Curious Minds

Curious Minds is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1130988).

Curious Minds is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1130988). It aims to improve the lives of children and young people in the North of England by making arts and culture accessible to all, and it works with schools, cultural organisations, grassroots providers and freelance teaching artists. Its Chance to See Fund, a partnership between Curious Minds and The Lathums, opens up creative experiences for children and young people across Wigan Borough through local arts organisations and targeted youth services. In its annual report it paid £20,039 in grants.

Priority Areas

Curious Minds works with schools, cultural organisations, grassroots providers and freelance teaching artists to make arts and cultural learning accessible to children and young people. It brokers partnerships and strengthens inclusion while putting young people’s voice and creativity at the heart of cultural work. Grants are issued under the requirements and objectives of funding agreements, rather than from Curious Minds’ own grant-making funds. Through the Chance To See Fund, it supports local organisations to widen Wigan Borough young people’s access to diverse experiences and improve their quality of life through creativity. Applicants include registered charities, constituted groups or clubs, not-for-profit companies and Community Interest Companies; their activity must be arts-based or involve creative work with an artist or arts organisation. Activities opening doors for young people facing economic, social or health inequalities are prioritised.

Themes

• Creative and cultural access

Geographic Focus

Wigan Borough; England.

Organisations apply by completing the online application form. If completing it online is difficult or impossible, they can contact Curious Minds to discuss another way to set out their proposed activities.

Deadlines: Each application round has a submission deadline at midday.

Who can apply:

• Chance to See Fund: Applicants must be based in Wigan Borough.

What the charity says:

• The funding panel prioritises activities that open doors for young people whose opportunities are constrained by economic, social or health inequalities.
• An applicant’s organisational purpose should align with at least one of the Fund’s key priorities.
• Curious Minds Young Associates discuss applications before the Board of Trustees ratifies decisions.
• After activities finish, grantees are asked to provide a short reflection and a breakdown of how they spent the funding.