Quay Arts and the Trustees of Mike Howley Trust welcome young Island creatives to apply for up to £1,500 to help them realise their artistic ambitions.
This funding is available for 18-30-year-olds on the Isle of Wight who want to develop their skills, with awards of £500, £1000, and £1,500 available for those involved in dance, theatre (including film/video), music, and writing.
Funding may be used towards training, coaching, recording, rehearsal space, staging, publishing, purchasing instruments/equipment, research trips, and more!
About Mike Howley
Mike Howley worked for many years as Director of Cultural Services for the Isle of Wight Council. When he passed away in 2013, he had left part of his estate for the specific benefit of aspiring young actors, musicians, dancers, and writers, between the ages of 18 and 30, living on the Isle of Wight.
Examples of previously awarded Mike Howley Trust applicants have included:
- A creative writer received funds for courses exploring writing and illustrating children’s books.
- A musician received funds to help develop, mix, and re-master tracks for an album.
- A dancer/choreographer received funds for 1-to-1 specialist training.
- A filmmaker received funds towards pre-production costs.
George: I’d urge any young creatives to take up this offer
Previous award recipient Lily George, whose grant was spent on Venue hire, speaker, creating the soundtrack, choreography time, and mentoring for ‘Ad Astra’, said,
“The support from Mike Howley has given me the time, space, and resources to be able to choreograph and develop my creative practice.
“I’d urge any young creatives to take up this offer!”
Quay Arts will be publishing more case studies about previous award recipients experiences with their Mike Howley Funding on their website early 2026.
Funding Schedule 2026
- Funding Portal opens Monday 5th January
- Funding Information Day Saturday 17th January 10am – 2pm, Seminar Room (booking essential, more details below)
- Funding Portal closes Sunday 15th February 11:59pm
- Award Notifications Monday 2nd March
- Funded projects / purchases and reports to be completed by Monday 31st August
Funding Information Day
There are bookable timeslots available for you to have an informal chat and ask questions about our funding, taking place in the Seminar Room, next to the Quay Café.
To book your 30 minute slot between 10am – 2pm, please email Alicia French at [email protected] with the subject line ‘Funding Information Day’.
Find out more
For funding information and application guidelines, please visit our website.
If you have any questions or accessibility concerns, don’t hesitate to contact us, we’re here to help!
Feel free to email Alicia French, Arts Team [email protected] with the subject line ‘Funding for Young Creatives’.
News shared by Alicia on behalf of Quay Arts. Ed
