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Connections Bursary

We are delighted to announce the launch of a Connections Bursary: a fund our community of teachers can apply to for support towards opportunities that will enhance their teaching of art and art history, and enable them to connect and exchange skills with other teachers in the ATC community.  

In 2025 there will be two rounds of funding: Spring and Summer.  

  • The Spring round is currently open and the deadline for applications is 10am GMT, Monday 24th February. 
  • The Summer round will open in May 2025 and the deadline for applications will be 10am BST, Monday 2nd June. 

This bursary is only available for teachers who have attended any of our Art Teachers Connect  (formerly known as Plan, Prepare, Provide) Residential Programmes in Leeds. Please contact the Paul Mellon Centre’s Learning Programme Manager, Rachel Prosser, if you have any questions: [email protected] 

Scope

The Connections Bursary is intended to help our community of teachers to: 

  • Pursue initiatives that will enhance and extend your teaching of art and art history  
  • Continue to support and learn from each other 

We have listed examples of initiatives and expenses the Connections Bursary could support below. These examples are not definitive, and we look forward to hearing from you about what initiatives you would find especially valuable. 

Please feel free to contact the Paul Mellon Centre’s Learning Programme Manager, Rachel Prosser, if you would like to discuss any ideas: [email protected] 

Examples of initiatives the Connections Bursary may cover: 

  • Visiting another member of the community at their school to observe their teaching, share ideas, or trial using specialist equipment they may have 
  • Visiting an exhibition, collection or individual at a museum/gallery/arts space 
  • Attending a talk or conference 

Examples of expenses the Connections Bursary may cover: 

  • Travel e.g. standard class train fares, fuel costs 
  • Accommodation (if the initiative requires an overnight stay) 
  • Admission e.g. exhibition tickets, workshop costs 

Please note the Connections Bursary is intended for our teachers to use for their personal and professional development. We unfortunately cannot fund or subsidise activities that involve your students, such as school trips or projects.

Funding

Teachers can apply for up to a maximum of £200 per round of funding. However, if you would like to submit a request for an initiative that will cost more than this, or submit a joint application with other members of the community, please feel free to discuss this with the Learning Programme Manager at the Paul Mellon Centre, Rachel Prosser, [email protected]  

If your application is successful, the expenses incurred by your proposed activity/initiative will be reimbursed as quickly as possible upon receipt of evidence of spending.

Eligibility

The Connections Bursary is only available to members of the Art Teachers Connect community. To be a member of this community you must have attended one of our summer residential programmes in Leeds (this includes residentials when the programme was titled Plan, Prepare, Provide). On your application form you will be asked to state which year’s residential you have attended.  

The Connections Bursary is designed to support the cost of initiatives that will extend and enhance the teaching of art and art history and/or bring our community of teachers together. Applications will need to state how the proposed initiative will achieve this.  

Please note that we will only fund forthcoming initiatives.  

Application

The Connections Bursary will have two rounds of funding in 2025: Spring and Summer. 

For the Spring round of funding please submit your application by 10am GMT, Monday 24th February 2025.  

To apply for support from the Connections Bursary you must complete the application form and email it to the Paul Mellon Centre’s Learning Programme Manager, Rachel Prosser, at [email protected].  

No other documentation is required. 

You will be notified of the outcome of your application via email, within a month of the submission deadline.   

Requirements

If you are successful in your application, reimbursement claims must be made within six months of being informed of this, and the initiative you have applied for support with must take place within twelve months of being informed of this. 

Once you have undertaken the initiative funded by the bursary recipients are required to write a short story for the Art Teachers Connect website, sharing your experience to inspire other members of the community to apply to the Connections Bursary and seek opportunities to develop their practice. 

Read the full terms and conditions of the Connections Bursary.