Vacancy -- Appointment of 4 Members - Arts Council of Wales

Do you believe the arts can change lives?

Do you believe they should be available to all?

The Arts Council of Wales believes these things and is committed to ensuring and promoting a vibrant, diverse and inclusive culture and an arts sector which is sustainable and innovative.

 

Background

The Arts Council of Wales was established by Royal Charter in 1994. The Arts Council is a Welsh Government Sponsored Body funded largely by grant in aid from the Welsh Government. It is also a registered charity subject to Charity Law and is one of the four Lottery Distributors in Wales.

 

The Council’s aims as set out in its Royal Charter are:

 

a)         to develop and improve the knowledge, understanding and practice of the arts;

b)         to increase the accessibility of the arts to the public in Wales;

c)         to advise and co-operate with the Welsh Government and relevant bodies; and

d)         to carry out the objects through the medium of both the English and Welsh languages.

 

The role of Council Members is defined in the Management Framework Document.  As part of the terms and conditions of funding, Council Members have individual and corporate responsibility to the Welsh Government.

 

About the Arts Council of Wales

 

As the country’s funding and development agency for the arts, the Arts Council:

 

• supports and develops high quality arts activity – it invests public funding, provided by the taxpayer, and allocated by the Welsh Government, helping the arts to thrive in Wales

 

• develops and delivers the Welsh Government’s strategic priorities for the arts – it ensures appropriate mechanisms, process and procedures are in place to deliver on the strategic agenda set by the Welsh Government, as set out in the prevailing strategy document (currently the Programme for Government) and the Annual Remit letter

 

• distributes Lottery funds – through applications to its funding programmes it invests in projects that develop new arts activity, supporting individuals and organisations

 

• provides advice about the arts – through its staff and its advisers, the Arts Council has the largest concentration of arts expertise and knowledge in Wales

 

• shares information – the Arts Council is the national centre of a network of information and intelligence about the arts in Wales.  It also has strong international links in the UK and beyond

 

• raises the profile of the arts in Wales – the Arts Council is the national voice for the arts in Wales, making sure that people are aware of the quality, value and importance of the country’s arts

 

• generates more money for the arts economy – through initiatives such as Collectorplan – the Council’s scheme to encourage more people to buy art -  and its work to secure European funding; these bring more money into the arts economy
  
  
  

• influences planners and decision-makers – the arts take place in many different settings.  They can have a dramatic impact on the quality of people’s lives, and the places in which they live and work. The arts are also frequently at the heart of initiatives for economic and social regeneration.  The Arts Council plays a key role in ensuring that the contribution that the arts can make is recognised, valued and celebrated.

Role and responsibilities

 

Council Member’s Role

 

As a Welsh Government Sponsored Body, the role of Council Members is defined in the Management Framework Document which also sets out the terms and conditions of the Welsh Government’s funding to the Arts Council of Wales. 

 

The Welsh Government sets the strategic agenda for the arts in Wales.  It wishes to encourage active participation in the arts, and for high-quality cultural experiences to be available to all people, irrespective of where they live or their background.

 

Role Description

 

Members will be expected to:

 

• Participate and contribute effectively to the Council’s activities, in particular in defining and developing its strategic direction, and in setting and achieving challenging objectives, and in support of Welsh Government policy;

 

• Act in a way that promotes high standards of propriety and public finance;

 

• Ensure that the Council’s activities are conducted efficiently and effectively;

 

• Ensure that the Council meets its and the Welsh Government’s complementary aims, objectives and performance targets;

 

• Ensure that the Council’s controls achieve value for money within a framework of best practice, regularity and propriety;

 

• Participate in the corporate planning process; and

 

• Appoint, with the Welsh Government’s approval, a Chief Executive, should the necessity arise.

The Welsh Government acknowledges the importance of developing and growing bilingual capabilities in public appointments in Wales, and welcomes applications from candidates who demonstrate their capability to work in both English and Welsh.  The following list of language requirements represents an objective assessment by the recruiting body of the Welsh language skills required to undertake the duties of this particular post.

