Head of Public Programmes
ABOUT VOID GALLERY
Void is a contemporary art gallery that commissions and produces a visual arts programme that aims to challenge our audience and promote the arts to new and existing audiences. The programme supports a diverse range of artistic practices of national and international artists.
The programme focuses on the collaborative nature of art and its ability to add to artistic discourse through exhibitions, events, discussions and partnerships. Through our commissions we work with a network of arts organisations both nationally and internationally to create specific projects.
A key element of the gallery is Void Engage, our learning and outreach programme, which places participation and engagement at the heart of Void, making contemporary visual art accessible to visitors of all ages.
JOB DESCRIPTION
Head of Public Programmes
Key objectives:
- To develop and deliver a public programme with the Gallery Director that relates to the exhibition programme including artist talks, seminars, film screenings.
- To devise and deliver a programme for community groups, particularly those with little or no access to cultural activity in Derry/Londonderry, schools, colleges and other groups and interpretative material to accompany the gallery, and offsite programmes to enable audiences to actively engage with the work of living artists.
- To foster contact and understanding between artists and the communities of Derry and broaden people’s knowledge, engagement and expectations of the contemporary visual arts.
- To promote participation and enjoyment of contemporary art and its importance as a medium for understanding the world we live in.
- To develop funding sources to support the growth of the outreach and public programme.
Responsible to/for:
The postholder is responsible to the Director.
The postholder is responsible for the Learning Officer, Access and Participation Facilitators and Assistants.
Key outputs:
- Manage the Gallery’s Access and Participation team ensuring that they are enabled to carry out their tasks efficiently and effectively.
- Devise, plan and implement educational and outreach projects that bring together artists and community groups liaising with the Curators and Void staff to ensure their successful implementation.
- Develop links between the various components of Void’s programme in collaboration with the Director and staff to broaden the gallery’s audience base.
- Organise an Access and Participation programme for a range of visiting groups to the gallery and offsite projects.
- Develop partnerships with external organisations to support the development of Void’s education and outreach work.
- Work with the marketing assistant to ensure that the learning programmes reach a wide range of formal and informal groups and visitors and that opportunities for PR are fully exploited.
- Oversee the production of learning resources and interpretative material for the gallery programme and offsite projects, providing information and developing visitor resources as appropriate.
- Ensure appropriate documentation, reporting and evaluation of all elements of the learning programme, and ensure funding bodies are kept informed.
- Produce and submit funding applications to support the learning and public programme and maximise income from education/outreach programmes.
- To deliver the work of the access and participation team within budget and to agreed targets and timescales.
- Operate in accordance with Void’s employment, health and safety, equal opportunities and other practices, policies and procedures.
- Carry out any other duties commensurate with the job role.
Required competences:
- Arts related degree
- 3 years experience of managing an arts project
Budget Management and Funding Applications
- Have excellent budget management skills
- Have good experience in funding applications to support public programme
- Developing good relationships with foundations, trusts and public programme funders.
Manage the work of teams and individuals
- Work effectively with other people
- Allocate work to teams and individuals
- Contribute to good practice in the team
- Agree objectives and work plans and set targets for teams and individuals
- Provide advice and support for delegated work
- Assess the performance of teams and individuals
- Provide feedback on performance to teams and individuals
Originate concepts for education projects
- Devise a concept for a cultural project
- Determine potential approaches to a cultural project
- Develop a brief to fulfill a project concept
Assess the viability of education projects
- Assess the artistic viability of a potential project
- Assess the financial viability of a potential project
Develop plans for a cultural project
- Specify the aims, objectives and structural requirements
- Develop a plan to implement project
- Specify a budget
Deliver a cultural/education project
- Deliver a project
- Maintain compliance with agreed schedules
- Ensure compliance with legal requirements
- Maintain financial control
- Evaluate the management and delivery of the project
Acquire contributions to a cultural project
- Evaluate and select artists
- Evaluate and select art work
- Negotiate contributions
- Formalise and agree contract terms
Access and participation policy and strategy
- Contribute to the development of internal access and participation strategies
Seek and secure external support for access and participation programmes
- Determine the requirement for external support (e.g. funding)
- Originate and maintain contact with possible providers of support
Contribute to the securing of external funding and support for your organisation and programme
- Contribute to the development of the fundraising strategy to obtain external support
- Contribute to the implementation of the fundraising strategy
- Satisfy needs of external supporters
Represent the organisation
- Represent the organisation externally
- Ensure that the vision for the organisation is understood and advocated effectively
Contribute to marketing of products and services
- Contribute to planning and implementation of marketing plan
Maintain Health and Safety of yourself and others in relation to the art form
- Identify hazards/potential hazards in the workplace
- Assess the level of risk and recommend action
- Review your workplace assessment of risks
- Contribute to the maintenance of a healthy, safe and productive environment for self, visitors, staff and customers
Provide information to support decision-making
- Obtain information for decision-making
- Record and store information
- Analyse information to support decision-making
- Advise and inform others
Maintain yourself in professional practice
- Maintain and develop own professional competence
- Establish and maintain working relationships with contacts across the profession
Additional skills required:
- A driving licence is desirable
- A thorough understanding of the process of organising gallery/access and participation projects
- Extensive experience of arts education/ education experience
- A knowledge of contemporary art and interest in making it accessible
- Ability to speak confidently in public to a range of groups
- A high standard of written and spoken English and editing skills
- An ability to talk about contemporary art with enthusiasm and conviction
Void requires all staff to obtain enhanced Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) disclosure, in accordance with Void’s Child and Vulnerable Adults Protection Policy. You will be required to provide the necessary documentation for the checks to be carried out. Void will cover the cost of obtaining the disclosure and reserves the right to request additional CRB checks at any time in the future.
Salary: Full Time, £30,095 per annum (35 hours per week)
Please contact hello@derryvoid.com with any questions. We will be accepting CV and Cover Letters for this post.
Post Closing Date: 15 July 2022 at 5:00 pm
Interviews to be held on Monday 25 July