The Museums Association is offering six one-year bursaries, funded by The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, for individuals from minority ethnic backgrounds wanting to work in museums and galleries. More than 20 people have already taken part in the scheme, and the closing date for the next round of applications is March 15. w: http://www.museumsassociation.org
A conference on March 19, aimed at museum and gallery professionals, will highlight issues that arise through partnership working. Hosted by Sheffield Galleries & Museums Trust, ‘Talking Partnerships’ will review the experiences of organisations working together on ‘Image & Identity’, one of the twelve strategic partnership projects jointly funded by the DCMS and DfES. Contact Julie Taylor t: 0114 278 2607; w: http://www.talkingpartnerships.org.uk
A report outlining the cultural, scientific and economic impact of The Natural History Museum has found that the Museum adds £190m to the economy every year. Its turnover was £52m in 2002/2003, and 3m visitors attended. w: http://www.nhm.ac.uk
Sound Check, a series of learning events for musicians and arts organisations, will explore issues around race equality, cultural diversity and employment, and provide support for Black, Asian and Chinese artists. The one-day events in the South East of England have been organised by Sound Sense, the UK development agency for community music, and decibel. Contact Catherine Luck Taylor
t: 01273 763030; e: catherine.lucktaylor@artscouncil.org.uk
100 UK charities have joined forces to encourage people to leave money to charity in their wills. Currently, fewer than 1 in 20 people remember a charity in their will, despite the potential tax benefits to both the recipient and the donor.
t: 0808 180 2080; w: http://www.rememberacharity.org.uk
Big Arts Week, a national campaign bringing creative professionals into contact with local schools, will take place this year from June 21-25. 1,700 artists volunteered to give between an hour and a week of their time to the 2,500 schools last year, and reached an estimated 100,000 young people.
The BBC has announced an overhaul of its arts programming, including an investment of £8m that will result in an additional 50 hours of arts coverage in primetime over the next 18 months on BBC2 and BBC4. There is likely to be a corresponding reduction in lifestyle and light factual shows.
A regional professional development programme to support the work of 500 professional artists is being established in the East of England. The scheme, managed by Commissions East, will offer mentoring opportunities and practical training sessions delivered in partnership with Business Link. t: 01223 356882;
w: http://www.commseast.org.uk
The Royal Shakespeare Company has launched an online poll encouraging the public to take part in fantasy casting of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet to promote its production of the play. w: http://www.rsc.org.uk/fantasycasting
A new £500,000 scheme to involve artists in the built environment has been launched by CABE (the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment) and Arts & Business. The two-year project, managed by Public Art South West, will attempt to engage artists in a range of planning and building projects. e: enquiries@cabe.org.uk; t: 020 7960 2400.
The Place Prize for dance is now open for applications. The new bi-annual choreography award has a total prize fund of £100,000. Video applications must be submitted by March 18.
t: 020 7388 5933; e: enquiries@theplaceprize.com;
w: http://www.theplaceprize.com