Arts get ¤5m in funding from business mentoring programme

An extra ¤5 million has been raised by arts organisations across the country through a fundraising programme designed by Business to Arts.

Business to Arts, which aims to channel corporate philanthropy through the arts sector, has announced its New Stream programme, which has already run for three years, will run for two more.

Business to Arts chief executive Stuart McLoughlin said the money raised is above what they would have raised without the mentoring programme.

Organisations involved include the Abbey Theatre, the National Concert Hall, the National Gallery and regional institutions such as the Hunt Museum in Limerick and Wexford Opera.

In addition, the partnership with the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the Kennedy Centre in Washington will run for another year. The programme includes how to fundraise for the long term, planning of schedules, choosing board members and audience development.

The Bank of America, a huge donor to the arts, has provided ¤400,000 for the programme. The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht has provided ¤70,000. DeVos Institute director Michael Kaiser visited Dublin recently. “We talk about the specifics of how you do the prospecting, how do you cultivate potential donors and how you learn about the organisation.”