GMCVO are holding an information lunch and networking event for people who want to find out more about the benefits that apprenticeships can bring to their organisations.

There will be a presentation by John Warham from the National Apprenticeship Service and the opportunity to feed in to the consultation process for a new Third Sector Apprenticeship Framework.

Where and when?

Monday 15th March 12pm to 3.30pm at GMCVO, St Thomas Centre, Ardwick Green North, Manchester, M12 6FZ. Here is a Google Map to the venue.

Register to attend and more information

The event is free to attend.

To book please email Karen Rigg or ring 0161 276 9304.

Please remember to provide details of any specific dietary or access requirements by Wednesday 3rd March.

If you are unable to make the event but would like a visit to your organisation to discuss apprenticeships further please also e-mail Karen.

The Festival of Diversity – being run out of an office at the Oldham Coliseum Theatre – is looking for a ‘digital expert’ to facilitate the production of new digital content and advise the Festival team on their ‘digital development potential’.

What’s involved

The ‘DigiExpert’ role is to work with participants to create and manage digital content for ‘DigiDebates’, which is one part of the ‘DigiVersity’. The project will also reach wider audiences through people engaging with the online material created.

Two groups of people will meet in March to debate over a chosen topic, provisionally a group of people from the Youth Council and Age Concern. The two groups will decide on the subject of the debate.

The Festival is looking for a creative digital practitioner to design innovative ways of working with participants to create digital content from the debate which will then be put online to widen and continue the discussion.

The expert will work with a small team of the participants before the debate to develop their skills and plan how they will use the equipment to capture the atmosphere and discussion. The DigiExpert will be responsible for putting the material online and advising on how it is best utilised.

The Festival hopes to have four DigiDebates over 2010, with the pilot DigiDebate taking place in March. It is hoped that the DigiExpert will be involved with all four debates.

Timescales

• 2 workshop sessions participant training (date tbc) and debate March 29, 30 or 31 (tbc)
• 1 evaluation session – April 19th (tbc)
• 1 day advising The Festival and creating ideas
• 3 days preparation, editing and uploading (for further discussion)

Budget

£800 – £1,000

Deadline for submissions

Deadline for submissions is 12pm, 8 March 2010.

More information and to apply

Please download the PDF about the DigiExpert work, or contact:

Sian Smith
Project and Administration Officer
Festival Office
Oldham Coliseum Theatre
Fairbottom Street
Oldham OL1 3SW

Email: sian@festivalofdiversity.co.uk
Phone: 0161 785 7016
Website: www.festivalofdiversity.co.uk

RESPOND is an opportunity for an artist (or groups of artists) to creatively respond to the first questions Zion Arts Centre’s new management asked themselves when they walked in the building.

Zion Arts Centre is now looking for a creative response to the following question: ‘How can Zion Arts Centre extend our reach using digital and social media tools, appealing to artists and young people through online platforms and virtual worlds?’

The young people Zion support are ‘digital natives’, growing up within the digital world as the norm. To support and inspire creativity in young people, we need to develop a digital arts practice to inform our creative offer.

Zion is looking for an artist or group of artists who can help the Centre engage young people on a digital platform, guiding Zion towards its vision of being at the heart of the digital revolution within the world of creative media.

The resulting answers to each residency brief will inform the future strategic development of Zion Arts Centre, ensuring that it has the needs of its users (artists, young people and the local community) at its core.

What you get

• 12 week residency
• £2,000 Fee per artist/group
• Project Budget (up to £1000 per project)
• Marketing /profile raising
• Support in kind – room use, staff time

How to apply

Please go to www.zionarts.com/residencies for full details and an application form (scroll down the page until you get to the RESPOND section).

The deadline is 26th February 2010.

We’re on the look-out for young people with ‘the App Factor’ and an ambition to work in Manchester’s Creative Industries.

WHO?

Are you:

• Looking to get a career or start a business in the creative industries?
• Full of ideas and ambition?
• Based in the Manchester ‘city council’ area?
• Aged between 18 & 24?
• Interested in apps and the potential they offer?

