Social enterprise Cause4 has joined forces with the European Sponsorship Association (ESA) to launch the first-ever dedicated arts and culture certificate in sponsorship.
Starting with an inaugural intake in September 2015, the part-time 12-week course aims to equip arts professionals with the necessary skills to enhance their fundraising capabilities. Students will gain expert knowledge and learn how to generate funds from the commercial sector via corporate sponsorship opportunities.
The course will be delivered via a web-based distance-learning platform, for which evening seminars will be delivered by senior figures in the industry. Publisher and CPD provider Nelson Croom will deliver the online qualification.
Cause4 CEO Michelle Wright said: ‘The ESA Arts Certificate will provide the tools for those in the arts and cultural sectors to develop stronger partnerships with business and to attract and develop wider income streams via effective commercial partnerships. It will equip practitioners with more confidence and resilience and enable them to form more effective and mutually beneficial commercial relationships. The ambitious project has been made possible via Arts Council England’s Arts Fundraising & Philanthropy programme.
Added ACE’s director of philanthropy, Clare Titley: ‘The world of corporate sponsorship is changing and arts and cultural organisations need to adapt to move forward… Arts and culture in this country thrives on a mixed funding model of earned income, donations and public investment, and all these elements need to be in place for arts and culture to succeed.’
Applications are welcomed from arts sponsorship and fundraising professionals, arts and culture practitioners, and current fundraisers seeking to work in the arts. Recent graduates will also be considered.
Banner photo: Hofesh Schechter’s Sun, © Gabriele Zucca, courtesy of ESA
Thumbnail photo: His Dark Materials (Youth Theatre 2012 – Dublinstones), © courtesy of York Theatre Royal/ESA
