Grants and funds

When you or your organization wants to start a new initiative or project, there are several ways to finance it. In addition to public revenue, sponsorships and crowdfunding, for example, you often have to apply for grants and funds. But how do you go about this? On this page we have collected all relevant knowledge base articles and other useful links, and refer you to interesting workshops and consultations.

When do you qualify for a grant or fund?

Let's start with the good news: if you have an original idea and can support it with a solid plan, there is actually always a fund or subsidy scheme where you can apply. We can help you find the right one and write a good application.

What funds are there?

We have a rich landscape of grants and funds for the cultural sector in the Netherlands. These may be government-funded bodies, from municipalities to the central government, but there are also many private funds that want to contribute to art and culture for their own reasons. Some funds focus on a specific field, such as the Netherlands Film Fund, fund Podiumkunsten or the Literature Fund. There are also funds that serve the entire sector, such as the Prince Bernard Culture Fund and the VSB fund. There are also local schemes, specifically for Arnhem or Nijmegen artists, for example. Think of the municipalities and province, but also our own Stroomversneller and the Groeispurt fund . There are also funds that want to support certain themes and finance projects specifically aimed at, for example, the multicultural society, health and care, or sustainability. In short: there seems to be a pot for every lid.

So how do you find your way through this jungle of regulations? For this purpose the Book of Funds was developed, in which all Dutch equity funds are published annually. A big tome, to be found for example in the library, but also at our office. In the digital version you can easily filter by sector, theme or art form.

Fundraisingonline also offers up-to-date information on grants, funds, tax schemes and credits. Fund search engine FindNFund also has a large database available.

Furthermore, we have also included in this knowledge base an article with an overview of grants and funds, in which we also refer to our semi-annual overview of upcoming grant deadlines.

How do I write a good application?

Once you've found a fund that fits your funding request, the real work follows: writing your application. In the knowledge base you will find several articles that can help you with this:

• Applying for funding
• Tips on applying for grants
• Applying for funds
• Tips on applying for funds

To work out the different parts of your application, you will find more information in the articles below:

• The plan of action
• Download - sample plan of action
• Creating a budget
• The communication plan
• Target groups

Where can I turn for help?

As you've seen above, Cultuur Academy's knowledge base offers a tremendous amount of information that can help you apply for grants and funds.

Our program offers several opportunities throughout to help you move forward:

• Get advice in an individual Consultation;
• Ask all your questions to a consultant on a specific grant or fund during a Grant Consultation.

Finally, it may be wise to enlist the help of someone who has fundraising experience and knows their way around grant and fundraising land. For example, check out the page below:

• Fundraisers
  

So! Don't be put off by the multitude of schemes, the sometimes complicated conditions and the fear of tapping out a good application. Take advantage of all the help offered and rise to the challenge. Before you know it, you will have your allocation in and you can really make your project a reality.

What should you think about once you receive the grant?

• The possible VAT implications
• Writing a justification

More on how, as a creator, you can get people to support your art?

Listen to the podcast "The Art of Giving" from fordekunst.