Achates

Spring has brought a whole host of events that we look forward to kicking off with you! Here’s what’s coming up: 👉 DATA IN FUNDRAISING - Wed, 20 May, 12-1pm (online) Next up in our programming is a session demystifying the role of data in effective fundraising. Data is everywhere, but knowing what to collect and how to use it can feel overwhelming. This webinar explores why good data matters, what it actually looks like, and how you can start using it to strengthen your fundraising strategies. More about the event, the stellar panellists and registration via the link in the bio. 👉 ACHATES x YAF: BUILD YOUR ARTS FUNDRAISING EXPERTISE USING ACHATES COMMUNITY PLATFORM - Thu, 4 June, 12-1pm (online) As part of our exciting partnership with arts and culture consultancy @weareachates , we are delighted to invite you to an exclusive one-hour session on Achates Community platform. This session will demonstrate how you can also benefit from affordable, high-quality professional development content that genuinely speaks to your day-to-day challenges as an arts fundraiser through their membership programme. More on why you should join this event, the brilliant speakers and booking via the link in the bio. 👉 YAF SUMMER SOCIAL 2026 - Wed, 1 July, 7-9pm (in-person) Save the date for our very own Summer Social! Join us in King’s Cross, London, for an in-person evening with YAF volunteers and the wider community. Catch up with familiar faces, meet fellow young arts fundraising professionals, and get a taster of the welcoming atmosphere that makes YAF so special. Event venue details are coming soon. In the meantime, RSVP to attend via the link in the bio. 👉 FUNDRAISING FROM THE FRONTLINE - July (date TBC, online) To close this roundup, we have one more summer event for your calendar! This webinar will explore how a consistently good visitor experience can have a huge impact on stewarding relationships, maintaining long-term support, and securing strong engagement with visitor giving initiatives. More details coming soon on our website. Which of these sound like you?

UK GDPR can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. Data protection is essential to ethical fundraising, but often organisations navigate it without feeling fully confident in what’s required or how it applies in practice. We have launched new modules on data protection and prospect research, designed to break things down clearly and practically for you 🔐 Grounded in a purpose-led approach, these sessions support you to build confidence and ensure your prospect research is both effective and compliant. These sessions are exclusively available to members of Achates Community. Achates Community is our digital platform, giving you access to 60+ expert-led Masterclasses, toolkits, and leadership support, all designed to help your cultural organisation to build resilience with integrity. Find out more - head to the link in our bio

We have some exciting news to share! @youngartsfundraisers is partnering with @weareAchates and brings our members an exclusive event designed to support early-career arts fundraisers. If you are just starting out or have been navigating the sector for a few years, you will know how challenging it can be to find professional development that is both accessible and genuinely relevant. Achates Community was created to meet that need, offering expert-led masterclasses, a leadership programme, and a network of peers across the cultural sector. Join us on Thursday, 4 June at 12pm, for a special session where the Achates team will demonstrate how to use the platform to tackle the real, day-to-day challenges fundraisers face. Expect practical insight, honest guidance, and tools you can start using immediately. YAF members who attend will also receive: 🎭 An exclusive 10% discount on an Achates Community subscription 🎭 A two-week free trial 🎭 Practical templates to help secure organisational support for a subscription This partnership is a natural extension of YAF’s mission to equip early-career fundraisers with the skills, confidence and connections they need to thrive. Sign up to the online webinar via the link in our bio; we look forward to seeing you there!

We were delighted to host a Resilience Roundtable in Leeds yesterday with an exceptional group of arts leaders. Thank you for such a generous and thought-provoking discussion — spanning income diversification, leadership with purpose, and how we can foster an environment that truly supports experimentation and innovation in the sector.

Meet Phoebe Walker, Senior Consultant at Achates 👋

Are you confident that your fundraising data protection practices are fully compliant? 🔍 Data protection is critical - but it can feel complex, technical, and hard to apply in practice. In our upcoming Achates Community Masterclasses, we’re breaking it down for you: • What does UK GDPR actually mean for fundraising? • Which lawful bases apply to your prospect research? • How can you stay compliant whilst still working effectively? These new sessions will be released in a couple of weeks and will support you to build confidence in handling data responsibly, letting you fundraise with clarity, confidence and integrity. 💡 👉 Find out more about Achates Community and sign up via the link in our bio #AchatesCommunity #DataProtection #Fundraising #CulturalSector

Our Organisational Change work supports organisations to respond to change in a way which is purpose-led, collaborative and sustainable. We support organisations to build strong teams and long-term resilience. We’ll be sharing more about the other areas of our work over the coming weeks.

Achates Live! Maximising Your Organisation’s Earned Income Potential 🗓️ 9 April │ 🕐 2pm - 3pm As we experience an ever-more challenging environment for securing fundraised income, we know many organisations are increasingly trying to strengthen their earned income streams. However, for many, it can be difficult to know where to start in both maximising existing sources of earned income, and innovating new ones. In this session you’ll hear from our experienced panel on how they’ve successfully established purpose-driven earned income-generating programmes. We’ll explore how they did this, the challenges and opportunities, and the legacy of their initiatives for both their overall impact and their organisational culture. Book your place: 🔗 in bio #AchatesLive #EarnedIncome #CulturalSector #Arts #Heritage

Meet Jacoba Bruneel, Consultant at Achates 👋

In today’s climate, many cultural organisations are navigating increasing financial pressure and uncertainty. Our Income Generation team is here to support you in developing resilient fundraising strategies and unlocking new earned income opportunities, all rooted in organisational purpose and audience insight. Head to our website to read case studies about how we’ve supported clients to develop stronger, more sustainable income streams that support long-term impact and organisational resilience. We’ll be sharing more about the different areas of our work over the coming weeks. #CulturalSector #IncomeGeneration #Fundraising #Arts #Heritage #Culture

Achates Recruits is currently supporting the recruitment of two exciting roles in the sector: 👉 National Centre for Writing – Artistic Director & Chief Executive Officer @writerscentre is recruiting an outstanding individual to lead them, as their new Artistic Director & Chief Executive Officer, into the future. They are seeking someone to develop and set their strategic course, lead the excellent team already in place, build and maintain relationships with a wide range of partners and stakeholders, and ensure their financial resilience to enable them to continue to achieve their aims and ambitions for generations to come. 🗓️ Closes 10am on Tuesday 7 April 2026 👉 Tall Stories - Venues and Touring Coordinator @tallstories is currently seeking a new Venues and Touring Coordinator to support the organisation with its busy touring programme. Working closely with the Producer, key responsibilities will include meeting with venues and programmers, tour booking and contracts, and performance and technical scheduling. 🗓️ Closes: 9am on Monday 30 March 2026 To find out more about both roles, head to our website via the link in our bio #Recruitment #CulturalSector

At Achates our work spans consultancy across strategy, income generation, recruitment, and organisational change. Alongside this, we provide sector support and shared learning, including through our membership platform - Achates Community. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be introducing each area of our work in more detail! Get in touch if you want to find out more #CulturalSector #Arts #Heritage #Culture