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Welcome to Sunderland Culture

Sunderland Culture brings together some of the city’s most cherished cultural assets and activities to realise the ambition of a city brimming with creative potential.
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Culture Start
Ignite Bursary

Application Form

Step 1 of 7

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Before completing your application form, please read through our Application Guide so you know what to expect. Read our Application Guide

Section 1

This section is for applicants under the age of 16 (and up to 18 with SEND).

You will need a parent, guardian or carer to fill out this section. Please note that if we do not receive these details for applicants under 16, we will not be able to process your application.

If you are aged 16 or over, you can skip this part and head to section 2.

About the parent / carer / guardian of the young person applying:

Name

First Last

Relationship to the young person applying

Home address

House name or number Street name City Postcode

Email address

Enter Email Confirm Email

Contact number

Do you have a UK bank account?

We will need to verify that you have a valid UK bank account if we make a bursary offer.

Yes

Section 2

About the young person applying for the bursary:

Name(Required)

First Last

Date of birth(Required)

Day

Month

Year

Home address(Required)

Young people applying for the Ignite bursary must live in the Sunderland City Council area.

House name or number Street name City Postcode

Email address(Required)

Contact number(Required)

If you're over 16, do you have a UK bank account?(Required)

We will need to verify that you have a valid UK bank account to receive any funds that are agreed.

Yes

Not applicable as I am under 16

Do you have any long-term health conditions, access or individual requirements you would like to make us aware of in relation to your application?(Required)

Yes

If yes, please provide details:

If you currently attend school/college, please tell us where:(Required)

Ethnicity

Gender

Pronouns

How did you hear about the Ignite Bursary?(Required)

Flyer or poster

School or teacher

Youth club or youth worker

Community centre or organisation/community worker

Sunderland Culture website

Social media

Friend or family member

Other

Section 3

Eligibility

Priority for bursaries will be given to applicants who meet one or more of our Essential Criteria included in the first list below.

We also welcome your application if you meet one or more of the additional criteria in the second list below.

You can find out more about our eligibility criteria here

Essential Criteria - please select which of the following statements apply to you:

We may request further information to confirm this information.

I am eligible for Free School Meals

I live in a low-income household

I have a long-term health condition or a disability

I have experience of the care system (including kinship care)

I am a young carer

I am in receipt of financial support from college or sixth form (i.e. travel support, free meals, childcare support)

None of the above

Prefer not to say

Additional Criteria - please select any of the statements that apply to you:

I have an Education, Health and Care Plan in place

I have Special Educational Needs and/or a Disability

I live with a lone/single parent

I am part of a family household with three or more children

I am part of a family with a baby under one

I am part of a family where my mother is aged under 25

I have recently arrived in the UK and English is an additional language

I am a young parent

I have experience of the criminal justice system

I have experienced extenuating circumstances

None of the above

Prefer not to say

Have you been awarded an Ignite bursary before?(Required)

Please note, priority will be given to first time applicants.

Yes

Section 4

About you and your creative passions and interests

Please see our Application Guide for more information about the artforms and creative interests that Ignite bursaries can support.

Application Guide

What are your creative passions and interests?(Required)

Tell us in up to 1200 characters (around 200 words) what you love doing, how long you have been doing it for and where you do it. If you have been awarded an Ignite bursary previously, update us on your creative progress and how the funds have helped you.

What will you use the Ignite Bursary for?(Required)

Tell us in up to 1200 characters (around 200 words) how this money will help you. What kinds of things will you spend the money on? Give as much detail as you can.

How will the Ignite Bursary support your ambitions for the future?(Required)

Tell us how your creative interests might help you in the future, perhaps with further education or a career?

Which bursary amount are you applying for?(Required)

£150

£300

£500

Section 5

Supporting Evidence

You must provide the following information to support your application.

If we do not receive the correct proofs, your application will be delayed and may be rejected

The buttons below will open up a new window for you to upload your proofs. Once you have uploaded your images, you can close that window and return to your application form.

Proof of Age

For safeguarding reasons, we need to see two proofs of age for the young person applying.

