A new partnership will collaborate with Gloucester organisations to deliver bold artistic work together, as a way to bring about social change.

Take Note, which supports organisations with social missions to deliver artistic work together, has joined forces with Gloucester-based charity, GUST, which supports the city's cultural strategy. The two organisations have been awarded up to £40,000 from grant makers Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to support organisations to innovate and reach out to communities across the city to create new art together in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.

Take Note and GUST will officially launch the fund on Thursday 8th October at 3pm with an open-invite Zoom launch. All organisations or individual artists working in Gloucester or who are keen to work in Gloucester are welcome and encouraged to join, to find out more and meet potential partners.

Alongside the funding, Take Note will deliver a package of support to harness the potential of collaboration for organisations and artists in the city.

Emily Carr, co-director, Take Note, said: "As someone born and raised in Gloucester, I am delighted to be working in my home city to collaborate with organisations and artists here through the Take Note programme. The cultural landscape of Gloucester has transformed over the last decade and collaboration is so clearly at the heart of this. It's hugely exciting to be part of that continued momentum, using the power of art to bring people together through creativity and self-expression - especially as there has been such a sense of isolation over the past months."

Kate Danielson, director, and Donna Renney, chair, GUST, said: "We are delighted that Take Note has chosen to develop its innovative new partnership model with Gloucester organisations and to bring £40,000 of project funding into the city. It is testament to the work that has been done in Gloucester over the past five years with local communities, since the Gloucester Culture Trust first started to take shape. We are delighted to be working to ensure this opportunity reaches the very widest range of applicants and results in a fantastic public event next summer."

The deadline for applications for Take Note funding and support is 23rd November.

Take Note-funded partnership projects will run in Gloucester from spring to summer 2021, culminating in ambitious, public artistic events involving people from across communities - while recognising and responding to the likely ongoing challenges of social distancing.