Anti-Racist Wales Culture, Heritage and Sport Fund 2024 to 2025: guidance

The Anti-racist Wales Action Plan (ARWAP), published in June 2022 builds on previous Welsh Government initiatives on race equality, and reconfirms the Welsh Government’s long-held commitment to advancing equality for all.

The Welsh Government’s Programme for Government emphasises the importance of representing and reflecting the history and culture of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people to ensure that their contribution to Wales is recognised while enabling equal access and participation. This will deliver improved outcomes for all, and will better reflect and promote a multi-cultural, vibrant and diverse Wales, which is fundamental to delivering our vision of a truly anti-racist Wales.

To achieve the vision of a truly anti-racist Wales, the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan, sets out clear goals and actions. The Culture, Heritage and Sport section can be found on pages 55 to 62 and focuses on the themes of Leadership, Funding, Celebrating Cultural Diversity, the Historical Narrative and Learning about our Cultural Diversity.

The Anti-racist Wales Culture, Heritage and Sport Fund will provide capital grant funding to support organisations to deliver the Culture Heritage and Sport goals and actions in the ARWAP and our Programme for Government commitments.

Applicants should read the following guidance carefully and develop their proposals in accordance with the assessment criteria. 

The grant scheme will operate as a competitive single stage application process.

The timetable for the 2024 to 2025 grant scheme is:

• Anti-racist Wales Culture Fund for capital grant opens: 3 September 2024
• Application window: 3 September to 30 September 2024
• Applications assessed: October 2024
• Decisions issued: by w/c 4 November 2024
• Projects start: mid November 2024

In order to apply for funding you should: 

• be an organisation based in Wales or working with relevant organisations based in Wales or whose activity is based in Wales
• be active in the Culture: Arts, Museums, Archives, Libraries, Heritage or Sport sectors, with experience of either engagement or delivery in these sectors
• be able to complete the purchase of capital assets by 14 March 2025 and claim by 24 March 2025

All provisionally successful applications will be subject to background financial checks. Failure to pass these checks may result in an unsuccessful outcome for grant funding.

All offers of grant will be subject to the Welsh Government’s standard terms and conditions of the grant.

The Welsh Government policy is to make payments in arrears. However, it recognises that some organisations do not hold large reserves and do not have the resources to undertake work and receive payment afterwards. Provision of funding for committed expenditure may be considered in advance of payment but only where evidence of need is clearly established. This must be stated at the application stage, with evidence to follow if the applicant is successful. If funding is then not spent as intended it will need to be repaid.

Applications should demonstrate how the funded projects will meet the Culture, Heritage and Sport goals of the Anti-racist Wales Plan.

Applications of between £3,000 to £15,000 for financial year 2024 to 2025 will be considered upon submission of the attached application form. Minimum amount of funding is set at £3,000 and the maximum amount is £15,000. However, we will consider some applications which have exceptional and compelling evidence up to the value of £20,000.

The funding is for capital costs only.

All funding from this grant scheme is discretionary with competition likely for the available funds. Submitting an application does not guarantee all, or some, of the money you apply for. 

As the delivery window is short we advise that you consider how you may purchase capital items by 14 March 2025 clearly demonstrating how it will enable you to deliver against the Culture, Heritage and Sport goals and actions in the Anti-racist Wales Action plan, clearly identifying the goal and action(s) against which you will deliver.

The funding must be spent by 14 March 2025.

If you have received grant funding through the Anti-racist Wales Culture, Heritage and Sport Grant Scheme, and are considering applying for the capital grant we would especially be interested in seeing how your new application will build upon and strengthen the work you have delivered or are delivering on.

Examples of things we will consider under this grant scheme (this list not intended to be exhaustive):

Exhibition build

• Purchase capital assets to create new exhibitions that tell stories through the lens of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people’s experiences (past and present).
• Purchase capital assets to expand or enhance existing exhibitions to include more inclusive and representative content.
• Purchase capital assets to develop mobile exhibitions.

Purchase of display boxes

• Acquiring secure, climate-controlled display cases.
• Purchasing custom display boxes.
• Investing in portable display cases for use in temporary or traveling exhibitions.

Digitisation of collections

• Digitising archives and collections to make them accessible to a broader audience online. This can include any conservation work required prior to digitisation.
• Developing existing digital platforms or apps that allow users to access and explore digitised collections representing the stories and histories of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people in engaging ways.
• Extending existing platforms to create online exhibitions that can reach a global audience and highlight anti-racist work Wales is doing on culture, heritage and sport.

Art Installations

• Commissioning public art installations that promote messages of diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism.
• Developing interactive or multimedia art installations that engage viewers in conversations about race, identity and anti-racism.

Cultural heritage preservation

• Purchasing tools to undertake restoration or conservation of historic sites or artifacts that are significant to Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people. 