If so, a brand-new project called ‘Creative Innovation Lab’ is for you!

WHAT?

Creative Innovation Lab or ‘The App School’ will take ten lucky individuals on an intensive learning journey as they develop their ideas for a Mobile Phone ‘app’ – by working with some of the best trainers and creative companies in Manchester.

You just need ideas, not tech know-how.

If you’re chosen, you’ll get the chance to work on your ideas through a series of three ‘ideas’ workshops, beginning at the end of February.

You’ll also attend four workshops that will give you essential creative business know-how about managing projects and money, team working, and presenting your work.

At the end of the scheme, you will be able to pitch your worked-up plans for your App to a panel of creative companies – and if they like what they see, they’ll build the app for you and take it to market!!!

Whether your app is selected or not, you’ll have learnt a massive amount and have fantastic industry contacts – improving your chances of getting a career in the creative industries in Manchester.

In addition, we’ll be creating an online documentary about the scheme, which will go out on www.CREATIVETimes.co.uk.

If you are interested in being part of the scheme, you need to first think about the App you would like to work on. You need to consider what it will do, who it will be for, and why people will want to use it.

Apps may be used by a Cultural Organisation or Charity in the city, or could be a straight-forward commercial proposition – if you’ve got a good idea, let us have it and we’ll help you get it to market!

HOW?

Places are really limited, so if you are up for the challenge, register your idea for your app online now at http://tinyurl.com/TheAppSchool or call 0161 446 2991 for an application form.

If you want to register but don’t have access to a phone or computer, there will be a drop-in session at the First Floor Café in Cornerhouse, 70 Oxford Rd. from 3pm to 5pm on Thursday 11 February 2010.

The App School team will treat all ideas in confidence. We will be judging applications by Sunday 21 February 2010 – we’ll be in touch shortly after to let people know if they have secured a place on the project.

Good luck! The App School Team.

More information and contact

Creative Innovation Labs is funded by Manchester City Council, delivered in partnership with Cornerhouse, MMU, Manchester Beacon for Public Engagement and is being managed by The White Room.

If you have any questions about The App School, please contact The White Room.

DMEX (Digital Media Exchange) is an innovative cross-platform project that pays TV professionals to work with some of the region’s leading Digital Media companies. It links the experience and skills of traditional media freelancers and employees with the new markets and innovation of the region’s best Digital Media companies. It offers unique opportunity for Digital Media businesses to work with, and learn from, established professionals from the television industries, sharing skills and knowledge between both sectors.

As part of the scheme, Digital Media companies across the North West will be able to host an experienced TV professional for 20 days – based on their own requirements. In recent DMEX exchanges, companies have hosted a scriptwriter for a viral campaign, a producer for a multi-platform drama series, a director for a machinima film, and an editor for an interactive documentary. The calibre of the TV professionals on offer is considerable, with all participants having at least 3 years’ experience.

Timescales are flexible; they can be hosted onsite or work remote; and can be for discreet projects or integrated into a team for the duration of the exchange. Host companies will have complete choice in who they select, and previous participants have included Bellyfeel Interactive Media, Corporation Pop, Conker Media, Fudge Studios and many more.

The scheme has had very positive feedback from both host companies and TV professionals – with many striking up longer-term collaborations beyond the initial exchange period.

This is what some of the recent participants have said:

“The DMeX scheme has provided us with the opportunity for real cross platform collaboration.” Krishna Stott, Bellyfeel Interactive Media

“This is an outstanding opportunity to immerse yourself in the latest thinking abut digital media in the company of some cutting-edge practitioners.” Geoff Deehan, Award-winning Television Producer and Director

If you would like to host a placement, please contact Phil Birchenall directly by phone on 0161 446 2991 or by email at birchenall@thewhiteroomcec.com. The programme is running until June 2009, however, places are limited so register your interest now!

