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Arts Council England

We believe that great art and culture inspires us, brings us together and teaches us about ourselves and the world around us. In short, it makes life better.

We support activities that stretch across the arts – from museums and libraires, theatre to digital art, dance, music, literature, crafts and collections, supporting cultural organisations, artistic groups, and individuals.

How do we do this?

We support a National Portfolio of organisations across the country – they receive regular funding from us for a set period. We also fund Music Education Hubs – these are groups of organisations, schools and local authorities working together to provide music education to children and young people. We also support people and places through different grants and funding schemes, including National Lottery Project Grants and Developing Your Creative Practice.

Why work with us?

We value skills

Many of us are artists or have worked in arts and culture. But many others aren’t – and that’s OK! We employ passionate and creative people with skills and knowledge in lots of different fields, whether that’s arts and culture, finance, digital technology, HR or another area. Whatever your job history (or even if you’re just starting out!) your talents will help us achieve our goals.

What works for you, works for us

We know that the added extras are important, so we offer flexible working to help you balance work and home life – including working from home, compressed or part-time hours, job shares and other arrangements. We also work with portable technology allowing you to work smartly and stay connected anywhere (this has meant we’ve been able to successfully and safely work at home over the last year helping to deliver the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund) - with a future commitment to spending less time travelling and in meetings when we head back to the office.

We love that we’re all different

We employ more than 500 people in nine offices across England (though we’ve spent most of this year and last year working at home) and believe that our staff should represent the communities, organisations and individuals that we work with and support. We want people from all walks of life to contribute to our work and share their experiences, knowledge, and passion.

We value your learning

We believe in developing your skills and talents – and we promise we’ll continue to invest in your learning and professional development while you work with us. This includes covering the cost of qualifications, in-house and external training, conferences, e-learning and more. We have an online learning platform which all staff can access, as well as an Investors in People Gold award, and we provide flexible and adaptable learning and development opportunities for staff at all levels.

We also have a dedicated apprenticeship scheme, supporting colleagues to work while gaining skills, knowledge, experience, and qualifications.

Employee Diversity

Our commitment to diversity is reflected in our attitude towards our employees. We’ll respect you as an individual, with fair policies and practices designed to include everyone’s perspective. We are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer with an internal Disability Network to support D/deaf, neurodivergent and disabled staff at the Arts Council. We also have a group of internal People and Culture Champions to make sure our staff voice is heard when we make important decisions. We’re a Living Wage Employer and we are also a member of Working Forward, which supports pregnant women and parents in the workplace.

Why else should you work with us?

We offer a number of benefits (both formal and informal) to all our staff, including:

  • 25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays and an additional three days leave at Christmas. All staff also earn one additional leave
    day per full year of service (up to five days) and we offer a scheme
    to buy and sell annual leave. We offer generous sick pay, paid
    maternity, paternity and adoptive parental leave, as well as up to
    five days a year for personal and religious reasons.

  • Confidential and impartial support You can get advice on personal, legal, financial and management issues from a dedicated
    Employee Assistance Provider. We also have other internal initiatives
    designed to promote staff happiness and wellbeing while at work, such
    as access to the Unmind app for all employees and a dedicated team of
    Mental Health First Aiders supporting their peers.

  • Pension scheme and life assurance: The Arts Council retirement plan is a final salary scheme with contributions on a sliding scale.
    All staff members are automatically provided with life assurance
    cover. [Find out more here]

  • Relocation support: Newly appointed staff who need to move residence are eligible to apply for up to £5,000 support.

  • Shopping discounts: Exclusive savings on high street and online shops, holidays, cinema tickets, gym membership, dining out and more.

  • Ticket fund: Claim money towards the cost of tickets for Arts Council-funded events.

  • Travel loans: Interest-free loans for travel season tickets, as well as bicycle, car and motorbike loans for those who regularly use
    them for commuting.

What happens when you apply:

When you apply for a role with us, you’ll complete a simple application form, with questions that focus on demonstrating the skills and attitudes necessary for the role. Applicants no longer need to list all their qualifications or include details of where they went to school or university - they only need to highlight qualifications they feel are relevant, and they don’t need to specify the dates these were awarded. We are also a committed ‘Ban the Box’ employer, which means applicants also don’t need to declare if they have any criminal convictions at the first stage of application.

As a Disability Confident Employer, we guarantee an interview to any candidate with a declared disability who meets the minimum criteria for the role they’re applying to. We’ll also provide you with your interview questions in advance, to give you a head start - we know how daunting interviews can be!

We believe in what we do.

Wherever you work in the Arts Council, we all believe that art and culture make life better. If you feel the same, see what roles we have on offer and join us.

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