Cultural and community spaces

• Enhancing accessibility in cultural venues to ensure they are welcoming and inclusive.

Outreach and engagement activities

• Purchase of equipment to facilitate active engagement and outreach work with diverse communities (e.g. to gather oral history storied to be gathered).

Diversifying and widening collections

• Purchase of inclusive library resources to enhance the diversity of collections available for loan.

All grant applications will be assessed by the Culture Division against the priority criteria listed in section 7 of this document.

Applicants should also note the following:

• Applicants may include up to 10% of the total grant award to support project management (staff) costs related to the delivery of the capital project which must be claimed by 24 March 2025.
• We welcome applications where match funding from another organisation is in place. Please provide evidence of your match funding offer alongside your application. 

The key grant outcomes we are seeking to achieve through this capital grant scheme are:

• increased and improved representation within museum, archive, library  and heritage collections
• improvements to cultural, heritage and sport spaces that reflect the diversity of Wales
• cultural, heritage and sport venues are physically accessible and provide culturally sensitive services that cater to the needs of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people
• cultural, heritage and sport preservation of Black, Asian and Minority ethnic people’s history, past and present

Applications will be scored using the following scoring scale. Each assessment criteria score will be multiplied by the associated weighting factor to give a total score. More detail on each criteria can be found in sections 6 to 13.

Applicants will be assessed on how they deliver the Culture, Heritage and Sport goals and actions set out on page 55 to 62 in the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan.

We anticipate that project proposals will focus on the ARWAP goals about ‘Celebrating Diversity’ ‘The Historical Narrative’ and ‘Learning about our Cultural Diversity’ but applications delivering against any of the Culture Heritage and Sport ARWAP goals and actions will be eligible for consideration.

The Culture Heritage and Sport ARWAP goals are included below: 

Leadership

To hold publicly funded organisations accountable for the delivery of anti-racist measures and actions, as set out in this action plan.

Funding

To work with our sponsored bodies to ensure they use their spending powers to embed anti-racist practice, facilitate equality of access and outcomes, and maximise participation for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people

Celebrating diversity

Support all parts of the society in Wales to embrace and celebrate its diverse cultural heritage while understanding, and recognising the right to, freedom of cultural expression. 

The historical narrative

To work with public bodies to fully recognise their responsibility (individual and collectively) for setting the right historic narrative, promoting and delivering a balanced, authentic and decolonised account of the past – one that recognises both historical injustices and the positive impact of Black Asian and Minority Ethnic communities.

Learning about our cultural diversity 

Identify and meet targets to deliver anti-racist education and learning; including interpretation, marketing and educational materials that recognise and celebrate the rich and diverse cultural mix of our society, encourage widespread physical and intellectual engagement and so promote anti-racist practice and principles throughout.

Score

• 4: A very clear, comprehensive and compelling explanation is given of how the project will address goals and action(s) within the ARWAP.
• 3: A clear and convincing explanation is given of how the project will address goals and action(s) within the ARWAP.
• 2: A somewhat clear explanation is given of how the project will address goals and action(s) within the ARWAP, but plans contain minor gaps and could be more strongly developed.
• 1: Links to how the project will address goals and action(s) within the ARWAP are apparent, but not fully explored.
• 0: No information has been provided as to how the project will address goals and action(s) within the ARWAP.

Grant applicants will be assessed on how their project aligns with the following Welsh Government Programme for Government (PFG) commitments: 

• Ensure the history and culture of our Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic communities are properly represented by investing further in our cultural sector and museum network.
• Ensure that Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic histories are properly reflected throughout our cultural and heritage sectors including in our National Museums.
• Promote equal access to sports and support young and talented athletes and grassroots clubs.

Score

• 4: A very clear, comprehensive and compelling explanation is given of how the project will support the delivery of the specific PFG Commitments. 
• 3: A clear and convincing explanation is given of how the project will support the delivery of the specific PFG commitments.
• 2: A somewhat clear explanation is given of how the project will support the delivery of the specific PFG commitments, but plans contain minor gaps and could be more strongly developed.
• 1: Links to how the project will support the delivery of the specific PFG commitments are apparent, but not fully explored.
• 0: No information has been provided as to how the project will support the delivery of the specific PFG commitments.

Grant applicants will be assessed on how their application demonstrates the delivery of key project milestones through a clear delivery plan. It is important to note that the purchase of assets must occur by 14 March 2025. While the subsequent delivery of actions related to these assets may take place after this date, the application must explicitly describe the expected outcomes and impacts of these actions and expected date when it will be achieved by. This includes providing a clear explanation of how the assets will contribute to the overall success and objectives of the project.

All proposals will include a budget, providing a breakdown of expected costs. Within the cost breakdown, proposals should also provide an explanation about how the costs of the project are reasonable. This will need to include clear evidence of how the costs have been arrived at as set out in the application form.

