first steps towards this goal, as part of a wider fundraising and investment campaign.

The heritage building is considered ‘at risk’ and requires significant work internally to make it inhabitable. In Your Space Circus and St Columb’s Cathedral are excited to be breathing life back into the building and reinstating it as a ‘school’, offering access to children, young people, adults and artists from across the City and region to learn, play and create. Read the full press release here.

Credits: Illustration by John McCloskey and Photography by Lorcan Doherty Photography

Going for Gold

Congratulations to Blueprint member Golden Thread Gallery who were awarded the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Award for Civic Arts Organisations. The panel commended their resilience and tenacity in “creating a safe, inspiring space for migrant women in Northern Ireland.” The Gallery has built strong relationships with minority communities by engaging and actively listening to communities before responding to their specific needs.

One project with migrant women from Anaka Collective and Women on World began with a six-week pilot series of workshops. Women who took part were offered paid opportunities to translate, and to facilitate subsequent projects. Over time, the women’s interests and aspirations shaped further workshops and even fed into the Gallery programme, while the Gallery team continued to provide support and creative tools.

GTG Deputy Director Sarah McAvera says,

“Looking ahead, all of us at the Golden Thread Gallery are committed to continuing to engage hard-to-reach groups and individuals of all ages, abilities and ethnicities, by listening and working collaboratively.”

Golden Thread were among 10 organisations from across the UK which were shortlisted for the prestigious award, which celebrates arts organisations putting co-creation with their communities at the heart of their work. To find out more about the Golden Thread Gallery’s award winning projects click the link here.