Edinburgh Council | Diversity and Inclusion Fund | Singing Willows 2025/2026
We are delighted to announce that Singing Willows is a recipient of the 2025/2026 Diversity and Inclusion Fund supported by Edinburgh Council. This funding enabled us to research and develop our new inclusive children’s musical theatre production, featuring integrated BSL throughout. Our goal is to create joyful, accessible theatre experiences where all children can see themselves reflected on stage and engage with stories together. We’re incredibly excited to begin developing this project and to continue exploring how musical theatre can be made more inclusive and accessible for young audiences. We look forward to sharing updates as the project develops and to welcoming audiences to future performances and workshops.
See full Announcement:
2025-26 Diversity and Inclusion Fund: Award Recipients
We are delighted to announce the 2025-26 Diversity and Inclusion Fund: Award Recipients and congratulate all successful applicants. We would also like to thank the panel and all applicants who considered sharing their proposals for review and consideration. More information on the assessment process and selection can be found below along with the list of the awardees.
2025-26 Diversity and Inclusion Fund: Overview
A total of 44 applications were received requesting support from the
£70,000 Diversity and Inclusion Fund. 9 were submitted by Lead Artists with protected characteristics requesting support for one of the 3 bursary opportunities, 19 by Lead Artists with protected characteristics in collaboration with Associate Artists; and 16 by Lead Artists with protected characteristics in partnership with Arts Organisations.
17 project proposals were awarded funding. The list of successful applicants can be found below. The projects submitted represented a variety of activities, including music, dance, visual arts, theatre, drag, multi-art events and research and development. The Panel comprising of Inga Dale Steyn (spoken word artist/ arts officer), Sanjeev Mann (musician), Shatha Altowai (visual artist/activist), and Turan Ali (radio and TV producer/ writer/storyteller/comedian) assessed all eligible projects. All project proposals were reviewed regarding the outlined Project Concept, Partnership/Collaboration Model, Impact/Learning as well as Budget Planning.
CEC Culture and Wellbeing via Edinburgh BAME Network
