The Leeds based Irish Arts Foundation (IAF) was established in Leeds, England in June 1998, formerly as the Irish Music Project, Leeds as a Company Ltd by Guarantee (No. 4927919) and a Registered Charity (No. 1101657). Its establishment was the culmination of a six- month informal consultation process with a range of different partners and practitioners across the city.
IAF has undertaken a programme of organisational change and development, which has involved the construction of a five-year plan. This plan will solidify a programme of activities and methods of delivery. Whilst a major focus of our work relates to traditional Irish music, increasingly the ongoing development project work is becoming interspersed to include a broader cross section of Irish arts and culture e.g. literary, visual and drama based arts which has been reflected by a renaming and re-branding to the Irish Arts Foundation. More recent informal consultation concluded that there was a great deal of interest in the Irish Music Project Leeds among both practitioners and arts funders and an overwhelming desire to see a service agency set up to provide advice and support to musicians and artistes as well as to stage conferences, workshops and performances.
The organisation’s recent establishment was spearheaded by two highly respected Traditional Irish Musicians’ Des Hurley, Chief Executive and Chris O’Malley, Director, with the support of a range of community and voluntary organisations and funding for specific projects from Emigrant Services Fund (Irish Embassy, London), The Irish Youth Foundation, The Ireland Fund of Great Britain, Culture Ireland, Heritage Lottery Fund and Leeds City Council.
From 1998 to 2005, the Irish Music Project, Leeds, delivered an immense amount of activity in the areas of training and development and professional performances and promotion. This work mainly featured Irish Traditional Music and increasingly came to include a wider arts element.
By 2005, IAF had come a long way since it first began in 1998. It was clear that the organisation had reached a crossroads and a new structure was needed in order to provide a strong basis for the long-term success of the organisation. After much debate and discussion, in October 2005 four new full time roles were identified – those of Chief Executive, Director, Community Development Officer and Finance and Monitoring Officer, in addition to the existing freelance outreach and administration team. Before reaching a decision on the form of the new structure the Board and management had looked at a number of options and also sought the guidance and expertise of Arts Council England, Voluntary Action Leeds, South Asian Arts, Folkworks@The Sage Gateshead and our auditors West Yorkshire Charities Accountancy Services (WYCAS)
In 2006, the Company’s name was changed from the Irish Music Project to the Irish Arts Foundation (IAF). The name change and re-branding reflected the Company’s broadening national profile and its diverse programming to reflect a broader cross section of Irish arts and culture e.g. literary, visual and drama based arts.
The re-structure has galvanised the Board of Directors and has been the impetus for new ways of working between Board and staff. These important changes form the beginning of a new stage in IAF’s life, in which a long-term vision for the organisation is being developed, of which this Development Plan plays a key role. The new structure has re-invigorated the organisation internally and has sent out a positive message about IAF’s strong organisational will to thrive for many years to come.
IAF continues to deliver an immense amount of artistic activity, while being engaged in a process of defining and refining its areas of work. This has included the creation of internal infrastructure and new ways of working that support a high quality and sustained delivery of work.
IAF has developed relationships with a large pool of freelance artists, mainly based in Yorkshire as well as nationally and internationally. Through these relationships, IAF has developed expertise in assessing the diverse skills and specialist areas of these artists and an ability to match them to respective projects. IAF has also built up a dedicated base of audiences and participants and the database continues to grow.
IAF has now developed a name for itself as a professional organisation that specialises in creating participatory music training opportunities for young people, supporting artists to pursue successful careers in Irish arts, developing cutting edge performance work and enabling other organisations to include Irish arts and artists in their work through advice, guidance, arts and advocacy. IAF is based in the Arts & Education Centre of Leeds at The West Park Centre on Spen Lane.
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