Creative Scotland Open Fund for Individuals: £500–£50,000 for Scotland-Based Music Creators
Creative Scotland's Open Fund for Individuals supports freelance and self-employed artists and creative practitioners living in Scotland. Music practitioners, composers, performers and producers may seek support for qualifying research, development or delivery of creative work. This is project funding, not an employment vacancy or a competition prize.
Eligibility
Applicants must be at least 18 years old, live in Scotland, and work as freelance or self-employed creative practitioners. An applicant must have a UK bank account in their legal name. Full-time students cannot apply. Part-time students must meet additional conditions, including that the proposed activity is separate from their studies. This individual fund is not intended for organisations or applicants based outside Scotland.
Funding and eligible activity
Applications can request £500 to £50,000. Activities may run for up to 24 months and can include creative research, professional development and the production or presentation of work. An applicant must describe the intended outcomes, public or community benefit, and eligible budget. Support for a proposed music project depends on the fund's criteria; music activity is not automatically entitled to an award.
Deadline, costs and decision timing
The programme has no fixed application deadline and accepts applications throughout the year, subject to the remaining budget and the current availability of the official application portal. Applications are free. Creative Scotland normally aims to decide requests of up to £20,000 within around 10 weeks and higher requests within around 14 weeks; seasonal closures may affect the schedule. The proposed project dates should allow for the assessment and funding agreement.
How to apply
Read the current Open Fund for Individuals guidance and funding criteria, create an account on Creative Scotland's official application system and submit the required activity description, timetable and budget. Requirements vary with the amount requested. Only the administering organisation can determine eligibility and make a funding decision.
Official information
Important notice
This article provides a summary. To avoid misunderstandings, please be sure to check the official page for full details. Information verified on 15 October 2026.
Our competitions
Enter with a link to an audio or video recording; a score is optional. For the rules and entry information for the ISAC International Popular and Media Music Composition Competition, visit the competition page.