Aims for One Central Place

The overall aim of the project is for One Central Place to become the main source of contact information on voluntary and community Sector (VCS) groups for Manchester.

• To develop an online shared directory.
• Provide easily accessible up to date contact details for VCS groups via a web interface.
• Provide facilities for VCS groups to promote themselves and their work as well ensure that their details were kept up-to-date.
• Increase the opportunities for VCS groups to be more involved in consultations and the commissioning of services.

The work involved is to encourage end users to further engage with the website and take responsibility for keeping their own listings up-to-date in the One Central Place directory.

Are you right for the job?

One Central Place wants to work with a supplier who understands the constraints a voluntary and community sector organisation has to work within and is also looking to develop a good working relationship with a supplier over a long period of time, beyond just this phase of work.

Tender documents

1. One Central Place website development brief (PDF 340kb)
2. Requirements Spreadsheet (Excel 24kb)

Submissions

Responses must clearly explain how proposed solutions will meet the requirements set out in the project brief.  Suppliers must show examples of how similar requirements have been met in work with other clients, also, submissions must be in PDF format only, No other formats will be accepted.

The Requirements Spreadsheet must also be completed and returned with your submission, to clarify how you will meet each requirement and provide a cost breakdown for key areas of the website development.

Deadline:

Passed

Email submissions:

mike@cn4m.net

Hard copy submissions:

Mike Wright
One Central Place, Project Manager
c/o Community Network for Manchester
Green Fish Resource Centre
46-50 Oldham Street
Manchester
M4 1LE

More information

Mike Wright – One Central Place, Project Manager

Telephone: 0161 234 2909 / 0782 419 3710

E-mail: mike@cn4m.net

ProDev Day is a FREE business networking day for all students interested in discovering the Digital and Creative Industrial Sector in Manchester and what it has to offer in terms of careers, placements, internships, part-time work, study and mentoring.

It’s also for companies and organisations to find out more about the kinds of student being produced by the Universities and Colleges in the City with a view to managing employment in the future.

It’s also a chance for companies to give something back to the learning community in terms of support and help for students who want to move into this sector.

When

Wednesday 12 November 2008, between 12 noon and 3.30pm.

Where

The Street, John Dalton Building at MMU on Oxford Road in Manchester, UK. Google Map.

More information

Visit the ProDev Day website or subscribe to the feed.

Current vacancies include Marketing and Media Manager, Marketing Internship, Admin Assistant.

For a job description and person spec visit www.futuresonic.com/jobs.

About Futuresonic

Futuresonic is an annual festival of art, music and ideas established in 1995 that is urban, international, inclusive and in Manchester.

Futuresonic is presented by FutureEverything, a creative studio at the forefront of digital culture. Art exhibitions, music events and a technology conference are at the heart of the FutureEverything
organisation and Futuresonic festival.

Deadline

12 midday, 14 October 2008

Interviews

21 October 2008

FutureEverything is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company. They positively welcome applications from all sectors of the community.

It is now looking for host companies working in digital media to offer placements to some of the region’s best new talent.

Northwest Vision and Media will:

• Subsidise up to 50% of the salary
• Assist host companies in recruiting individuals to make sure the brightest and best are found
• Provide structured training and support around the placement

It is looking to secure places for people new to your industry – with less than 12 months paid experience. This is a valuable opportunity which benefits both companies and trainees, helping to retain the best talent in the region and ensuring their careers start in the right way.

Placements last 6 months. If you choose to take someone on, by the end of the placement you will have prepared someone to make a big impact in the industry – and you’re likely to find they’ve become an essential part of your team! We are planning for placements to start in the autumn.

Interested?

To express an interest, please email Simon Knight or call him on 0161 244 4636.

The event is taking place over the Pennines in sunny Leeds, so Greater Manchester based freelancers don’t have far to go to attend.

It will take place in met:space (Old Broadcasting House).

If you want to go, you’ll need to register.

More information

Check out the Going Solo blog, their updates on Twitter, or have a look at the introductory video describing what it’s all about.