Leeds charity awarded grant to boost local creative industry careers

MAP Charity (Music and Arts Production Leeds) was awarded £15,000 and Lawrence Batley Theatre was awarded a £10,000 grant by the Regional Creatives Fund, launched by Amazon.

The Regional Creatives Fund, which aligns with the Government’s Creative Places Growth Fund1, aims to increase access to careers in the creative industries for people from underserved communities. Creative Access, the UK’s leading inclusivity organisation in the creative industries, defines underserved communities as a population proven to be under-represented2 in the sector.

Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield presents a year-round programme from drama and contemporary dance to circus and pantomime. As the creative heart of Huddersfield, the theatre nurtures talent and builds community across Kirklees through programmes like Future Creative.

Future Creative offers inclusive volunteering opportunities across the arts and cultural sector, supporting young people affected by poverty and unemployment. With one in three Kirklees households affected by poverty and unemployment rates above the national average, the programme addresses critical socio-economic challenges.

The Regional Creatives Fund grant will help the charity to engage 50 young people aged 18-30 in volunteering across West Yorkshire over two years, sustaining a dedicated Volunteer Manager with lived experience to provide personalised support.

The programme will deliver creative and employability skills workshops including CV writing, interview techniques, first aid, technical theatre, and creative practice masterclasses. The fund will expand Volunteero, an app-based volunteer management system, to advertise opportunities, track progress, and host digital training.

A ‘no-worries fund’ will cover travel expenses - a key barrier for participants - while uniform investment will build identity and belonging. The theatre will collaborate with creative organisations across West Yorkshire to provide cross-sector placements in theatre, music, digital media, and visual arts, hosting celebration events to mark volunteer milestones.

MAP Charity supports young people aged 11-16 who are having difficulties engaging in mainstream education. The charity offers vital, empowering music and arts qualifications alongside maths and English support, providing learners with an inspiring, safe space where creativity can flourish.

MAP Charity supports a community of local creative partners in its workspaces - from designers and musicians to jewellers and theatre companies - offering space and support. In return, partners provide learners with enhanced learning, valuable work experience, and professional development opportunities.

The charity also runs cultural fundraising events from Hope House Gallery, hosting exhibitions, workshops, performances, and talks from across the creative sector. Hope House Gallery houses the celebrated live music event Cosmic Slop, welcoming internationally acclaimed musicians and local DJs to play on a custom-built, one-of-a-kind sound system.

All activities are delivered from MAP Charity's Grade 2 listed home, Hope Foundry, in Leeds, where the charity nurtures the next generation of creative professionals.

MAP Education works with young people to develop skills and confidence to re-engage in their education and achieve BTEC qualifications. Working with creative professionals, the programme gives young people opportunities to develop the skills and attributes needed to build positive relationships, experience successes, and understand how their learning applies to the world of work.

The Regional Creatives Fund support will enable MAP Charity to work with more young people, helping them develop skills for educational re-engagement and explore career options in the creative industries.

“I am grateful to the Regional Creatives Fund for their investment in our Future Creatives programme," said Becky Dash, Chief Executive of Lawrence Batley Theatre.

"Building on its incredible success over the last three years, we're pleased that it's coming back bigger and better and we're now able to offer this incredible development opportunity to even more young people in our area.

"When I was a young adult living in Huddersfield, I had to relocate to London to get this sort of opportunity.

"Now we can offer a taster of what it’s like to be part of the creative industries right here in Kirklees. Opportunities like this are what makes our area an amazing place to live and work.”

Zena Zenonos-Walker is the Head of Education at MAP Charity said: “During my time working at MAP Charity, I have seen the positive impact MAP's creative curriculum and meaningful relationships have had on the lives of children and young people, both those who are accessing the support MAP offers now and those who continue to visit us having attended MAP in the past.

"The funding we have received from the Amazon Regional Creatives Fund will allow us to work with more young people, driving forward our mission to create opportunities and experiences for development and growth, ensuring each and every child at MAP reaches their full potential.”

“MAP Charity and Lawrence Batley Theatre do incredible work in the community, and we were blown away by their commitment to upskilling people in underserved communities for careers in creative industries,” added Paul Firth, Director, Global Music Industry, Amazon Music and Regional Creatives Fund judge.

“Amazon is passionate about creating opportunities for people in West Yorkshire and across the UK to have access to creative industry careers and we’re excited to support the charities as they expand their programmes to have an even greater impact on the local community.”

“It was a pleasure to be a part of this important judging panel for the Regional Creatives Fund, that will allocate much needed funding across the UK, creating new opportunities for underrepresented groups to develop their creative skills,” said Joedi Langley, Head of Creative Wales.

Grants were awarded by an independent judging panel. The panel included senior leaders from Amazon, The National Theatre, Creative Wales, Arts Council England, the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, Help Musicians and Music Minds Matter.

Funding applications were assessed across five key areas. Strong proposals reflected the fund’s spirit with energy, optimism, and a clear creative purpose; delivered real impact through skills, access, and industry links; showed a smart, achievable plan with confident delivery; centred inclusion by amplifying underrepresented voices; and built on existing programmes to grow what’s already working.