ARTIST STUDIO MANAGER AND PROGRAMMER – FIXED TERM CONTRACT (12 months)

Application Pack

2024

Overview  

Thanks for your interest in working with Breaking Barriers CIC.  We’re an ambitious, multi-disciplinary, production company working out of (and managing) Richard Street, an artist studio space in Rochdale Town Centre – right across the road from the train/tram station.   We create exceptional films, theatrical productions, binaural audio pieces and outdoor walking tours with both local communities and international artists.  

We are the lead tenant of a brand new artist studio that has been renovated by the Rochdale Development Agency to support artists and creatives to develop careers in and around our home town of Rochdale. It offers an exciting range of creative workspaces including 7 studios tailored to the needs of Rochdale’s growing art and creative business community. The spaces cater to both digital and messier creative disciplines, perfect for everything from art, photography and scriptwriting, to sewing and design, providing the ideal blank canvas for studio workshops, events, showcases and small exhibitions.

We already deliver artist development programmes with many different partners but are seeking to establish a regular programme of activity at the studios that benefits the artistic community and offers access points to the wider community where appropriate. Within Rochdale, 26% of the population come from the Global Majority and we aim to foster relationships and create space for these communities at Richard Street Studios. Please see the brochure that accompanies this document for full details of the premises and tenancy opportunities. 

We are a small but growing team and we are on the hunt for a Studio Manager to support the evolution of the company.  We have established this new role to help us manage the studios and set up systems and processes that will lay solid foundations that grow the ecology and work towards future sustainability.  The Studio Manager will be the main point of contact for tenants and enquires about the studio and space hires,  leading on sector facing communications (such as a regular newsletter, social media content or campaigns, regular communications to promote our programme and our partner developmental opportunities and database)  and information sharing and help us to set up systems that enable us to monitor our data relating to our workforce, impact and environmental goals.  

You will work with our Leadership team and General Manager to help us to set up and manage budgets, and take a lead on developing a regular programme of activity and creative projects with guest artists, partners, funders and communities. You will also liaise with contractors connected to running the studios and support our overall ambition to work efficiently and create a well organised, dynamic and welcoming working environment that spans a wide range of activity. 

This role is between 4- 5 days (to be discussed), and while it is fixed-term, there is potential to extend the contract and continue to work with us as we develop the organisation.  

Main Purpose of the job: 

• Management of the studios and liaison with tenants and hirers /  manage all booking of the studio working spaces and field enquiries
• Programming and delivering an annual programme of activity including public events 
• Communications and promotion of the studios and programmes
• Supporting fundraising for the programme and partnership development across Rochdale and Greater Manchester 
• Manage data, support reporting and evaluation 

About us

Breaking Barriers CIC was formed by proud Rochdalian Parvez Qadir in 2020, a British Pakistani Artistic Director who has grown up and still lives in Rochdale – a diverse town with over 50 languages spoken and a rich multi-cultural vibrancy running through its streets. Breaking Barriers was conceived to make high-quality work in Rochdale, to showcase the pool of local talent in the town and to bring audiences from around Greater Manchester (and beyond) to come and see ambitious work made in the area.  

The company is jointly led by Parvez Qadir and Jodie Ratcliffe, a working-class female Executive Producer. We also have three non-executive Directors of the CIC and are building a steering group of advisors. We feel that it is of utmost importance for these leadership roles to be filled by people who are representative of the people we wish to reach, as we seek to re-address imbalances within diversity and inclusion in the sector.  Between them, they have decades of experience working in Greater Manchester, on both small scale and large scale projects. 

We make work that people can get involved in, that people feel connected to and empowered by, that takes people on an artistic journey, and that people can be ‘WOWed’ by in their own town. Our ecology often places the community at the heart of the work through co-creation, giving them the autonomy and power to tell their story under the safety, support and creative guidance of our award-winning world class team.  We regularly work with communities and artists from a rich tapestry of backgrounds and lived experiences in Rochdale, Greater Manchester and other parts of the country and with a diverse range of partners, investors and commissioners. 

Our team is built on collaboration and co-creation, and often melds a combination of artists and skills to create a final outcome. The current team includes a collaborative team of freelance creatives including  sound engineers, videographers, photographers, facilitators, production managers, actors and musicians/composers. Breaking Barriers encourage open expression and equity in the collection of ideas to create work. Year upon year, Breaking Barriers has been growing our creative team, our partners and income, our creative ambition and our audience reach. 

