What this grant is for:
This is a new grant to support the activity of medium to large amateur and voluntary performing arts groups in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown. Funding is for the period July to December 2026.
What artforms is this grant for?
The grant is open to musical theatre, theatre, dance, choirs, circus, spectacle, opera, music and vocal ensembles.
Why are we offering this new grant?
As part of the “Art on Our Doorsteps” goal in the Council’s Arts Development Plan called
Creating with Communities, the Arts Office works to champion local arts and ensure that art experiences are representative of all of the council’s communities.
In 2025 we surveyed the needs of all amateur and voluntary performing arts groups in the County. Based on this feedback we made small changes to our existing funding. Our next step is to offer this new grant in 2026 to further support your work locally.
This grant will be available again in 2027 under the Council’s Universal Grants Scheme which will open to applications in September 2026.
Who can apply?
- This grant is open to medium and large amateur and voluntary performing arts groups based in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown. By this we mean that your group must have at least 11 active members.
- Your group should be community/volunteer led and not for profit.
- Your group must have an annual turnover of €6,000 or more.
- Your group must be open to, and encourage, new membership.
- Members should be 18 years or over; this strand is not for groups working with children and young people.
- The group must have a board or committee, and a bank account in its name.
Who cannot apply?
- This grant does not support semi-professional or professional groups or organisations.
- Individual artists/performers cannot apply for this grant.
- This grant supports medium and larger amateur and community performing arts groups – if your group has less than 11 active members and/or an annual turnover of less than €6,000, you should apply for a different grant (for example the Community Arts Grant).
How much can we apply for?
You can apply for a maximum of €6,000.
What do I need to know before I apply for this grant?
- This grant is for activities from July to December 2026.
- Before you begin, please read the General Grant Scheme Guidelines
- If you have received a grant for 2026 from any section in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, please include details.
- Grants are only for running costs and activities taking place in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County.
- We will not fund building programmes, third party grants, loans or charity fundraising events.
- We will provide additional funding for activity already funded by the Council in 2026. Your proposal must be for new activities, events or purchases.
- We will not fund the hire of Council premises, international travel or third level education.
- We will not accept late applications. Please allow enough time to upload all the information. We would encourage groups to complete their application before the deadline day.
- We recommend that you do not use personal email addresses to register a profile to apply. For example do not use jane.smith@fake.ie instead use something like Theatre.group@fake.ie. This way if any administration staff leave the group, the group can still access the information for future applications.
The application form will ask you to confirm that you have read the guidelines and are eligible to apply for this grant.
If you have any queries, please contact us by email arts@dlrcoco.ie or by telephone (01) 236 2759.
You can apply for:
- Support for Performances taking place in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown (if not currently funded by the Council)
- Regular Activity ongoing delivery of core activities including weekly rehearsals (if not currently funded by the Council)
- Training costs. This could include activities that support the artistic or technical capacity of the group. For example, workshops led by professional directors, conductors, choreographer to develop performance skills (e.g., vocal coaching, script development).
- Marketing and PR support for a new website, to promote local productions and events.
- Capital purchases directly related to the delivery of your group’s work. For example, this could be technical and production equipment such as lights or sound equipment; musical equipment such as instruments or sound systems; reusable sets or props; accessible equipment such as hearing loops. Any capital purchases must be movable and used to support the group’s artistic programme.
- Development funding to support improvements to the governance of your group, succession planning, new members recruitment drive.
- We encourage sustainable practices and the circular economy. We welcome applications that show how materials or equipment might be reused for future productions. Collaboration or sharing of equipment, props, or sets with other amateur groups is also encouraged.
How Your Application Will Be Judged
Your application will be scored based on:
- Quality of your past work (35/100) – Include information about previous performances and activities similar to what you are proposing. (This may not be applicable to everything you are applying for. For example, capital purchases, in this case tell us about your past work and what impact the purchase will have).
- Quality of your proposal (35/100) - Tell us about your plan for this funding and give full details of how it will be spent. Please also include details about the expected number of participants and audiences. Include details about your membership and how you recruit new members. If you plan to work with any mentors or coaches, please include a CV for them.
- Feasibility of your proposal (30/100) - the ability to achieve on time and within budget. Include details about the track record of your group, for example previous experience of delivering productions; your regular activity; skills you have and how your group is structured and organised.
Applications must include the following information:
- A description of your group. This should include details about the membership and the type of activity you do. Please let us know how many active members your group has (those who attend rehearsals regularly). Include details of how your group is organised and managed, and where your group meets to rehearse.
- The annual turnover of your group (the total income it receives in a year).
- The amount you are applying for.
- An outline budget, detailing the different costs for your activity and any other income (if you have other income). Please include as much information as possible, so that it is clear what you want to use the funding for; when and where will the activity take place; and who will benefit.
- You must confirm that your group is open to new members and tell us how you recruit new members.
- A brief outline on how your group considers sustainability in your activities (e.g., reuse of sets, props, costumes, or sharing equipment and resources with other groups).
Report: If you are successful with your application, we will ask you to complete a short report at the end of the year with feedback and details of how the Grant was spent. You will be sent a link for this via Submit.
Questions: Here are the main questions that will be asked when you input your application:
1 - Have you read the guidelines and is your group eligible for this grant?
2 - Is this application for an Amateur or Voluntary Performing Arts Group?
3 - Please describe your organisation
Include details which outline that:
Your group is based in DLR
your group has at least 11 active members.
Your group is community/volunteer led and not for profit.
Your group has an annual turnover of €6,000 or more.
Your group is actively open to new members (give details)
4 - Provide a title/descriptor of your proposed activity (Max 10 words)
5 - Please give a detailed description of your proposed activity. You may attach a video of no more than 2 minutes describing your project, to attach in supplementary materials if you prefer. (Max 500 words)
6 - Please upload your supplementary information here. This may include images, sound files, videos and CVs. Please include information about previous performances and activities similar to what you are proposing.
7 - Please upload a detailed budget outlining how you would spend this
8 - Have you received funding in the past from DLR ?