We realise that some people may find that there are barriers to applying for a grant.
Access support is available to people who are
- D/deaf
disabled
neurodivergent
experiencing learning difficulties
experiencing a mental health condition, or experiencing poor health
We recognise that some people who experience any of the above may not need any access support, but if any of the above create barriers to accessing our funding, we want to help.
We will ask what the barriers to access are when we arrange support for you. This is to make sure that we are supporting you properly and putting the right things in place. If you have an Access Rider, you can send this over with your request. There is an Access Rider template at the bottom of this webpage should you wish to complete one.
If you would rather have a conversation about access support instead of reading this information online, please call us on 03301 242733 or email access.support@arts.wales to arrange an informal chat.
We can help at the different stages of applying for a grant:
- Before you apply
We can help you with our information and services before you apply.
The Grants Team can help you to:
check if you are eligible and explain the application processes
navigate our systems, like the funding portal
set up a profile on our funding portal
connect with a Development Officer if you would like further advice on developing your application
We can show you how to use the funding portal over a Zoom or Teams call if you find it difficult to navigate.
If needed, we can support you through this stage with access support to help with things like:
reading and understanding our guidance
note-taking in one-to-one meetings with us
a BSL interpreter in one-to-one meetings with us
We will consider cost and what is possible when finding the best way to help. We will also consider what you prefer.
Once we know that you and your project are eligible, we can support you to make your application.
If we pay for access support before you start making your application, you do not have to submit the project if you feel it is not ready yet, or if our funding is not right for you.
- To make an application
- If you are the lead applicant and need one-to-one access support to make your application, we can pay for an access support worker to assist you. This may be:
a specialist support worker, for example a BSL interpreter or an interpreter for a language apart from Welsh and English
someone to support you with additional needs when making your application
someone to support you get your application onto the Funding portal
We cannot pay for the following:
development support for your application, such as the cost of an arts worker, bid writer or consultant to develop your project idea
costs already covered by the Access to Work scheme or any other sources
- more information about the Access to Work scheme can be found here: www.gov.uk/access-to-work
Our Grants and Access Officer and the Development Officers can help you to arrange your access support worker if you don’t have someone you already use.
You can contact the Grants & Information team on 03301 242733 or email access.support@arts.wales.
- Access Support Deadlines
We can arrange access support for you up to 2 weeks before the fund’s deadline. This is to make sure that we get the right support in place for you and to give you enough time to work with them.
For the Create fund (Small and Large grants), we can pay for up to 3 days of support.
For the International Opportunities Fund, we can pay for up to 2 days of support.
For Creative Steps, we can pay for up to 2 days of support.
For resubmissions, we can pay for up to 2 days of support.
For Project Completion reports, we can pay for up to 1.5 days of support.
- Arranging an Access Support Worker
It is up to you who your access support worker will be. You may have a note taker, interpreter or support worker that you regularly use. If you do not have one already, please let us know and we can put you in touch with an appropriate access support worker. Please note we can't always guarantee support due to demand, but we will try our best to put support in place.
Each request is considered based on your requirements and the level of support you need. We can pay a reasonable rate of up to a maximum amount of £300 per day (maximum of 3 days) for specialist support. If the daily rate a support worker asks for is higher than average, we may ask for:
other quotes, or
a detailed breakdown of costs
Once your support worker has completed the work they have agreed with us, they should send their invoices to access.support@arts.wales. We will pay them when we know you are satisfied with the work they have done.
Please note that we cannot pay for your friends, your family or people you live with to give you access support. We also cannot pay for access support from people involved in the delivery of your project. Access support workers should have experience giving support on things like writing applications.
- Access Support Process for Making an Application
- Speak with your Development Officer about needing access support, or email access.support@arts.wales
- Once we make sure that your project is eligible, we will ask a few questions and fill out a form with you to get appropriate access support in place.
- If you already have an access support worker, we will agree on how many days of support are needed. If you do not have an access support worker in mind, we can contact our network of access support workers to see who is available. We will let you know who can help, and you can pick one if more than one is available.
- We will set up a meeting with you, your access support worker and the Grants & Access Officer. This meeting will involve an informal introduction and will provide time for us to plan how your time together will be spent.
- You and your access support worker will arrange when they will support you, in line with the number of days of support they have agreed to give, and following the plan made in step 4.
- After your access support has finished, please let us know. We would like to make sure you had all the support you needed, and we are always open to ideas that would improve our access support service.
- Your access support worker will send us an invoice, we will pay them.
- During your Project (we call these Personal Access Costs)
If your application is successful, we can cover access support costs for managing and delivering the project. This could be for you, or for the team involved in delivering the project.
We call access costs that support the delivery and management during the project Personal Access Costs. We can help to cover access support costs for you, or anyone involved in delivering and managing your project.
Examples of Personal Access Costs include:
- Interpreter costs
- Support Workers or Note Takers
- Specialist Equipment or software that help overcome barriers to access
- Specialist accommodation
- Specialist travel
- Accommodation/travel for interpreters or support workers
We cannot pay for:
- Ongoing treatment such as therapy or acupuncture
- Caring costs
Please note that Personal Access Costs are only for people involved in the management and delivery of your project.
In your budget, on the separate Personal Access Costs tab, please give a breakdown of these costs, for example: support worker: £X per day, X days.
If you require access support to write your completion report for the project, these costs should be included in this section. We can pay for up to 1.5 days of support for help with writing your completion report.
Costs for making your project more accessible for audiences or participants, or for caring or childcare responsibilities should be in the main section of the budget, not in the Personal Access Costs section.
Personal Access Costs are separate from the amount you're requesting for the project. For example, if you're asking for the maximum amount available, you can still include Personal Access Costs, even if it puts you over the fund’s limit. Costs cannot be increased once a grant has been awarded, so please be sure to plan these carefully.
If you are unsure whether your Personal Access Costs are eligible, please contact access.support@arts.wales for advice.
- Making your work accessible to others
We can help with the costs of making your work accessible to audiences and participants as part of your project budget too. These should go in your main project budget.
Here are some useful guides:
- Applying via Alternative Formats
If you would like to apply via Video/Audio please find further guidance here.