The Young Ensembles Scheme is one of a number of funding opportunities offered by the Arts Council to support and develop the arts in Ireland. The primary purpose of the award is to support groups of young people between the ages of 10 and 24 to create
ambitious and original work together in any artform (e.g. circus, dance, digital media, film, music, theatre, literature, visual arts, or any combination of the above).
Closing date17:30, Thursday 29 February 2024
Advice for planning an application
Get together, network and brainstorm your ideas.
As a group, read through the guidelines here and plan how you will approach the application.
It is important that the proposal has been developed by young people, and that young people will have ownership of the project.
You can apply for a budget to work with professional artists and mentors to help you realise your ambitions. You can also apply for other costs associated with your project.
You can’t apply for fees for the young ensemble members. (If you are a professional group, you should instead consider applying for other Arts Council schemes and supports. Please see here for a full list of available funding.)
Consider partnerships with organisations that can help you manage the project, or can bring artistic supports or mentorship.
The focus is on engagement with the arts outside of school – schools cannot apply.
Budget available
You may only apply to one strand.
The maximum award under strand 1 is €10,000
The maximum under strand 2 is €25,000
You should choose the strand that is most suitable for your ensemble and for your proposal.
Who have we funded?
You can see a full list of previously funded applications here.
Please see guidelines for Young Ensembles Scheme 2024, available soon here .
To support groups to apply for the Young Ensemble Scheme we hosted a webinar on Monday 15 March 2021 featuring some of the groups whose projects have been supported through the scheme. The event also included information from the Creative Europe Desk Ireland - Culture Office on future European funding opportunities for the youth arts sector. The webinar is available to view below. To view with closed captioning, please hit the CC button at the bottom right of the options bar.