New Northern: A Promoter Bursary to Support Live Emerging Talent
Jazz North announces the latest round of New Northern with the goal to assist northern jazz promoters in programming emerging northern jazz talent in their clubs, venues or festivals with small bursaries up to £1000.
Deadline to apply: 12 noon, 1st August 2025
About the scheme, can I apply?
This scheme is to support those working at grassroots level - by this we mean venues and promoters not in receipt of regular funding (e.g. NPO or local authority grants) above £5000 a year.
Promoters receiving project funding (e.g. NLPG or DYCP) are still eligible to apply.
New Northern bursaries can be spent on programming and associated costs to help programmers develop emerging jazz artists as part of their ongoing programme.
By ‘emerging artists’, we mean artists that:
Haven’t yet completed a substantial tour of more than 3 dates
Haven’t performed at a major festival
Haven’t performed a headline show yet
Haven’t performed outside their home city yet
Are likely to have been in existence for between 6 and 18 months
The choice of artists is up to the programmer applying, although certain criteria will apply:
Everyone performing must be over 18
The bandleader and at least 51% of the band members must be based in the North
All programmers are eligible to apply: voluntary or professional, small clubs, festivals or venues, and any type of constituted body: sole traders, co-operatives, partnerships, unincorporated associations, charities or limited companies.
In addition, to be eligible for this scheme you must:
Be over 18
Be based in the North of England*
Not be a recipient of the last round of New Northern funding (24-25)
Be delivering a live music programme to a live audience in the North that includes, or aspires to include, jazzv
Have been in operation for a minimum of 12 months
Not be in receipt of regular funding over £5000 per year
Not have already begun your activity (the fund cannot support events that have already taken place)
* Cumbria, Lancashire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Cheshire, County Durham, Northumberland, Tees Valley and Tyne and Wear, Yorkshire & Humber (North and North East Lincolnshire)
At least 50% of your total budget must support performance fees and expenses for northern jazz artists. Examples of other subsidised activity (less than 50% of the total budget) could include any of the following:
Production costs
Marketing
Essential equipment and repair costs
Membership of trade bodies and networks (e.g. Jazz Promotion Network)
For example, you might apply for: £750 artist fees to cover 2 support acts in your programme. Your remaining £250 might contribute towards: repairing an amp, social media ads and a sound engineer fee.
How to Apply
To apply, please complete the form at the following link by no later than 12 noon on Monday 1st August.
To help you prepare your application you can download all page in either PDF, DOC or ODT format.
We understand that completing an application form is not suitable for every applicant. Please email us at opportunities@jazznorth.org if you need to submit your application in a different format, e.g. video applications.
Application Deadline: Monday 1st August.
We aim to turn around decisions quickly and notify successful applicants by Monday 11th August.
What is the timeline for the programme?
11th August - applicants contacted
25th August - agreement and assets returned
1st September - 90% payment
1st September - public announcement of the bursary recipients, activity can begin
1st April ‘26 - all activity must be completed, evaluation returned, final 10% payment
Our priorities for the scheme
We would like applicants to improve or increase the presence in their programmes of identified protected characteristics, especially those that are identified as under-represented in jazz. These characteristics include age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation or socio-economic background. You do not need to create a new programme of work or new activity that is additional to your current output.
We are especially keen to award bursaries for activities that:
help increase cultural diversity across programmes
champion artists living or working outside of the major northern cities
support artists who have not progressed through formal education routes
Applying for the scheme
This is a competitive scheme and places are limited. You can apply for up to £1000 and Jazz North may use its discretion to award any amount up to this figure, in order to reach as wide a range of beneficiaries as possible. Applicants must complete a short application form, providing basic details about your work, the activity you would like us to support and the difference the bursary will make to your work right now.
If you are successful, you will be asked to contribute to a short written report for Jazz North, celebrating what the fund has enabled you to do.
Activity supported must be completed by 1st April 2026. We will withhold 10% of the bursary until completion of a short report at the end of the programme. There is no requirement for match funds.
Assessment Criteria
Decisions on your application will be made by the Jazz North team and board according to the positive impact the proposed activity will have on:
Emerging artists in the north
The sustainability of jazz promotion in the north (e.g. your financial viability)
Diversity within your programme
The cultural offer within your local scene
Equalities
Diversity and inclusion are core values at Jazz North and our priority aim is for this support to reach a diverse range of applicants across NE, NW and Yorkshire.