Join Us!

SPARK is the Local Cultural Education Partnership (LCEP) in Wakefield and is made up of a group of organisations and individuals working to ensure children and young people across the borough can enjoy, benefit from and progress in arts and culture.  

We are looking to build our membership and steering group to ensure our work is representative, relevant and inclusive.  To that end, we are currently recruiting for new steering group members. 

How to apply

To apply for the position, please send a CV and expression of interest, detailing your relevant experience and what you can bring to the role to sparkwakefield@gmail.com. The deadline for applications is 11.59pm on Wednesday 3rd July. 

We would particularly welcome applications from those with relevant knowledge and/or experience of:

  • Schools-based education
  • Partnership working
  • Fundraising and grant applications
  • Data analysis and evaluation
  • Accounting and finance
  • Marketing

Interviews will take place on Monday 8th July

Following successful appointment, a full Steering Group meeting will take place at 1pm on Friday 26th July

If you have any questions about SPARK, the Steering Group role or the application process, please contact sparkwakefield@gmail.com  

Role Description

Steering group members contribute to setting the vision, strategic direction and public profile for the partnership. This includes devising initiatives, overseeing and monitoring finance and delivery, and tasking the working groups and wider partnership as required.

The steering group members will attend 6 regular half termly meetings annually. For decisions to be passed at the steering group there must be a quorum group of 60%. It is expected that steering group members will attend a minimum of 4 meetings out of 6 per year and participate in the annual review.  

As part of the annual review, attendance of steering group partners will be reviewed to ensure our work is effective. 

Responsibilities of the steering group include: 

  • Working together to agree strategy and steer the Partnership. 
  • Managing budget and HR issues. 
  • Attending and leading, where appropriate, network meetings. 
  • Engaging with the wider membership on issues that matter to them.  
  • Remaining up to date with the business of the steering group by reading all relevant papers prior to meetings where decisions or approaches may be agreed. (Feedback after key meetings should also be channelled through the Chair, Vice Chair, Creative Voice and Creative Learning Coordinators.) 
  • Participating in task and finish groups where required. 
  • Identifying possible new members (as part of the annual review process) and formulating an introduction. 
  • Advocating for cultural education and representing SPARK’s interests.  
  • Undertaking the administrative and financial reporting requirements of SPARK. 

Benefits of the role include:

  • Helping young people to creatively connect with the arts and cultural landscape of the Wakefield District and develop a sense of place
  • Helping arts and cultural organisations, schools and educational settings to connect with the arts and cultural landscape of the Wakefield District and develop a sense of place. 
  • Helping to shape the vision and provision of creative and cultural education opportunities and initiatives for children and young people in the district
  • Connecting with other professionals in the local arts, culture and education sector. 
  • Access to work within collaborative projects 
  • Connecting to the wider Regional LCEP network 

SPARK’s Terms of Reference can be found at: 

https://sparkwakefield.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SPARK-WAKEFIELD-TOR-February-2024-Latest.pdf

Details of SPARK’s current initiatives with and for young people can be found on our website www.sparkwakefield.co.uk and our social media pages: https://www.facebook.com/sparkwakefield/ and https://www.instagram.com/sparkwakefield/