In-Situ are seeking to appoint a Programme and Partnership role to continue the delivery of This Is Nelson; a 3.5 year (2 years remaining) arts and regeneration programme within the Nelson Town Deal fund.  

  

This Is Nelson is the cultural strand of the Nelson Town Deal, led by In-Situ in partnership with Building Bridges and Super Slow Way as well as host of local partners and organisations. It engages with Nelson’s communities through a programme of activities and events and the reactivation of places and spaces. The £25million investment offers a ‘once in a generation’ opportunity to involve communities in the longterm development of the town. It is funded through Levelling Up Government money and is managed by Pendle Borough Council.  

  

The Programme and Partnership role will lead (with the This Is Nelson team) to deliver planned activity across the 5 strands of the programme (Nelson Reimagined, Neighbourhoods, Young People, Town Centre, Heritage) as well as the development of 2 key projects (a food strategy and a heritage programme). 

 

In-Situ operates with a fluid organisational structure and equal pay: all team members are paid the same salary*, and core team members are equally involved in decision-making and the development of the organisation.  

* with the exception of the internship, which is paid at the voluntary living wage 

  

In-Situ is embedded in Pendle, which benefits from a multicultural community and we encourage applications from people based in the region and applications from diverse backgrounds.   

  

To apply, please submit:  

• A letter of application (max 500 words), outlining your relevant experience and why you are interest in working at In-Situ.  

• CV (max 2 sides) including the contact details of 2 referees including past employer. We will only contact these if you accept the offer of a position.  

  

Email to: paul@in-situ.org.uk, titled ‘TIN Programme and Partnerships Application’ 

By 12 noon on Monday 20th May 

 

  

About the This is Nelson Programme 

 

The Five Programme strands:  

  

Nelson Reimagined  

The strand led by Associate Artist Andy Abbott using artistic research methods to explore the role art and creativity can have in shaping the Future of Nelson and postindustrial towns like it.  

  

Neighbourhoods 

Delivered in partnership with Building Bridges. A programme to engage and involve members of the wider community and neighbourhoods in the Nelson area. Embedded in the Neighbourhood programme is the development of the Food Strategy. 

  

Young People 

An ongoing programme working with our weekly young people’s group to involve them in the wider themes of This Is Nelson and specifically artist led projects that engage them in making public facing content.  

  

Town Centre  

Working with wider town partners in particular Super Slow Way and the Ripple Effect Group. This seasonal programme looks to bring colour, activity and creative interventions into the town centre.  

   

Heritage  

This Is Nelson recently commissioned Stories We Tell, which resulted in recordings of people’s personal stories about living in the town and alongside that artists Rob St. John and Tommy Perman have been developing a community contributed sound map of Nelson to he hosted online. We would like to develop these existing assets into a bigger heritage focussed project and secure funding from Heritage Lottery Fund.  

 

More information available on request (email: paul@in-situ.org.uk) 

 

About In-Situ 

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In-Situ is an artist led organisation embedding art into everyday life in Pendle. 

  

In-Situ’s Vision is: 

For art to be part of everyday life 

For our art to challenge current thinking about environment, people, place and culture  

For our art to be an art of action 

For our art to contribute to society as a whole  

  

In-Situ create the infrastructure and conditions for art, artists, and culture to be a valued and relevant aspect to the everyday life of Pendle’s people and places. 

  

The term ‘embedded practice’ describes the work In-Situ does as an organisation, enables and advocates. Working closely and responsively with local communities, partner organisations, artists, stakeholders, and experts from other disciplines In-Situ produces art that addresses local issues with the aim to make a positive difference to people’s lives and the environment. 

  

 In-Situ’s business plan has three main programme themes: 

• Where we are (at) 

• Future Economies and Ecologies  

• Natural environments and the non-human 

In-Situ enables the exploration of these themes through creative and critical approaches that transverse art practice and community engagement. Collaboration, co-production, interdisciplinary working and shared learning underpin the creative activity that In-Situ nurtures and allows to flourish. 

  

In-Situ embraces the slow, attentive and exploratory nature of this embedded practice: taking responsibility to build, grow and sustain conditions that enable fresh perspectives and collective action that positively transforms people’s lives. 

  

In 2023 we were awarded our second Arts Council England (ACE) National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) funding taking us up until 2026 with an extension to 2027. 

 

 

Job Description 

Programme and Partnerships 

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• Full project management of the This is Nelson partnership programme. This will include:  

• Overseeing programme development with the partnership team; 

• Writing artist briefs and contracts; 

• Quarterly monitoring reports to PBC for Nelson Town Deal; 

• Activity Plan reporting with Arts Council England with the In-Situ team; 

• Shortlisting and selecting artists and practitioners; 

• Support the delivery of This is Nelson projects with partners; 

• Supporting commissioned practitioners;  

• Coordinating programme logistics; 

• Building relationship with community groups, developing new audiences and being present in the locale, including co-facilitation or support of workshops where necessary; 

• Support the formation of new programme strands in response to local need where appropriate;  

• Liaising with project partners and collaborators; 

• Managing the programme budgets; 

• Fundraising; 

• Public Speaking and representing the programme at Council and Sector events. 

  

As part of This is Nelson partnership team and employed by In-Situ, you will:  

 

• Work in accordance with In-Situ’s shared aims and values, outlined in the Business Plan, Code of Ethics and Policies;   

• Maintain data records and reporting ; 

• Spend time engaging with the community weekly and help identify new groups to work with;   

• Show commitment to learning and spending time in Nelson;   

• Help with fundraising and writing and supporting the writing of bids;   

• Support trainees, visitors, freelancers and artists working with In-Situ;   

• Work closely with the In-Situ Core Team, attending and participating in team meetings; ensuring Dropbox files, mailing lists and shared platforms are up to date; share information and contacts; contribute ideas and knowledge; and input into grant/income generation; 

• Liaise with In-Situ Marketing role and Pendle Borough Council Head of PR which may involve drafting copy, sourcing images and support for sharing information online and in real life; 

• Champion In-Situ locally, regionally and nationally.  

 

 

Role Requirements 

 

Experience (essential):  

• At least 5 years of cultural producer experience in developing creative and cultural programmes of work with project management skills including monitoring and evaluation. 

• Experience in working with artists and other creatives; commissioning artists, supporting artists in their idea development and seeing through to project delivery.  

• Experience of engaging communities and a range of stakeholders from community members to strategic leads and funders.  

• Experience of writing project briefs and funding applications of £50k or more.  

• Experience of partnership work including working with local government and national funding programmes.  

 

Experience (desirable):  

• Experience of working within post-industrial and regeneration contexts;  

• Experience of working within alternative, co-operative, non-hierarchical and/or ‘flat structure’ organisations. 

 

Knowledge and Skills:  

• Critical awareness and knowledge of contemporary art practice, specifically: embedded art, socially engaged art, environmental/ecological art, non-gallery art, social art practice, art as activism and art in regeneration;  

• Knowledge of current thinking around engagement and participation;  

• Critical awareness of the impact of working in communities; 

• Excellent inter-personal and communication skills;  

• Excellent public speaking and presentation skills; 

• Proven record of fundraising including successful grant/awards/trust applications; 

• Management of complex multi-funded budgets over £100k;  

• Ability to commit to occasional evening and weekend working; 

• Current Driving Licence (desirable) 

 

Personal Specifications:  

• Pro-active, positive, co-operative and a team worker;  

• Self-motivated and ability to work under own initiative; 

• Excellent communication skills; 

• Friendly, down to earth, and approachable; 

• Ability to problem solve; 

• Respect for others.