GrantRadar

Orkney Islands Council (Culture Service)

Orkney Islands Council Culture Fund 2027/28

Orkney Islands Council's annual Culture Fund (the 'Open Pot') supports not-for-profit organisations delivering arts, heritage or Orkney dialect activity in Orkney between 1 April 2027 and 31 March 2028. It can pay for an organisation's general running costs as well as specific projects, and non-cultural organisations can apply for the cultural parts of their work. There is no set limit, but requests of about £500 to £3,000 are invited, and asking for a smaller share of total costs improves the chances. Applications close at 5pm on Friday 30 October 2026, with results in December.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
£500 – £3,000
Closes in
12 days left
30 October
Effort
Moderate
full application with documents

Who can apply

  • Properly constituted, not-for-profit organisations that can satisfy the Scottish Charity Test (only charitable purposes and public benefit; not set up to advance a political party; assets not usable for non-charitable purposes; not controlled by Scottish Ministers)
  • It is for non-commercial activity only
  • Organisations need clear financial procedures and recent signed accounts, audited or certified in keeping with their scale, and must show a track record of success or of delivering similar projects
  • They must work within Fair Work principles, including paying freelancers and artists industry-standard rates (e.g. Scottish Artists Union rates)
  • The activity must take place in Orkney and be of exclusive benefit to Orkney
  • Organisations with outstanding reports from a previous grant cannot apply

What it funds

Cultural activity in Orkney, where culture means:

  • Arts
  • Heritage
  • Language, i.e. Orkney dialect
  • General running costs of cultural organisations
  • Specific elements, e.g. educational or community-based activities
  • Cultural elements of the programmes or activities of non-cultural organisations

the organisation or project must support at least one of the Council's priorities (Growing Our Economy, Strengthening Our Communities, Developing our Infrastructure). Applications are stronger if they show confirmed funding from elsewhere, high quality, participation across all ages including young people, community participation and educational opportunities, and work to address equalities and break down barriers to inclusion.

What it will not fund

  • Organisations based outside Orkney
  • Organisations or activities of a commercial nature organised to make a distributable profit
  • Trade or professional conferences/conventions
  • Activities that are primarily fund-raising events, are heavily branded with charity branding or deploy potential sources of income from an event to a charity
  • Awards ceremonies or industry events
  • Activities that are social events for an organisation
  • Events that do not comply with the Council's Equality Outcomes or Equality and Diversity Strategy (e.g. that are in inaccessible venues)
  • Activity outside the financial year applied for (1 April 2027 to 31 March 2028)

How to apply

  1. Read the 2027/28 guidance for applicants; the Arts Officer is happy to discuss ideas first
  2. Complete the Culture Fund Application Form 2027/28 (project details, or running costs, plus budget, marketing, evaluation and equalities)
  3. Email the form and documents to Emma Gee, Arts Officer, by 17:00 on Friday 30 October 2026
  4. A review panel of council officers, elected members and representatives of Creative Scotland, Museums Galleries Scotland and Voluntary Action Orkney considers applications competitively
  5. Results are announced in December; a formal award letter follows after the Council sets its budget
  6. Sign and return the terms and conditions; the grant is paid in advance
  7. At the end, submit an End of Project Report and a Proof of Expenditure Form (funding may have to be returned if these are not provided)

all spending and grant claims must be completed within the financial year. The council's HTML version of the guidance is AI-generated and gives a garbled deadline; the PDF gives 30 October 2026.

Have ready

  • Completed Culture Fund Application Form 2027/28
  • Clearly detailed and balanced budget (income matching expenditure, including in-kind costs; for events within larger festivals, costs for the specific event)
  • Constitution, e.g. Memorandum and Articles of Association or Trust Deed (first-time applicants)
  • Draft or confirmed programme
  • Most recent signed audited or certified accounts
  • Policies (new organisations; others list the policies held): child protection, protection of vulnerable adults, data protection, equalities, health and safety, fair work, and a public liability insurance certificate

More like this

Other grants open to organisations like yours.