Findhorn Bay Arts has today announced that eight project recipients are to receive funding from them as part of the Youth Arts Small Grants scheme, a Scottish Government Covid-19 funding package to support the arts, administered by Creative Scotland. An additional £2,000 will support the creative practitioners with training and documentation of their activities.
The overall scheme had funds totalling £700,000 to devolve funds of between £10k and £50k for locally artist-led projects in early learning, schools, and other family support and community settings. Findhorn Bay Arts was one of 18 organisations in Scotland to be awarded one of the grants to distribute to artists and creative practitioners to develop programmes of arts activity that engage with a range of local organisations, children and young people in Moray, especially those most affected by Covid-19.
Kresanna Aigner, Director, Findhorn Bay Arts said: “We were delighted to receive funding to disseminate to Moray-based artists and creative practitioners. Lockdown has impacted on everyone’s mental health and our children and young people have suffered a lot because of the social isolation of not being able to see or play with their friends. We are thrilled that the awards we are announcing today will help towards restoring a degree of normality to Moray children and young people.”
She added: “We have first-hand experience of how the creative arts can help increase confidence and self-belief but most of all, our children and young people will have fun accessing the gamut of the creative arts.”
The Moray fund was open to freelance artists and creative practitioners living and/or working in the local authority and up 50 miles in neighbouring regions who were looking to work directly with children and young people across the region. The funding will build on the work of Ignite Moray Youth Arts Hub that was supported by Creative Scotland’s Time to Shine, Scotland’s National Youth Arts Strategy.
Twelve applications were received totalling £57,000 and were assessed by a panel of local specialist advisors. As well as ensuring the basic criteria was adhered to, the panel also took into account that any funding awarded would:
- support a range of art forms;
- provide a geographic spread across the region;
- engage with a range of local organisations and;
- engage with a range of young people especially those most affected by Covid-19.
Panel member, Eilidh Brown, Partnership Development Lead, tsiMORAY said: ‘It’s brilliant to see this investment in the wellbeing of children and young people through an exciting and energising range of creative activities in Moray. These projects include innovative and inspiring arts and opportunities for play and reconnection, bringing joy, fresh hope and light at the end of the tunnel for children, families and communities hit hard by the pandemic.’
Eight awards totalling £37,664.50 ranging between £4,000 – £5,000 have been awarded to nine artists and creative practitioners.
| Name | Grant awarded | Project | Practice | Age range |
| Daniel McQuarrie | £4,000 | “What Makes You Happy’ Film Project for Young People | Film-making | 12-17 years |
| Rachael MacIntyre | £4,792 | Circus Connections’ Workshops in Circus Skills for Young People | Circus Skills | 8-16 years |
| Carol Scorer | £4,095 | Storytelling and percussion Workshops for Young People | Storytelling &Music | 2-5 years |
| Ruby Worth | £5,000 | ‘Embodied Learning and Dance Movement Therapy for Young People | Dance/ Movement | 9-10 year olds |
| Gail Sneddon | £5,000 | ‘Traces’ Dance Film Project for Young People | Dance/ Graffiti Art | 11-18 years |
| Steven Sharpe | £5,000 | Drum and Percussion Workshops for Young People | Music | 3-5 years |
| Nicola Kennell | £4,793 | Mixed Media Workshops for Young People | Mixed Media | 12-25 years |
| Graeme Roger & Dave Martin | £4,984 | Film and Music Project for Young People | Film & Music | 12-17 years |
“The opportunity to collaborate and deliver this project with Aberlour Youth Point is really exciting and will provide a much needed creative outlet for the young people to express how Covid-19 has impacted on their lives. The project will enable the young people to work individually and as part of a group sharing and developing their ideas together.
“As an arts practitioner, I know that at times some young people can find it challenging to describe their experiences. The use of art as a means of self-expression could help develop a voice for their thoughts and ideas. I hope that the project will enable those taking part to discover new ways of expressing themselves through using a broad range of art materials, which, in turn, will help each individual to develop new ways of expressing themselves creatively.”
Nicola Kennell, Project Manager/Art Therapist
