Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council invites applications for a writer in residence for the period October 2012 to May 2013. The writer in residence is a partnership between the Library Service and the Arts Office of the County Council. The residency seeks to support writers in all genres. The residency is envisaged as a part-time position which will allow time both for the writer’s own work in addition to engagement and interaction with both the general public and more specifically with those with an interest in writing themselves. As part of this residency, the successful applicant will also be asked to engage with the public through the Meadowbrook leisure facility in Ballinteer.
RESIDENCY OBJECTIVES
To create opportunities for the writer to:
- Develop her/his own work
- Create opportunities for communities to engage with writers through the dlr Libraries and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Leisure Services network
WRITER’S BRIEF
Writers are invited to take inspiration from varied sources, to include the library environment, local communities and the county. The work may involve working with various demographics in the county, including young people, older people and those new to writing. The writer in residence will be required to organise a minimum of two high profile public events over the course of the residency. At least one third of the time on this residency should be focused on the writer’s own work.
As part of this residency, the successful applicant will be invited to engage with the various communities using the dlr Leisure Services Meadowbrook facility in Ballinteer, Dublin 16 to produce a new piece of work. The mission of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Leisure Services is to promote the benefits of sport for recreational and healthy living purposes on a non-profit basis.
The Meadowbrook facility includes a swimming pool, gym and aerobics room, along with four all weather pitches. There is a broad cross-section of users from the local community. The facility also includes a number of smaller rooms which may be made available to the writer in residence for the purpose of workshops/meetings.
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is open to various levels of engagement with Meadowbrook and the new work may directly or indirectly reflect this.
In terms of the dlr Library network, this residency will focus specifically on the Dundrum and Stillorgan branches.
The details will be agreed in consultation with the appointed writer. The programme will be supervised by the Assistant Arts Officer, Arts Programme Development, Arts Office.
SELECTION PROCESS
Writers will submit a proposal together with details of previous work to date as follows:
- A typed curriculum vitae (maximum 3 pages);
- Examples of previous work;
- Publications, programmes or published articles, such as reviews;
- Typed proposal outlining artistic ideas and approaches (no more than two typed pages); this should include an outline of the benefits of the residency to her/his stage of development as a writer and ideas in relation to public engagement during the residency and how s/he might engage with the Meadowbrook leisure facility.
Please note: Applicants must submit three copies of CV and proposal.
Please ensure that all submitted materials are clearly marked with the writer’s name.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
- Artistic merit and distinctiveness of proposal
- Quality of previous work
- Suitability of the proposal to the context
- Facilitation ability and experience.
INTERVIEWS
Applicants will be short-listed on the basis of their submissions and short-listed applicants will be called for interview on Wednesday 12 September.
In advance of the residency the following will be agreed:
- Clear goals, roles and responsibilities and agreed criteria for the writer in residence, the Library Service and the Arts Office;
- Agreed programme of work that is flexible and responsive;
- Mediation and facilitation of the writer on site /Please note that a dedicated space in a library venue or Meadowbrook will not be available but a temporary space could be made available for particular events, meetings or workshops;
- Administrative support from the Arts Office and Libraries will be provided;
- A timetable that balances time for the writer’s own work and time for interaction with various publics;
- Ongoing review and evaluation; regular meetings.
It should be noted that this is a part-time residency, which will require flexibility around working hours.
SUMMARY OF KEY DATES
- June/July 2012: call for submissions
- 16 August 2012: closing date for receipt of submissions
- Wednesday 12 September: interviews for short-listed applicants
- The residency will begin in October and last until the end of May 2013.
BUDGET INFORMATION: The total budget for the residency is €10,000. This amount is to be fully inclusive of the writer’s fee of €8,000 (including VAT and insurance) and an allowance for publications, public events, materials and other related costs of €2,000. Please note that the appointed writer will be required to have Public Liability Insurance with cover of €6.5 million. Non-Vat registered service providers may be liable for Professional Services Withholding Tax. The successful writer will be required to provide Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council with a tax clearance certificate prior to signing of contracts.
SUPPORT FROM DUN LAOGHAIRE RATHDOWN COUNTY COUNCIL: Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Public Library Service and Arts Office will act as the liaison support between the writer, the local authority and local communities during the selection process and throughout the residency. The Assistant Arts Officer, Arts Programme Development will be responsible for administering contracts and payments to the writer.
CHILD PROTECTION: In accordance with the national Child Protection Guidelines Children First, the selected candidate will be required to follow child protection procedures as specified by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. The successful candidate will be required to undergo Garda Vetting.
INSURANCE: The writer in residence agrees to keep the Council fully indemnified against all claims howsoever arising and howsoever caused in respect of any damage, loss or injury of any kind or nature, whether arising directly or indirectly from the provision of the residency and to provide evidence of Public Liability insurance which indemnifies Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council with a limit of indemnity of €6.5 million. It is the responsibility of the writer in residence to ensure that other person(s) not employed by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, but employed by the writer in residence to assist them with the residency have adequate Public Liability (€6.5 million) and Employer’s Liability (€13 million) cover which indemnify both Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and the writer.
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION: The provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 1997-2003 apply to Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. Applicants should state if any of the information supplied by them is confidential or sensitive and should not be disclosed to a request for information under the aforementioned Act. Applicants should state why they consider the information to be confidential or commercially sensitive.
PROMPT PAYMENTS: Under the Prompt Payments Accounts Act, the Local Authority is obliged to pay within 30 days, upon receipt of a valid invoice.
APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE SUBMITTED TO:
Ciara King
Assistant Arts Officer, Arts Programme Development
Arts Office
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Library HQ, 5th Floor
Harbour Square 2
Crofton Road
Dún Laoghaire
Co. Dublin.
Please note that Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council reserves the right not to appoint if none of the applications received are deemed to be suitable. In this instance Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council reserves the right to pursue a different procurement process.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
For queries: refer any queries to Ciara King, Assistant Arts Officer, Arts Programme Development, E:cking@dlrcoco.ie or T: 01-271 9529
For submissions: Ciara King, Assistant Arts Officer, Arts Programme Development, Arts Office, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Library HQ, 5th Floor, Harbour Square 2, Crofton Road, Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin
Website: http://www.dlrcoco.ie
