Early Career Promoter Fund

Grants of up to 3,500 pounds for independent promoters in England who are ready to book at a bigger scale than they currently can. PRS Foundation runs it with Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and it is unusual in funding both the shows and the person putting them on.

Eligible activity is broad: booking, programming and promoting gigs, concerts, club nights, showcases and tours, plus the costs that come with them — venue hire, production, artist and DJ fees, crew fees and administration. It also funds capacity building, meaning mentoring, coaching, shadowing, workshops and masterclasses, and other spending that helps you programme a wider range of artists, reach new audiences and build your skills and networks.

The fund is explicit about addressing under-representation, and encourages grantees to support a diverse range of artists and genres nationwide.

Its handling of access costs is worth knowing. Applicants with access requirements are asked to keep those out of the main budget and use a separate budget question instead. That section is seen only by the management team rather than external advisors, requesting it does not affect the funding decision, and there is a ring-fenced budget for it. Audience access costs, by contrast, do belong in your main budget.

Deadlines run through the year, with decisions six to eight weeks after each. Guidance, an easy-read version and an application webinar are all published.