Applications should provide a payment schedule which provides an estimated timeline for making claims based on your project timetable and milestones. All claims must be made by 24 March 2025.

Applications should identify key risks and show how these will be mitigated.

Score

• 4: A very clear, compelling and comprehensive explanation is given of how project delivery will be managed. This will include: the project’s key milestones and explanations as to how they will be delivered, a clear budget including a well evidenced breakdown of costs, and a comprehensive risk register detailing appropriate risk mitigations.  
• 3: A clear and convincing explanation is given of how project delivery will be managed. This will include: the project’s key milestones and explanations as to how they will be delivered, a clear budget including an evidenced breakdown of costs, and a comprehensive risk register detailing appropriate risk mitigations.  
• 2: A somewhat clear explanation is given of how project delivery will be managed. This will include: the project’s key milestones and explanations as to how they will be delivered, a budget including an evidenced breakdown of costs, and a risk register detailing possible risk mitigations. But plans contain minor gaps and could be more strongly developed.
• 1: Details of how project delivery will be managed are provided but not fully explored. Milestones, budgetary and/ or risk information is provided but are unclear, incomplete or not fully explored.
• 0: No information has been provided as to how  project delivery will be managed.

Feedback during the development of the ARWAP consistently affirmed that co-design and working together will be essential in delivering the plan. Grant applicants will be assessed on how their proposal has or will be co-produced and/or how the project has the support of the people it is intended to engage.

Score

• 4: A very clear, comprehensive and compelling explanation is given of how the proposal demonstrates community support / co-production for the project.
• 3: A clear and convincing explanation is given of how the proposal demonstrates community support for the project.
• 2: A somewhat clear explanation is given of how the proposal demonstrates community support for the project but contains minor gaps and could be more strongly developed.
• 1: Links to how the proposal demonstrates community support for the project are apparent but not fully explored.
• 0: No information has been provided as to how proposal demonstrates community support for the project.

The Welsh Government has an ambition to deliver transformational change that can be sustained over time. Grant applicants will be assessed on how their project contributes to delivering this change. Grant applicants should evidence the difference the project will make and the long-term impact they anticipate that the project will have on Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people in Wales and or their locality. Applicants should detail and how this impact will be sustained over time.

Score

• 4: A very clear, comprehensive and compelling explanation is given of how the project will deliver a positive change that can be sustained in the long term. 
• 3: A clear and convincing explanation is given of how the project will deliver a positive change that can be sustained in the long term.
• 2: A somewhat clear explanation is given of how the project will deliver a positive change that can be sustained in the long term, but plans contain minor gaps and could be more strongly developed.
• 1: Links to how the project will deliver a positive change that can be sustained in the long term are apparent but not fully explored.
• 0: No information has been provided as to how the project will deliver a positive change that can be sustained in the long term.

Grant applicants will be assessed on how their application demonstrates alignment with the grant outcomes. The connection between the projects purpose and the grant’s intended outcome should be explicit and well defined. Grant applicants will be assessed on how their application details how the project outcomes will be monitored including, SMART indicators which measure the completion and success of the project including collecting data to enable assessment of performance against the wider ARWAP objectives. A SMART performance indicator will be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound. 

Applications must also commit to involvement in the Welsh Government evaluation of the programme. 

Score

• 4: A very clear comprehensive and compelling explanation is given of how the project will be measured and reported and how it aligns with the grant outcomes.
• 3: A clear and convincing explanation is given of how the project will be measured and reported and how it aligns with the grant outcomes.
• 2: A somewhat clear explanation is given of how the project will be measured and reported but plans contain minor gaps and could be more strongly developed and how it aligns with the grant outcomes.
• 1: Links to how the project will be measured and reported are apparent but not fully explored and how it aligns with the grant outcomes.
• 0: No information has been provided as to how the project will be measured and reported and how it aligns with the grant outcomes.

Successful applicants will be responsible for collecting monitoring and evaluation data and reporting on participation and performance and will be expected to report regularly to the Welsh Government.

All applicants must ensure that any personal data processed in relation to their grant proposals is in line with UK data protection legislation.

At the end of your project you will be required to submit a short completion report confirming how the funds were used. A template will be issued following grant award and is likely to require you to report against how your project has delivered against the outputs of ARWAP, what evaluation activity has been undertaken, and how conditions of the grant have been met.    

Applicants who have any queries, including if they are unsure if they’re eligible to apply for the capital grant funding are advised to contact the Culture division central mailbox at culture@gov.wales for advice on their potential project before submitting an application.

• Anti-racist Wales Action Plan
• Programme for Government
• Well-being of Future Generations
• Engagement: WCVA
• Co-production Network for Wales