Nominations are now closed for this year’s Prize. Thank you to everyone who participated.

The 2026 Shortlisted Organisations are:

The Individual Philanthropy Award

Curious School of Puppetry and Mark Edwards

Dance Consortium and Reeta Chakrabarti

Northern Ballet and Tim Williams & the Williams Family

PROJEKT UTOPIA and Michael Chirashi

The Royal Shakespeare Company and Richard Watson

Talawa and Mrs. Wendy Stuart

The Coporate Support Award

Colchester Mercury Theatre and the GreyFriars Hotel, Colchester

Eden Court Highlands and Highland Broadband

Fermynwoods Contemporary Art and 100Green

Luca Silvistrini’s Protein Dance and Lux Electrical Solutions

Metropolitan Arts Centre (The MAC) and fonaCAB

Z-arts and Greenmount Projects

Launched in 2016, the Achates Philanthropy Prize is the national campaign to promote the democratisation of cultural philanthropy. Now in its eighth cycle, the Prize celebrates first-time supporters of culture, nominated by the cultural and heritage sector charities themselves, across the UK in two categories:

• The Individual Philanthropy Award celebrates individuals or trusts making their first gift to the nominating cultural organisation, at any level of giving and across all art forms.

• The Corporate Support Award recognises first-time corporate support to the nominating cultural organisation, through financial or in-kind support including skills sharing, network growth and advocacy.

Key Dates & Details

• Eligibility: UK cultural and heritage charities of any size

• Deadline for Nominations: Midnight 7th September 2026

• Shortlist Announced: 21 September 2026

• Awards Ceremony: 18th November 2026 at Southbank Centre

• Categories: Individual Philanthropy and Corporate Support

• Prize: £5,000 to each winning organisation

Each winning organisation receives a £5,000 prize and their philanthropist or corporate partner becomes the annual custodian of the Prize sculpture by Peter Brooke-Ball MRBS. Previous nominated and winning organisations have included Battersea Arts Centre, Cardboard Citizens, Ministry of Stories, Scottish Ballet, The Roundhouse, Spread the Word and The Women's Prize Trust.

The judges of the 2026 Achates Philanthropy Prize!

We are thrilled to welcome an amazing group of cultural sector leaders, funders and academics to the independent judging panels of this year’s Prize winners in two categories. We extend special thanks to our two Panel Chairs.

Judges for the Individual Philanthropy Award

Panel Chair: Stuart Hobley, Director, The Linbury Trust

Jasmina Bidé, Trustee, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation

Dr Beth Breeze OBE, University of Oxford

Josh Cockcroft, Director of Research and Impact, Climate Spring

Rose Goddard, Director, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation

Ruth Harrison, Director, London Writer’s Centre

Tarek Iskander, Artistic Director & CEO, Battersea Arts Centre

Deborah Larwood, Director of Income Generation, Achates

Oonagh Murphy, CEO, Dublin Municipal Theatre at Smock Alley 

Anonymous Supporter, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation

Judges for the Corporate Support Award

Panel Chair: Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre

Charlotte Armah, Trustee, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation

Vicki Grace, Achates 

Emily Lloyd, Trustee, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation 

Caroline McCormick, Director, Achates

Zoe McGhee, Director of Strategic Partnerships, The Big House

Paul Owens, Trustee, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation

Sarah Philp, Deputy Director, Delfina Foundation

Bill Swainson, Trustee, Cultural Philanthropy Foundation

Further Questions? Please visit our FAQs or email sally@culturalphilanthropyfoundation.co.uk.