Please note: The application period has ended.
On 22 March 2022, the Culture and Library Sub-committee of the Culture and Leisure Committee(Link leads to external service) decided to allocate EUR 1.75 million to recovery from the pandemic during 2022 and 2023. EUR 600,000 was earmarked for registered operators not included in the central government subsidies system (VOS). The call for applications was open from 13 April to 27 April 2022 at 16:00. Decisions on the grants were made at a meeting of the Culture and Library Sub-committee on 9 June 2022. The grants were to be used between 1 July and 31 December 2022. The reporting deadline is 31 May 2023.
Call for applications: Targeted COVID-19 grant 2022
Please note: The application period has ended.
The purpose of the targeted grant is to support continuity and secure operations in the field of arts and culture as part of the recovery from the Covid pandemic. The total maximum amount of grants to be awarded is EUR 600,000. The grants must be used between 1 January and 31 December 2022. An applicant organisation may only submit one application for this targeted grant. The minimum grant amount is EUR 10,000.
The City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Division requires applicants to study the application notice and instructions carefully before applying for the grant.
Eligible organisations
Legally authorised organisations based in Helsinki are eligible. These include registered associations, foundations, cooperatives, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, proprietorships and general partnerships. Organisations receiving funding through the central government subsidies system (VOS) are ineligible for this grant.
Other ineligible operators include private individuals, working groups, operators or entities owned by the City of Helsinki or that are part of the City Group, organisations receiving funding through the central government subsidies system (VOS), and operators domiciled in a city other than Helsinki.
Application period
The application period is from 13 to 27 April 2022 at 16.00.
Assessment criteria
The grants are targeted at professionally operating registered artistic and cultural organisations in Helsinki, as well as other operators in the field of arts and culture whose actual operating income has decreased due to the pandemic.
The comparison of grant applicants is based primarily on the following assessment criteria:
- Applicant’s need for additional funding: the applicant’s report on the need for additional aid, where changes in the operator’s turnover and/or operating income in 2019–2021, the operator’s other financial situation, and any other COVID-19 grants received by the applicant will be assessed.
- Professionalism of the applicant: the applicant’s report on their previous activities in the field of art and culture and a description of the nature of the applicant’s activities. Operators whose activities are professionally organised, even if they otherwise focus on leisure activities, will be considered professional operators.
- Professionalism of the applicant: the applicant’s report on their previous activities in the field of art and culture and a description of the nature of the applicant’s activities. Operators whose activities are professionally organised, even if they otherwise focus on leisure activities, will be considered professional operators.
In addition, the general assessment criteria for arts and culture grants may be secondarily taken into account. These are:
- Artistic quality
- Diversity and equality
- Accessibility and availability
- Inclusion and participation
- Quality and implementation of activity
Other terms and conditions
To receive the grant, the applicant must meet the primary assessment criteria. The grants are discretionary and awarded based on an assessment and comparison of the applications and a general assessment. No applicants have a subjective right to the grant, even if they meet all the assessment criteria. The decision-making also depends on the available appropriations.
The applications and the intended use of the grants are public information.
The grant recipients must be aware of and comply with the general grant application instructions of the City of Helsinki(Link leads to external service). (pdf, in Finnish)
Applying for a grant
The grant is applied for through the City of Helsinki e-services. A grant application, the mandatory appendix to a targeted COVID-19 grant application and other mandatory enclosures to the application must be submitted through the e-services. Applications cannot be submitted by email. The applications and attachments will not be returned.
Late application
If an application is not submitted by the deadline, it will be regarded as late and rejected. The applications must be submitted through the City of Helsinki e-services by 16.00 on the closing date of the application period.
Decision
Specialists from the Cultural Services and Support partner unit will assess the applications, and a decision on the grants to be awarded will be made by the Culture and Library Sub-committee on 9 June 2022. Decisions will be public after the meeting. Applicants will be notified by post.
Payment and use of the grant
The full grant amount will be paid to the recipient as a single instalment after the decision has been made. The awarded grant may be used for expenses incurred in 2022 until 31 December 2022. The recipient must submit a written report on the use of the grant at the end of the period of use. The reporting deadline is 31 May 2023.
The grants may only be used in accordance with the grant decision.
The use of the grant must be monitored as a separate cost unit in accounting. Vouchers in chronological order must be available for all transactions. The accounts and vouchers must be retained for the period prescribed by law.
For more information about the targeted COVID-19 grant for 2022, please contact Project Planning Officer Riikka Mäkinen, tel. +358 9 310 35479, riikka.m.makinen@hel.fi (Link opens default mail program).