Expressing Scotland
Expressing Scotland
Celebrating and Supporting Cultural Expression in All its Forms
About
We exist to celebrate and support cultural expression in Scotland in all its guises. From group and community activities, traditions, heritage projects, and celebrations, to individual expressions of identity, to professional creative and artistic endeavour, to cultural initiatives led by organisations and institutions, it all has value.
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We help individuals, groups, organisations, and public bodies all across Scotland with bid-writing, cultural documentation, cultural brokering, and project development.
Services: Funding
Do you need money to bring your project to life? We offer three services that might be of interest: one-to-one funding advice session; funding workshops; and bid-writing.
One-to-One Sessions
Typically used by individuals or community groups, these client-led 60-minute sessions can take place in-person or online. They can be a general chat about funding, or can focus on a particular bid and any related questions.
Funding Workshops
These are generally two-hour sessions which take the form of a presentation followed by a Q&A, giving time for attendees to ask questions about their specific projects or about anything that has arisen during the session. These can be delivered online or in-person.
Bid-writing Service
We work together closely with the client to deeply understand the project/programme/strategic vision then write the application. Drafts are sent back and forth between ourselves and the client until the application is finalised. The client then submits the application.
Services: Cultural Documentation
With a grounding in Ethnology, we carry out fieldwork using ethnographic methods to document and research expressive culture in Scotland. Fieldwork typically involves: carrying out in-depth interviews with people involved with a given cultural practice, community, scene, or tradition; utilising photography and/or videography; using digital ethnographic methods; making use of relevant archives, and so on. The resultant materials and reports can be used to inform strategy and policy, or can form the basis upon which artistic responses are created. Alternatively, the fieldwork materials can be about simply celebrating people’s cultural expressions or a given locality.
Services: Cultural Brokering & Development
We help individuals, groups, and organisations to bring their ideas to life. With twenty years of experience working in community settings, professional arts circles, Higher Education contexts, and governmental, funding, and policy structures, we can support clients to access and communicate effectively and appropriately with the right people. We have considerable experience bringing stakeholders together, facilitating dialogue, connecting clients with funders, officials, planners, communities, researchers, and so on. All brokering work we do is underpinned by a commitment to ethical and respectful engagement, with much attention being paid to things like potential power imbalances between those involved, the need for appropriate communication methods, awareness of cultural difference, and so on.
What People Say
“Simon’s expertise is unique in the field of project development and fundraising. His insight into the arts sector helped us immensely to develop a successful funding application for a large scale project. He has gathered extensive knowledge working as an artist while also working for funding bodies. This allowed him to guide us through challenging application procedures and develop our funding application."
Janos Lang, Director, Ando Glaso, Glasgow
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"Working with Simon on the Funding and Theory of Change workshops were really beneficial to GREC as an organisation. The sessions challenged us to think about whether we have a clear and explicit rationale for doing what we do. In turn, that has also allowed us to ask similarly challenging and constructive questions to partners and policy makers. It was also highly helpful to receive insights from someone who has been on the decision making side of funding applications, and we now have a much clearer sense of what most funders are looking out for in a strong application."​
Dave Black, Director, Grampian Regional Equality Council, Aberdeen
"The process of consultation [with Simon] was particularly enlightening. He is really adept at asking the right questions, drilling down to get to the core and heart of what we do. This rich consultation provides the foundation for putting pen to paper. Simon writes in a clear and succinct way guided by his considerable experience."
Coralie Usmani, Director, Jazz Scotland
"I've worked on a few project applications with Simon and both were successful. For me writing funding forms can be very difficult and I find it hard to get my ideas out in a way that's needed in order to be successful. Simon manages to navigate the creative thoughts you have and present it appropriately to funders."​
Award-winning Musician Ross Ainslie, Glasgow
"Simon has been a valued member of the Dundee Musicians Award Panel for over 5 years and has always been an extremely professional and supportive panel member, providing invaluable knowledge and experience when analysing the applications."
Angela Doran, Dundee Leisure and Culture
"Simon has a wealth of experience to share, he is engaging, insightful and a great communicator."
Louise Stanners Pow, Regional Officer, Musicians’ Union Scotland & Northern Ireland
Aberdeen City Council has had the pleasure of working with Simon on several projects, most recently on a Creative Scotland application in support of the Tall Ships Races, Aberdeen. Simon is an outstanding professional who brings a wealth of expertise in cultural programming and planning. Working with Simon is always a joy, as they consistently demonstrate professionalism, creativity, and dedication.
I have no hesitation in recommending Simon and look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with them again in the near future.
Stephen O'Neill, City Events Manager, Aberdeen City Council
“Simon has been instrumental in shaping NEAT's new 10-year Creative Strategy due to his exceptional knowledge of the Scottish arts and culture landscape. As a musician, he understands the challenges and rewards of touring and has expertise in community engagement and strategy. This has helped NEAT develop a plan to create a more cohesive and impactful service for rural communities and artists. Simon's contribution has inspired our staff and board to approach the delivery of our work in a way that will have significant cultural and social outcomes by embracing the Theory of Change”.