Seachdain na Gàidhlig World Gaelic Week

Overview

Seachdain na Gàidhlig (World Gaelic Week) celebrates Scottish Gaelic across the globe and aims to raise the profile of Gaelic through community initiatives, schools’ engagement, projects and events.

Anybody can take part or run their own event – the initiative offers opportunities for Gaelic speakers, and those without the language, to get involved in a way that suits them.

Events can include anything – from performance, music, song, dance, film screenings, book readings, poetry nights, ceilidhs, exhibitions, workshops, themed walks, sports events, quizzes, discussions, digital events and more – and can take place in Scotland or further afield.

• £500 is the maximum grant

2025 Theme - Building Connections

The theme for 2025 is ‘Building Connections’. This encourages us to celebrate the ways that sharing this unique language helps us build connections – linguistically, culturally and socially.

These connections are integral to every facet of our lives and are the ties that bind us together. Every single person will have their own connection to Gaelic, and this is something that they want to particularly explore, celebrate and build upon this year.

The Events Calendar will go live in November 2024, allowing you to add your own event.

Small Grants Fund 2025

The Seachdain na Gàidhlig ‘Small Grants Fund’ is supported by Bòrd na Gàidhlig and is open to individuals, community groups and organisations. The fund aims to support activity during Seachdain na Gàidhlig 2025 (February 24th - March 2nd) and assist in the development and delivery of community events that celebrate the Gaelic language. Their theme for 2025 is ‘Building Connections’ and they are looking for projects / events that have this theme embedded at their core.

Who can apply?

• Individuals (over 18), voluntary groups, schools, educational institutions and professional organisations can apply.
• Applicants must be able to demonstrate a positive track record in and/or commitment to Gaelic.
• Applicants must have a UK bank account.

The Fund is open to anybody, from anywhere, with an idea or project that promotes the use and development of Gaelic. Your proposed activity does not have to be fully through the medium of Gaelic but should have Gaelic at its core, whether through opportunities to use and experience the language or similar.

The objectives of the Fund are to:

• Celebrate the theme of ‘Building Connections’ through Gaelic.
• Promote interest and participation in Gaelic.
• Increase opportunities to experience Gaelic.
• Strengthen and broaden the network of people engaging with Gaelic.
• Raise the profile of Gaelic locally, nationally, and worldwide.
• Ensure activities are inclusive and accessible to as many people as possible.

When planning your project, please consider your target audience, participants, performers and volunteers. They encourage projects to be inclusive and accessible, engaging with protected groups where relevant. You will be asked to provide details of who will be involved in your project as part of the application.

Building Connections

All applications must have their 2025 theme, ‘Building Connections’, at their core.

They will consider applications of any kind and are keen to ensure a wide geographical spread of the funds available.

They will welcome applications from across a diverse range of communities and are committed to ensuring equality across all funded activity.

They encourage applicants to think creatively about how they can incorporate ‘Building Connections’ into their projects. Innovative and non-traditional ideas are welcome, whether they involve new ways of using technology, unique community engagement methods or cross-cultural collaborations that highlight the diversity of Gaelic connections.

Examples of events and activity that could be considered are: performances and concerts; pop-up Gàidhealtachd; languages cafes; online gaming; school projects; cèilidhs; craft groups. Most of all, we want you and your community to have fun engaging with Gaelic through your activity.

If you would like to discuss your idea, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team at tabhartasan@seachdainnagaidhlig.scot.

Budget Plan

You will need to complete a budget plan.

Please think carefully about your budget and consider the appropriateness of costs and income you wish to include. Give as much detail as you can and ensure you submit a balanced budget as this is required to proceed with your application.

Your budget should forecast a minimum of 20% income or support from other sources – this could be your own contribution or a grant from somewhere else. It could also include support in-kind – this could be your own hours spent on the project at an hourly rate. Please include full detail of income from other sources as part of your balanced budget.

Application Notes

They encourage you to consider any insurances, risk assessment or licensing that may be applicable in delivering your event or activity. For more guidance on this, you can contact your local Council.

As part of your application, you will be asked to describe how your project will be as inclusive and accessible as possible. Inclusivity is about ensuring that as many people as possible have the opportunity to participate in or benefit from your project, regardless of their background or circumstances. You don’t need to have a perfect plan, but they want to see that you are making efforts to be inclusive and thinking about how you can reach those who might otherwise be excluded.

See here for more details.

Further notes

• Event Timing: Applications will only be considered for events and activity taking place during Seachdain na Gàidhlig 2025 (February 24th - March 2nd).
• Be Concise: Please be clear and concise, giving them enough information to be able to assess your application fully.
• Fair Pay: If you are engaging artists, tutors, or other practitioners, please demonstrate fair pay and/or industry standard rates (Musicians Union, Equity etc.). They recognise some artists/practitioners may wish to work for less or contribute free of charge. If so, you should make their wishes explicit in your application, and your budget should reflect, as ‘in-kind’ support, the contribution of an artist/practitioner by including the difference between the industry standard rate and what they will actually be paid.
• Realistic Funding Requests: While £500 is the maximum grant available, please only ask for what you need. This allows more communities to benefit from the available funds.
• Multiple Applications: Applicants may submit more than one project for consideration, but please be aware that it is unlikely they will be able to offer more than one grant.
• No Equipment Purchase: They are unable to fund equipment purchase and capital costs.
• If you are unsure about how to calculate industry-standard rates, balance your budget, or identify appropriate in-kind contributions, please do not hesitate to reach out to their team for guidance. They are here to help ensure that your budget is realistic and meets the requirements of the fund.