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ACE reveals regular funding criteria
Arts Council England (ACE), which distributes around £350m to regularly funded organisations (RFOs), has published the criteria it will use to help decide where to direct regular investment.
Two sets of criteria aim to provide improved clarity and transparency about how funding decisions are made: the first to determine whether the arts organisation is well-managed, and the second to ensure it fits in with ACE's overall strategy. The first set of criteria relating to the arts organisation itself will determine whether a number of qualities are displayed, including the excellence and innovation of its work, how it engages with people and its financial sustainability.
In terms of fitting into ACE's overall arts infrastructure, individual organisations will have to demonstrate its diversity of cultures and communities, the size and type of the organisation and the range of artforms and roles. Other factors that will determine whether an organisation receives regular funding include previous investment levels, the support provided by local authorities and partners, and the development priorities of ACE.
ACE's director of programmes, Paul Blaker, said: "Publishing these criteria forms part of our commitment to becoming more open and transparent about our decision making processes. "The criteria are not used as a formula for counting up 'scores'. They provide a framework against which the Arts Council can make informed judgements."