Photograph: courtesy of Aisling Ennis, recipient of a 2024 Strategic Project Award

The application window for the 2026 Strategic Project Awards is open from Friday 1st August until Monday 8th September 2025 at 4:00pm.

Wicklow Arts Office invites submissions to the 13th edition of the Strategic Project Award Scheme. Open to artists, national resource organisations, individual curators, and / or artist collectives, applications should focus on nurturing practice, enhancing connectivity, generating new perspectives and cultivating new voices within County Wicklow.

Two funding streams are available under the shceme: 

Stream A - for new applicants and proposals 

Stream B -  for consolidation / development of strategic projects previously awarded under this scheme

CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: Monday 8th September 2025 at 4:00pm

Checklist of information to be submitted:
 

• An online application form for either Stream A OR Stream B 
• A full description of the project proposed or business or research plan
• A full budget outline to support project development and delivery (NOTE: The project budget must be completed using the budget template provided at the bottom of this page, for eligibility)
• Up to five supporting images or pieces of writing to represent your idea
• Supporting documents such as artists / group / organisation biographies or profiles
• Any venue confirmations required
• Letters of support
• Other relevant supporting documents, e.g. images or materials which provide evidence of the track record of the applicant(s), can be provided as links, reviews, files or relevant websites and saved into a Word document.

**Note: Successful applicants will be required to provide evidence of applicable insurance cover

HOW TO APPLY

Applicants must apply through the Arts Office's online platform Submittable where you will be able to upload all supporting materials along with your online application form.  The Submittable platform works best on Google Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. Internet Explorer is not supported.

We strongly recommend you test this process prior to the closing date so that if necessary, technical support can be provided.

• Read through the Guidelines document below before submitting an application
• Make your subject line 'Strategic Project Award Scheme 2026'
• E-mailed or posted applications will not be accepted.
• Late and/or incomplete applications will not be considered