What will it cost?



Being able to demonstrate value for money and evidence cost savings are key factors in determining the productivity levels of the commission. Value for money should be a key consideration in putting together the budget for the project particularly in relation to:

- Considering the project’s cost per participant ratio. Remember to factor in the project’s ability to reach a wider audience beyond the immediate project participants e.g. audiences or recipients of the final resource
- Additional resources that may come into the project as a result of partnership working with other health or non-health partners
- The arts’ ability to effectively engage vulnerable groups and communities in health promotion and prevention activity that may otherwise not reach them
- The comparative costs associated with achieving the project outcomes through more traditional methods
- The opportunity to transfer learning to other health topics.
 
Artist Fees
 
When advertising it is usual to include the total available fee for the project and to ask applicants to provide a budget breakdown showing how they would allocate the available resources.

If you have split the budget between process and product you should state what these amounts are. It is also helpful to specify;

· The number of planning and evaluation meetings the artist is expected to attend

· How flexible you need the artist to be

· The minimum number of workshop sessions the artist is expected to deliver

· The maximum amount you wish to spend on materials

· The maximum % you would expect to see allocated to project management costs

 

· What you consider to be allowable expenses and what the mileage rate is (40p per mile is standard)

 

· Whether the budget includes or excludes VAT.

 

Additional costs that you may need to consider separately are:

· Recruitment costs – Including advertising, interview room hire, reimbursing travel expenses for interviewees and artists

· Publicity and other costs for launching and disseminating the final product – This may include postage, press advertisements or catering for your launch event

· Costs of celebration or showcasing events – It is common for participatory arts projects to culminate in some kind of a celebratory or showcasing event, particularly where the project has worked with lots of different groups as this is a chance to bring them all together to share the work they have created

· Documentation and evaluation – You may wish to employ an external evaluator or photographer to document the process or you may wish to engage the artist in this work.  Either way some of the budget will need to be allocated for this.

 

Looking at an artists budget

The information you give the artist (please see the section on writing a brief for an artist) will help them cost out the project and provide you with a breakdown of the budget. Artists do not follow a standard way of calculating how much to charge, however, most artists will write a proposal based on a daily rate of between £200 - £300.

When looking at the budget provided by the artist you need to make sure they have included the following costs:

• Time spent on planning and project management, direct contact time with participants, time spent on creating the final product and time allocated to evaluation and/or documentation

• Workshop costs – E.g. room hire, specialist equipment hire, refreshments

• Materials and production costs – It may be useful to ask the artist to separate out the cost of materials for workshops and materials required for the final product.

 

 

Graphics by Born Communication working with young people as part of the Dudley Kick Ash Project