Arts And Events Manager

The London Boroughs of Richmond upon Thames and Wandsworth are offering a unique opportunity to join a team working in a ground-breaking shared staffing structure across both boroughs. We are currently seeking an exceptional candidate to fill the role of Arts and Events Manager for North Battersea, including Nine Elms, on a fixed-term contract until March 2026.

The Delivery Team is responsible for ensuring that Wandsworth Council's vision for placemaking is achieved in the emerging new neighborhoods. Supporting local culture to thrive is a key strategy for creating vibrant and successful 'places' that are connected to surrounding communities and the rest of London.

In the coming years, North Battersea will experience critical moments as cultural anchor tenants establish themselves in the area and London's largest new park is completed in Nine Elms. Wandsworth has also bid to be London Borough of Culture 2025, which will bring a year of transformative cultural activity between April 2025 and March 2026. The successful borough will be announced in March 2024.

The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of initiating and producing innovative and high-quality arts and cultural activities that directly engage local communities. You should have experience in arts administration, including contracting, budget monitoring, and supporting marketing activity. Additionally, you should be skilled in developing and maintaining strong relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, including schools.

Since 2015, we have been working diligently to raise the profile of the neighborhood and engage local people through arts and culture. Our focus is on building local capacity to ensure the sustainability of the cultural offer in the long term and supporting the borough's broader goals of becoming a fairer, greener, and more sustainable place to live, work, study, or visit. Attracting and supporting significant cultural anchor tenants is crucial to achieving this, and nurturing these relationships is vital to the success of this role.

You will be working in an area undergoing rapid change, alongside a team that is committed to making the borough the best place it can be for all residents. In return, we offer working arrangements that promote work-life balance, including a generous holiday allowance of 40 days (including bank holidays) and a flexible working policy. We also provide a range of staff benefits, such as membership of the Local Government contributory pension scheme, childcare vouchers, new technology schemes, interest-free loans for annual travel cards, and discounts at leisure activities, restaurants, shops, and other establishments. Various developmental opportunities are also available.

If you would like to have an informal discussion about the role, please contact Alex Rinsler, Strategic Lead for Culture for Nine Elms, at alex.rinslerrichmondandwandsworth.gov.uk.

Recruitment Timeline:

• Closing Date: 10am, Monday 5th December 2023
• Shortlisting Date: Monday 11th December 2023
• Interview Dates: w/c 18th-19th December 2023

Timeline subject to change.

Equality Statement:

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to promoting equality and diversity, making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for all. We value differences and recognize that employees from various backgrounds bring important and positive contributions to the Councils, improving the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer.

Important Information:

This post is exempted under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, and therefore, appointment to this post will be conditional upon receiving a satisfactory response to a check of police records via the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults. All staff and volunteers are expected to share this commitment.

1. Can you provide examples of innovative and high-quality arts and cultural activities that you have instigated or produced in the past? 2. How have you engaged local communities in your previous arts and cultural projects? 3. Can you describe your experience in arts administration, including contracting, budget monitoring, and supporting marketing activity? 4. How have you developed and maintained strong relationships with stakeholders, including schools, in previous roles? 5. How have you contributed to raising the profile of a neighborhood or community through arts and culture? 6. Can you give examples of successful collaboration and partnership working in your previous roles? 7. How do you demonstrate your passion for culture and place-making in relation to new and long-standing communities? 8. How do you handle working in an area undergoing rapid change and uncertainty? 9. Can you describe your experience in nurturing relationships with significant cultural anchor tenants? 10. How do you ensure that your work-life balance is maintained and how would you benefit from the flexible working policy offered by the council?

• What are some of the key cultural anchor tenants that will be embedding in North Battersea and Nine Elms?
• Can you provide more information about the cultural activities and events that have been organized in the area since 2015?
• What are the borough's wider objectives in terms of being a fairer, greener, and more sustainable place to live?
• How do you envision building capacity locally to ensure the long-term sustainability of the cultural offer?
• Can you provide more details about the flexible working policy and other staff benefits that are offered?