Creative Activist

Creative Activist Worker

 

Creative Activist Worker (p/t) –  Job Description:

(For Application Process – Click here)

Overview

Job Title:  ART B&B Creative Activist

Location: Blackpool, UK 

Contract: Freelance. Part Time.

Period: 12 months (must be concluded prior to May 2023)

Fees: £20k – (based on 133 days at an average daily rate of  £150 per day).  To be paid in instalments against an agreed schedule of work. Payment will be within 14 days of receipt of invoice.

Flexible working: to be worked on a flexible basis in line with the requirements of the creative and community programme. Some evening and weekend work will be required due to the nature of the events programme.

VAT: If registered for VAT the contracted person may charge VAT on top of the fees.

Eligibility: You must be eligible to work in the UK and have a Unique Tax Reference (UTR) number. The employee will be responsible for ensuring they pay all their own income tax, national insurance contributions, pension contributions etc.

Priority: will be given to applicants who are local to ART B&B i.e. are resident in FY postcodes. This is because the Social Enterprise Support Fund which is supporting this role is specifically aimed at boosting local employment and creating social and economic impact in less advantaged areas. This larger part of this work is not suitable for remote working.

Equal Opportunity and Diversity Statement:  We want the work and purpose of ART B&B to reflect the diversity of our community. We want this to be true of the art and events programme, the audiences, and the workforce and leadership.

We see diversity as an opportunity. We want to see an inclusive approach remove barriers to entry, discover new talent, raise the bar for creative excellence in both production and audience experience, inspire innovation and spark new collaborations.

We are an equal opportunities employer.

Responsible to: The board of ART B&B CIC

Background to role

Art B&B is a unique social enterprise with a voluntary board and an employed staff team. Through commissioning artists and local contractors we renovated and now operate a unique hotel, café and venue with the primary purposes of creating employment and reinvesting profits in creative activities for the communities of Blackpool and the Fylde Coast.  www.artbb.org

This role is supported by funding from the Social Enterprise Support Scheme* helping social enterprises rebuild from COVID-19. It is established in partnership by The National Lottery Community Fund and five social enterprise support agencies. One of its purposes is ‘relieving isolation by bringing community spaces back to life.’ https://socialenterprisesupportfund.org.uk/

The overall purpose of this role is:

‘To reconnect our social enterprise with its community and create new opportunities for them.’

This has been made possible thanks to The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK.

Role Description

This role is about instigating and developing a programme of creative and community activities centred around the ART B&B venue on Blackpool’s seafront.

We have a 19-bedroom artist designed hotel with a high-quality contemporary multi-use space and café/bar for communities to meet, socialise, and participate in and experience arts and creative activities.

The opportunity is to:

  1. Facilitate and develop a broad programme of regular activities that might range from film nights to repair cafes; gardening clubs to live performances; and public forums or talks and learning opportunities. It is envisaged that you will instigate and run some activities and facilitate others through supporting existing community groups to run their own activities.
  2. Oversee the delivery of three new projects within ART B&B – the artist led refurbishment of 2 of the guest rooms and the next stage of developing the community garden at the rear of the hotel. (Note: these projects will be delivered through commissioning other people/groups with the support of LeftCoast)
  3. Support ART B&B in becoming a sustainable social enterprise which reinvests profits in community activities by working with the staff team to ensure maximum participation and a positive experience for all attendees at all events.
  4. Work with the staff team to coordinate, generate and disseminate marketing and communication messages to promote the programme to communities and participants (including website updates, social media and some print).

You will work in collaboration with both the staff team and board of ART B&B as well as the team of LeftCoast www.leftcoast.org.uk (Blackpool and Wyre’s Creative People and Places project) who are based in the ART B&B building.

The role involves actively engaging and encouraging Blackpool and Fylde Coast residents to participate, but especially from our own neighbourhood – Claremont ward.

There is a programme activity budget of £13,000 that you will be responsible for. In addition, there is a total maximum budget of £11,000 for the 3 refurbishment projects described above.

Specific Requirements of this role:

You will need to:

  1. Ensure that there is a minimum of 50 events programmed into the building over the course of 12 months – the idea is that many of these will become regular self-sustaining events beyond the life of this 12 month project. Note: Not all of the 50 events have to individual new events, some can be an ongoing repeating series. The target for participants/attendees is 1000.
  1. Undertake diligent monitoring of the quantity and range of participants and evaluate their feedback from the outset.
  1. Generate promotional materials and digital content for events – liaising with the ART B&B board members who oversee marketing and communications and the LeftCoast M&C team member to ensure that the highest quality and most timely communications about events and activities are produced and distributed. Note: we also work with an external PR agency with whom you should share images and information for a wider reach.
  1. Manage an overall budget and keep track of detailed individual income and expenditure for each event.

‘The intention of this project is to increase our capacity, through the p/t Creative Activist, to create, stage and promote locally rooted projects.

It will enable us to raise our profile and promote the community purpose and activities of our CIC regionally and nationally, which both raises our game in terms of impact and accelerates achieving our long-term self-sufficiency aim.’

Person Specification

Imaginative, creative and enthusiastic person with a strong ability to organise and promote events.

Ability to manage budgets, report on income and expenditure, and achieve best value for money wherever possible to maximise impact.

Must have a track record of event organisation.

You should be an excellent communicator who enjoys working with a diverse range of people from artists and performers to local community members.

 

Academic Qualifications

Minimum 2 GCSES in Maths and English

 

Working Space – for the period of the contract you will have desk space within the LeftCoast office within ART B&B (as well as the public spaces within the hotel). Ideally you will have your own laptop, but if you are unable to provide one we will find one for you.

Data Protection – all documents generated through this work will be hosted on a shared dropbox file with the Board of ART B&B.

HOW TO APPLY

Send:

  1. A short statement (max 300 words) saying why you would like this role, what you would bring to it, and confirming your availability to work 133 days over the next 12 months.
  2. Your CV highlighting details of relevant experience – with reference to the job description above. i.e. if you have organised a programme of public events before, make sure you tell us.
  3. Confirm that you are eligible to work in the UK and have a unique tax reference number (you do not need to supply it at this stage)

Send to Joseph Boniface (acting chair) at josephb@bonifacearchitects.co.uk

Deadline:

12pm (noon) on Monday 18th April 2022

Interviews (preferably in person), will take place week commencing 25th April with appointment by the end of that week

* The Social Enterprise Support Fund provides vital and rapid financial support to help social enterprises in England focussed on supporting their communities to recover from the pandemic. The Social Enterprise Support Fund is a two-year project, delivered by Big Issue Invest, Key Fund, Resonance, the School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) and UnLtd, in partnership with The National Lottery Community Fund, and will jointly deliver £16.3 million in grants.

This has been made possible thanks to The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK.