National Criminal Justice Arts Alliance Newsflash | Conference update and new bursary scheme

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There will be no National Criminal Justice Arts Alliance newsletter next week due to the holidays.

What's next for arts in criminal justice?

On 4th December we held our annual conference at the National Theatre, London. The all-day event highlighted examples of innovation and best practice against the latest developments that are supporting a real step change in the recognition and legitimacy of the work of the National Criminal Justice Arts Alliance (NCJAA) membership. The afternoon, expertly curated by Professor Annie Bartlett and Anna Herrmann, focused on the situation of women in prison in England through the lens of the arts. The conference produced many fascinating discussions that took a practical and positive forward look at what’s next for arts in criminal justice. These will help shape the NCJAA’s priorities as we become a part of Arts Council England’s national portfolio as a sector support organisation from April 2018 onwards. A full round up of the event and break out sessions will be uploaded soon. See a summary of twitter activity here

Bursary scheme

Our conference on the 4th December marked the introduction of the NCJAA’s bursary scheme. We know how a lack of funding can be a significant barrier to pursuing creativity. Our experience is that even small grants can make a big difference to developing talent and improving life chances. To meet this need we are launching the NCJAA bursary scheme for emerging artists with a lived experience of the criminal justice system. These will be small bursaries of £500 open to all members to support their training and development, organisational development, or to develop their specialist criminal justice expertise. Applications will be accepted from 1st February. Find out more here

The NCJAA would like to thank those who have supported the arts in criminal justice in 2017 and wish you a very happy new year. We look forward to seeing you all in 2018.