Future Plans 2024 – 2027 

In April 2024 we signed a 7 year lease to operate the Richard Street Studios. We have secured investment to run events and develop inclusive activities for 12 months, including offering use of a small rehearsal/meeting space for free to local artists and creatives for 14 weeks of the year. We are busy developing a 5 year company business plan that places Richard Street Studios at the heart of what we do. Richard Street Studios is the only creative studio space in the borough open 24/7 to artists, year-round. 

We’re looking for someone with the appetite for developing a positive, connected and learning company culture. Someone who is adaptable, ready to get stuck in and work with us to ensure we build a stable future. We are looking for a creative, organised and caring individual who shares our values. We believe in the highest quality experiences. We believe in fairness and equality, we tell brave stories with under-represented communities by valuing their lived experience.

You can see all about us and examples of our work here: 

Website: www.breakingbarriersrochdale.co.uk

Instagram: @rochdale.breakingbarriers

Facebook: @breakingbarriers

YouTube: Breaking Barriers CIC – YouTube

Studio Manager: Main Duties 

Management of the studios 

• Act as the primary contact for all matters relating to the studios, including all viewings, meet and greets and enquiries
• Responsibility for lettings with tenants and all bookings and hires of spaces and access 
• Communicating and ensuring codes of practice, work protocols and visitor guidelines are understood and adhered to by all who use/access the studios 
• Keep up to date with industry best practice, and aware of current trends nationally
• Develop relationships and connections to other studios in Rochdale and Greater Manchester to develop and share insights, intelligence and appropriate partnership opportunities
• Promote a supportive, collaborative, clean and tidy working environment for all tenants 
• Develop an annual review process with tenants and hirers to collate feedback to inform improvements
• Maintain systems for administration and budget management around the studio and all programmes
• Contribute to the implementation of plans that ensure fairness, equality and climate sustainability is embedded into our company culture
• Lead on the maintenance checks and liaise with all contractors who deliver services to the studios (the local authority, cleaners, fuel and internet providers etc) 
• Be responsible for ensuring up to date emergency contacts
• Manage Breaking Barriers studio and programme budgets ensuring expenditure is controlled and value for money is sought
• Collate and code financial information as requested by the General Manager for the processing and payment of invoices, petty cash etc.
• Responsibility for finding affordable ethical suppliers for all equipment in the studios 

Programming and delivering an annual programme of activity including publicly accessible events

• Work with the Executive Producer and Artistic Director to co-design an annual programme of artist development activities, events and projects 
• Programming timescales, key moments, diary clashes etc
• Issue contractual agreements (supported by our General Manager) to tenants, guest artists and workshop leaders and hirers / users of the studios 
• Keep connected to other studios, theatres and arts spaces, go see events to develop and share insights, intelligence and suggest any learning / training requirements 
• Being part of the wider Rochdale cultural planning groups to make sure that the studio is represented and part of any local initiatives or celebrations
• Have a proactive approach to supporting artists at stages of their careers and ensure we engage with a diverse range of artists across our programmes 
• Plan ahead to foresee potential ‘crunch’ points in order to identify when additional support will be needed

Communications and promotion of the studios and programmes

• Act as the primary contact for all matters relating to the studios and our communications (all media handles /channels/newsletters) 
• Build relationships with partners for reciprocal marketing (and regularly collate and share opportunities with the artistic sector in Rochdale)
• Be responsible for website maintenance, promotion of it as a resource and uploading of new information on a regular basis, which can feed into the regular newsletter
• Develop marketing and communications campaigns for the studio and programme 
• Share insights to develop appropriate and targeted communications as necessary 
• Research, collate opportunities and produce a regular Newsletter for creatives that promote opportunities for artists across Greater Manchester (and beyond if appropriate)
• Supporting fundraising for the programme and partnership development across Rochdale and Greater Manchester
• Provide reliable and effective website administration
• Manage, review and approve events listings, artists/organisation information and members of the directory 
• Collate monthly sector-facing newsletters, and where required send ad-hoc newsletters to promote time sensitive matters

Manage data, support reporting and evaluation 

• Contribute to setting up systems to monitor Breaking Barriers impact and reach
• Contribute to collating data and reporting requirements for any project funded activity
• Support the development of fundraising approaches and bid writing 
• Collate data and analysis of engagement
• Attend working circles where appropriate to feed into and bring information back 

Health, Safety and Insurance (Studio Management only) 

• Work with the Breaking Barriers team to ensure responsibility for the health and safety of premises and all on site project delivery, including attending safeguarding, mental health first aid and first aid training 
• Ensure our risk assessments and policies follow best practice 
• Keep up to date with First Aid best practice and incident book to record all accidents
• Keep medical information and emergency contacts about tenants

Other

• Be an advocate for and represent Breaking Barriers at events and support our productions
• Carry out any other duties as can be reasonably expected as an employee of Breaking Barriers

Who We Are Looking For 

We are seeking someone who will enjoy being at the heart of our small but ambitious team during a time of evolution and growth. We’d like you to work some core hours from our accessible studio (Richard Street, Rochdale) on each of your working days, but we are open to a discussion around some flexible working or spreading the contracted hours. This is a great opportunity for someone looking to take the next steps in their arts management career with a fixed-term contract.

