Communities and safety

Culture and Arts Investment Programme (CAIP)

The Culture and Arts Investment Programme (CAIP) supports a range of creative arts activities across Liverpool. This includes film and video screenings, festivals and carnivals, multi-disciplinary arts, and creative crafts, dance, drama and literature. It also supports visual, public and digital art, and theatre, comedy and music.

We are now accepting stage one expressions of interest for CAIP funding for 2027/28 to 2028/29 from organisations that meet the eligibility criteria.

Who can apply?

We will accept applications from organisations that are based and operate in the Liverpool local authority area, who's main purpose is the provision of arts and creative cultural activities.

We do not accept applications from individual artists, informally constituted collectives, formal educational establishments (schools, colleges, universities etc) or informal networks.

Joint applications may be submitted by a lead partner who will solely be accountable for the delivery of the programme and comply with the terms and conditions of the grant.

How can funding be used?

CAIP provides revenue funding to support the ongoing core costs of organisations delivering multi-year programmes, rather than one-off events or short term projects.

Funding must not be used for activities beyond the Liverpool local authority area and all projects must be completed by March 2029.

The total funding available is expected to be £2.2m, however, this is subject to final budget availability and formal approval by the council.

Before you apply

As part of the stage one process, all applicants must be able to confirm eligibility and financial viability, along with a short summary of the proposed activity. You must also:

  • prove you have a track record of delivering a strong  arts and cultural programme that attracts visitors and residents
  • provide evidence of successful and recent delivery of a cultural programme
  • have evidence of other significant funding from sources such as trusts and foundations, Arts Council England, Big Lottery, Heritage Lottery, other lottery sources, sponsorship and donations
  • have self-generated funds from ticket and product sales, services and other activities.
  • Through the CAIP Framework (see below) explain how activities will contribute to the aims of the Cultural Strategy 2025-2030 including how you will contribute to community and education priorities.

Please read the following documents for full details of eligibility criteria and the terms and conditions of the grant before you submit a stage one application:

How to apply

Apply online for CAIP stage one

Read our privacy notice which tells you how we use your data.

The closing date for stage one applications is 9am on Monday 20th July 2026.

What happens next?

All applications that meet the criteria will be considered by council officers and senior management before being invited to apply for stage 2. All organisations will be informed of stage 1 outcomes by 27th July at the latest.

Potential applicants are encouraged to submit stage 1 applications as soon as possible to allow more time to complete stage 2.

The closing date for stage two applications is Monday 28th September 2026.