At least one proof must be a scan, clear photo or screenshot of the following:

A birth certificate
A valid passport

You can also provide one proof of age/date of birth from the following list:

An official letter, or document showing name and date of birth of the applicant dated in the last 12 months
A valid buss pass or POP card
EEA identity card
A PASS ID card
Photo driving licence or provisional licence
Student card

When uploading, please make sure the name you enter is the same that you use to submit this form. All documents submitted alongside this form will be securely stored and then permanently deleted once verified by our Culture Start team.

Upload your images

Home Address

We need to see proof that the young person applying lives in Sunderland.

If you are applying and you are under 16:

Please provide one proof dated in the last 12 months, showing the name and address of the parent/guardian or carer you live with.

This can be a scan, clear photo or screenshot of the following:

A household utility bill (electricity, gas, water etc.)
Any other official document showing name and address
UK driving licence
Lease or tenancy agreement
NHS certificate or medical card

If you are applying and you are over 16:

Please provide one proof dated in the last 12 months, showing your name and address. This can be a scan, clear photo or screenshot of the following:

Any official document or letter that has been sent to your home address in the last 12 months and also shows your name
Child Benefit letter
EEA identity card
A PASS ID card
Photo driving licence or provisional licence

Upload your images

Section 6

Reference

All applicants will need to provide details of an adult (over 18), who can confirm the information in their application, and that you have an active interest in creative arts.

Ideally, a reference will be from a teacher, youth worker or professional who knows you and / or is involved with your creative interest.

The reference cannot come from a family member / friend.

See our Guidance Notes for more information

Please provide the details of your referee below:

Name(Required)

First Last

Email address(Required)

Contact number(Required)

Place of work(Required)

How do you know the person providing your reference?(Required)

Do you have permission from your referee to include them in this application?(Required)

Yes

We will contact your referee for confirmation of the details in this application. We cannot accept bursary applications without valid reference contact details.

Section 7

Declaration and submission

For applicants under the age of 16, please have your parent/guardian or carer complete this section.

For under 16s

I declare, as the parent/guardian or carer of the young person applying for a bursary:

The information I have provided in this application is correct to the best of my knowledge
I will supply additional information that may be required to verify any of the information I have given
I understand that providing false information could lead to the bursary application or an offer of a bursary being withdrawn.
I understand that Culture Start is working with the Institute for Economic and Social Inclusion at the University of Sunderland as an evaluation and learning partner for this project. As part of this, Sunderland Culture will share anonymised data about our applicants with them for the purposes of this research. In addition, information on successful applications will be shared with the research team. Successful applicants will be asked to take part in evaluation activity, such as filling in a survey or speaking to one of the research team. Further information and consent for this will be shared with successful applicants in due course.

For over 16s

I declare, as the bursary applicant:

The information I have provided in this application is correct to the best of my knowledge
I will supply additional information that may be required to verify any of the information I have given
I understand that providing false information could lead to the bursary application or an offer of a bursary being withdrawn.
I understand that Culture Start is working with the Institute for Economic and Social Inclusion at the University of Sunderland as an evaluation and learning partner for this project. As part of this, Sunderland Culture will share anonymised data about our applicants with them for the purposes of this research. In addition, information on successful applications will be shared with the research team. Successful applicants will be asked to take part in evaluation activity, such as filling in a survey or speaking to one of the research team. Further information and consent for this will be shared with successful applicants in due course.

Please check the box below to confirm(Required)

Yes, I agree with the statements above

Please confirm your consent for us to store the answers on this form(Required)

For more information, please read our Privacy Policy

I consent for my data to be collected by Sunderland Culture Ltd and their data processing partners

What happens next?

Once we receive your application it will be checked to make sure we have all the information we need. We’ll contact you if anything is missing.

Applications will be reviewed by a panel in November.

If your application is successful, we will contact the parent/carer/guardian if the applicant is under 16. If you are over 16, we will contact you directly.

If your application is not successful, we’ll let you know by early December 2025.

Stay in touch

If you are aged over 13 years old and would like to hear more about opportunities like this, as well as free and low-cost creative activities happening in Sunderland let us know by checking the box below.

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For more information, please read our Privacy Policy

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