Essential Skills

 

The Welsh Government is seeking to appoint individuals who can demonstrate the following:

 

·         Extensive knowledge of the arts in Wales and an understanding of current Welsh Government Arts priorities and policies; 

 

·         An understanding of the current challenges facing arts organisations, ACW and those working in the arts with an ability to think creatively on
          how these challenges can be addressed;

 

·         A proven track record, knowledge or experience of working within one of the following art forms/fields:

 

-       Experience and understanding of how the arts can impact on the well-being of diverse communities across Wales.

-       Music, Dance, literature (in either the English or Welsh language),

-       Experience and understanding of arts issues and potential in Local Government or Higher Education,

-       Entrepreneurial skills that could benefit arts organisations.

 

• A track record which demonstrates sound decision making, underpinned by robust analysis and strategic vision;

 

• Experience of communicating effectively at all levels; in particular the ability to act as an ambassador for the Arts Council of Wales, demonstrating tact and diplomacy in dealings with stakeholders;

 

• An understanding of the principles of good governance. 

 

• A clear understanding of and commitment to equality issues and promoting access to, and engagement in, the arts; and

 

• A clear understanding of and commitment to Nolan’s ‘Seven Principles of Public Life’.

 

 

We particularly welcome applications from women, disabled people and individuals with an ethnic minority background who are knowledgeable about the arts in Wales, are genuinely interested in the work of the Arts Council of Wales, and can contribute to making it a high performing public body.

 

To be considered, you must be able to demonstrate that you have the qualities, skills and experience to meet all the essential criteria for appointment. Your personal statement must cover the first four bullet points listed above. Should you progress to interview evidence of the complete list of skills outlined in the bullet points will be tested.

 

Welsh Language

 

• The ability to communicate through the medium of Welsh is desirable  for 4 posts.

22/11/2018, 16:00

Contacts:

For further information regarding the selection process, please contact:

 

Public Appointments

Email: publicappointments@gov.wales

 

For further information regarding the role of the Arts Council of Wales and the role of Members please contact Andrew Stevenson (Welsh Government) on 0300 025 5936 or at andrew.stevenson@gov.wales or Angela Thomas (Arts Council of Wales) on 029 2044 1302 or at angela.thomas@arts.wales. 

 

If you need any further assistance in applying for this role, please contact the Public Appointments Unit - publicappointments@gov.wales.

 

For further information about Public Appointments in Wales, please visit www.gov.wales/publicappointments.

To apply for this role, click on the ‘Apply’ button below. The first time you apply for a post, you will need to complete a registration form for the Welsh Government’s online application system.  You will only need to register once, and you will be able to keep yourself updated on the progress of your application, and any other applications you make, via your registered account.

Once you’ve registered, you’ll be able to access the application form.  To apply you will need to submit two supporting documents. The first, a document outlining how your knowledge, skills and experiences meet the criteria for the role as outlined in the information for candidates.  This document should be no more than 2 sides of A4.  Your application may be rejected if you exceed this limit.  The second document is a full, up to date CV.  The two documents should be uploaded to the ‘Reasons for applying’ section of the online application form.

In your application, you will also be asked to provide details of any activities which have helped you to develop skills that would be useful in a public appointment role, and list the organisations for which you undertook these activities.  We also need to know about any political activity that you’ve undertaken over the last 5 years. 

It is recommended that you register for an account and access the application form as soon as possible so that you see how the application form is structured, before starting to prepare your evidence.  You don’t have to complete the application form all in one go.  You can save your responses, and log in and out as required, until you’re ready to submit – just follow the guidance in the application form.

If you’d like to apply for this opportunity in Welsh, please use the ‘Newid Iaith / Change Language’ link at the top of this page, to take you to the Welsh version of this advert, from which you can apply in Welsh.

If you need any further assistance in applying for this role, please contact the Welsh Government’s Public Appointments Unit on 03000 616095 or PublicAppointments@gov.wales.

For further information about Public Appointments in Wales, please visit www.gov.wales/publicappointments