The Digital Culture Awards 2025 FAQs
Can we enter?
All organisations and individuals who are eligible for Arts Council England funding can apply. You must be based in England and work within one of the Arts Council supported art forms. You don’t currently need to be in receipt of funding.
This means you either:
- work for or with a not-for-profit creative or cultural organisation;
- are an individual who is working independently;
- are a freelancer.
Funded Arts Council art forms include:
- Combined Arts
- Dance
- Libraries
- Literature
- Museums
- Music
- Theatre
- Visual Arts
Investment Principles Support Organisations are also eligible.
What is the eligibility period?
Your entered project or campaign must have taken place (wholly or in-part) during the eligibility period of 1 November 2022 to 1 October 2024.
Is there a prize?
As Arts Council England is a publicly funded body, we are unable to offer cash prizes. The Shortlist and Winners will receive branded digital email signatures, website badges, and certificate. In addition to that, the Winners will receive a Digital Culture Awards branded trophy, and will be featured in a Digital Culture Network Showreel video, receiving ongoing publicity across our digital channels.
Why should we enter?
Fame! If shortlisted, you and your entered project will be shared across Arts Council and Digital Culture Network channels and put on the radar of tech and creative sector experts. The Shortlist and Winners will receive branded digital email signatures, website badges, and certificate. In addition to that, the Winners will receive a Digital Culture Awards branded trophy, and will be featured in a Digital Culture Network Showreel video, receiving ongoing publicity across our digital channels.
Can we enter one category more than once?
You can enter the same category multiple times as long as you are entering a different project or campaign.
Can we enter the same project or campaign into more than one category?
You can, but please ensure each entry references the correct category criteria.
Can I re-enter a project I entered in the 2023 Digital Culture Awards?
We know that some projects will have a lifespan across the eligibility periods of the 2023 and 2025 Awards. If your project continued into the eligibility period for the 2025 Awards, and you can demonstrate new discoveries or outcomes, then we’d love to hear updates on existing projects. The categories have changed since 2023, so you might want to consider if your project is still relevant for the same category.
Who should submit the entry?
This will depend on the category and the scale or structure of your organisation. Before doing your submission, you might want to consider speaking with the people responsible for marketing, participation, HR, finance, or data (just to name a few). They could have unexpected insights, examples, or an interest in entering a category you didn’t consider!
How will the Winners be chosen?
In the first judging round, each category will be longlisted by an expert team of Digital Culture Network Tech Champions. In the second judging round, Tech Champions will be joined by an independent industry expert Judge, and the Arts Council England Innovation and Creative Media teams. They will form a scoring panel and pick their top entries, which will be the Shortlist for each category. All Winners will be announced in March 2025.
How do we submit our entry?
We are taking entries using the Award Force platform, which you can access using the buttons on the category pages on this website. To view the category entry form you will need to register on the Award Force platform and begin a draft submission. You can edit your entry as often as you like up until the entry period closes. To make changes, open your entry and add all the new information. Click Save + Close, to save the changes.
We’ve tried to make entering as simple as possible – all we need is a description of your project, your contact details, a few supporting assets and answers to a few questions specific to the category.
To find out more about the entry process and the entry platform, please watch the ‘How to enter’ video’.
Can I increase the size of the text on the submission platform?
Yes, you can increase the size of the page by using the zoom in function on the web browser.
We’ve got some questions – who do we ask?
If you have a technical question about the Award Force platform, please use this article or email [email protected]
Can we get some help to submit our entry?
We want to make sure everyone can take part in the Digital Culture Awards. If you need some support with making your submission, you can get in touch with Arts Council’s Access Support team on [email protected].
How will you store our data?
All data will be stored in accordance with the Arts Council England privacy policy. Your application will be shared with Judges for longlisting and shortlisting purposes. If you make it to the Shortlist round, parts of the application will be shared publicly. More information about what we will share publicly can be found in the guidelines on the Award Force platform. Your contact details will not be shared with the Judges or publicly.
Where can I find the Terms & Conditions?
You can find the Terms & Conditions here.
Where can I find all the information in Easy Read format?
You can find all the information in the Easy Read format here.