Your experience and knowledge might include artist studio management, creative programming, running talent or artist development schemes in a venue, producing or creating the systems and environments in which people can do their best work. We’d prefer you to have an active interest in the arts and be willing to engage with all aspects of the job description.

Person Specification

• A minimum of three years’ experience in a developmental role in an arts venue, media or artists studio  (essential) 
• Experience of managing project budgets of varying sizes (essential) 
• A commitment to working in a socially engaged manner to create equality of opportunity (essential) 
• Strong understanding of GDPR regulations (essential – training can be provided)
• Experience of copywriting/proof-reading and CRM/CSM management (desired)
• Knowledge of Rochdale and its cultural landscape (desired) 
• Experience or understanding of supporting fundraising bids and Arts Council of England Lets Create strategy and requirements  (desired)
• Understanding of a wide range of artists practices and processes (essential) 
• Exceptional interpersonal skills and an ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of people (essential) 
• Understanding of health and safety in the workplace and safeguarding requirements with a willingness to get a DBS certificate (desired, training will provided as needed and application fee will be covered by Breaking Barriers)
• Exceptional organisational skills with the ability to effectively prioritise (essential)
• Willingness to represent Breaking Barriers appropriately and comply with our policies around communications, and ensure that all actions are in the interest and spirit of Breaking Barriers (essential) 
• Understanding of website management (essential – training can be given)
• Capacity to respond and dedicate time in time-sensitive matters (essential)
• Drivers licence would be useful, but is not essential 

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We will take positive action around this by guaranteeing an interview to any applicant who self-identifies as disabled, and/or as Global Majority, and who has experience or appropriate transferable experience in a cultural organisation. If you self-identify as having this background and experience, please state so in your supporting statement as outlined below. 

Terms and Conditions of Employment

Annual salary: £28,000 – £32,000 pro rata (based on 4 days per week, but there is potential to increase to 5 days) 

Status: Either part time (4 days) or full time (5 days), 12 month fixed term contract PAYE 

Holiday Entitlement: Statutory holidays of 28 days (pro rata) plus all public bank holidays

Probationary period: 3 months

Notice period: 1 month

Hours of work: Between 28 – 35 hours per week, including some out of hours work as required

Place of work: Breaking Barriers, Richard Street Studios, 44-46 Richard Street, Rochdale, OL11 1DU. The postholder will also be expected to travel around Rochdale and Greater Manchester to develop projects and meet partners as appropriate.  

Pension: The Company makes a 3% contribution into the company’s group

personal pension plan on condition that the employee makes a minimum

contribution of 5%, totalling an 8% pension contribution

Closing date: Friday 26th April, 12pm

Line Manager Executive Producer 

Contract Fixed-term 1 year contract 

Working hours Between 28 – 35 hours per week (flexible) 

Core working hours are between 10am – 4pm Monday
to Friday but we are open to conversations around
flexible hours during the interview process.
Occasional evening and weekend work will be
required, and we operate a TOIL (time off in lieu)
system for this.

Location At present the team work 4 days a week from our studio in Rochdale but we are frequently off site for project delivery. We are open to a conversation with interested candidates during the interview process about how to maintain a presence in the studios during core hours. 

How To Apply

To apply for Studio Manager at Breaking Barriers, please send a supporting statement outlining why you want to work with us and how you meet the person specification, and your CV to studio@breakingbarriersrochdale.com

If you’d prefer to send your supporting statement in the form of a short video, please send one no longer than 4 minutes.

Please also complete an anonymous Equal Opportunities Monitoring form which can be accessed here: Equalities Monitoring Form – Google Forms

We guarantee first round interviews to candidates who identify as having a disability and or as Global Majority and have appropriate transferable experience in the cultural sector. If you see yourself as someone who meets these criteria, please say so in your supporting statement. 

Closing date for applications: Friday 26th April, 12pm

Interviews 

First round interviews will take place at Richard Street Studios, Rochdale on Tuesday 7th or Wednesday 8th May with Parvez Qadir (Artistic Director), Jodie Racliffe (Executive Producer) and Ayla Suveren (Cultural Strategist).

There’s an opportunity that there might be a second round of interviews, either online or in person.