Open Call – Legacy Partners for Birmingham Light Festival
INTRODUCTION
We are currently working on the next edition of Birmingham Light Festival.
You can read more about the idea for this project here: https://www.birminghamlightfestival.co.uk/
After a successful first year we are also looking to continue our Legacy Programme. Our ambition is to progressively illuminate the city at night, all-year-round.
To achieve this, each year we are aiming to commission a minimum of one permanent light installation.
For 2025 we commissioned three artworks – all of which can be seen here: https://www.birminghamlightfestival.co.uk/artwork
WHO DO WE WANT TO PARTNER WITH?
We are now seeking partnerships with land owners and building owners who share our interest in light art and our ambition to illuminate Birmingham year-round.
We are interested in hearing from:
Individual Organisations: Land owners or building owners who have both a suitable space for a permanent, outdoor, installation and who are passionate about contributing to the cultural and visual landscape of Birmingham through permanent light installations.
Collaborative Partnerships: Land owners working in partnership with one of our City Centre BID partners. This collaborative approach is our preference.
We are particularly looking to work with a Legacy Partner who has an interest in creating a light artwork that helps us to improve the welcome to the city. We want to improve the arrival experience when people arrive at major transport hubs in the city centre.
Whilst match funding is not a requirement for this project, it is an advantage as we are seeking to deliver maximum benefit for the city.
FUNDING
Our first round of Legacy Artworks was funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and we have a live application with Birmingham City Council for this year’s funding.
Make it stand out
If we are successful in our bid, we will be seeking to award up to £25,000 of capital funding for one new permanent light installation. This funding is intended to cover the costs of commissioning, producing, and installing the artwork.
Important note: Please be aware that we are inviting applications from interested partners in advance of a funding decision being made to make the delivery timetable plausible. That does mean this project may not go ahead in 2026. BCC will make their funding decision by 13 October.
PARTNER ELIGIBILITY
To be considered for this opportunity, partners must meet the following criteria:
1. Commitment to the Vision:
Share our vision for Birmingham Light Festival and its associated legacy work, noting the key principles that guide our work: https://www.birminghamlightfestival.co.uk/key-pillars
2. Location:
Own or have significant influence over an outdoor space in Birmingham’s city-centre where a permanent light installation can be located.
If you are not the land owner your application must be in partnership with the land owner.
The location you have in mind must have:
Suitable infrastructure to support a permanent light installation with particular consideration to access to electricity & structural stability.
It must be outdoors
It must be free to access and open to all
Your location must be within Colmore BID, Jewellery Quarter BID, Westside BID, Southside BID, Central BID or Edgbaston Village.
3. Collaboration on Design:
Be able and willing to work in close collaboration with the Birmingham Light Festival team on the design of the installation to ensure the successful integration into the thematics of the broader festival and city environment.
4. Project Management:
Be suitably resourced to project manage the development and delivery of this project within the very tight timeline outlined below.
5. Permissions & Insurance:
Be prepared to resource and obtain any required legal permissions such as planning permission or land use agreements.
Take full ownership of the installation and its associated liabilities, putting in place suitable risk management strategies and insurance, as required.
6. Long-Term Engagement:
Commit to funding power and maintenance of the light installation for a minimum of 3 years with intention to extend.
Be prepared to support our evaluation of your Legacy Artwork through evaluating the impact of the commission:
– Count footfall during the festival
– Stay in touch around ongoing public response to the artwork
APPLICATION PROCESS
We invite all interested parties to apply through submission of a proposal, no more than 2 A4 pages long. This should include:
Why you want to be part of Birmingham Light Festival’s first legacy project
The broad creative vision you have in mind for improving the welcome to the city in your space
Identified location (address, google maps pin and images of space as additional attachments)
How you / your partnership meet each one of the 6 identified eligibility criteria
Letter of support from land owner (if applying in collaboration and are not the landowner)
Outline of the in-kind support you are able to commit to the project, including staff time for project management
How much you are applying for (up to £25,000).
Details of match funding you are able to commit to the project, if any.
Applications must be submitted to: alex.nicholson-evans@colmorebid.co.uk by midnight on 29 September 2025.
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU ARE SELECTED?
Once partners have been selected, we will work with you to commission a creative delivery partner via the following process.
Open Call:
We will deliver an open call to find you a delivery partner. Partners with experience working in light and public realm will be invited to respond to a specific brief developed by you, with our support.
Selection Process:
We will collectively review submissions and we will then invite mutually agreed shortlisted applicants to discuss their proposals in more detail at interview.
We will then mutually agree which creative to appoint for the commission.
Delivery:
Once the above selection process is complete, we will hand over the reins to you but we will remain involved in the creative decision making to ensure the commission aligns with the broader festival vision and operational plans.
It is a requirement of the funding that the Birmingham Light Festival team are engaged throughout the design process and jointly sign off the final design with the land owner.
From here on in you will need to independently project manage the delivery of the commission with light touch reporting at key mutually agreed milestones.
Awarding of funds:
£10,000 will be made available upon artwork sign off, which must take place by 2 December (latest).
The remaining funds will be made available upon successful install and test on 5 February (latest) in readiness for switch on W/O 9 February.
TIMELINE:
The timeline for this project is challenging so we are looking for partners who are agile and able to commit to the below timeline:
Legacy Partners Call Out Closes: 29 September
Follow Up Meetings: 2 October
In principle Legacy Partnership agreed: 3 October
Legacy Partner working on Creative Brief with our input: 3 October – 17 October
BCC Funding Decision: 13 October
Partner Contracts Issued: By 17 October
Creative Open Call begins with a very specific brief on the artwork vision provided by Partner: By 17 October
Application Deadline: 31 October
Shortlisting with Partners: 3 November
Shortlisting Announcement: 4 November
Interviews: 7 November
Creatives Contracted by Partners: 14 November
Latest date for final design sign off: 2 December
Latest date for planning permission to be submitted by Legacy Partner: 12 December
Hard deadline for completion on install and test: 5 February 2026
Switch on: W/O 9 February (precise dates TBC)