Leadership Pulse is our dynamic modular course, where you’ll gain the essential skills and competencies needed for personal and professional growth in today’s cultural sector, including confidence, resilience, and clarity of purpose.

Leadership Pulse consists of two five-day residential workshops. We award 24 places each year to leaders in areas such as the visual and performing arts, museums, libraries, archives and heritage, film and digital media, and cultural policy and practice. Leadership Pulse is for leaders with ambition and vision who can show how they might take their leadership to the next level. The programme is learned through experience, not taught, and is grounded in contemporary leadership theories and approaches.

There is a strong emphasis on discovering and developing your unique strengths as a leader while gaining the tools to drive meaningful change across the cultural sector.

Residential content and discussion will explore authenticity in leadership; values; coaching skills; inclusive cultures; strategic planning; finance; governance, the practice of leadership in action; impact; influence, wellbeing/ restorative care in leadership, as well as the opportunity to learn from guest leaders.

The programme format blends opportunities for facilitated reflection, taught content, discussion and debate through a variety of whole and small group, small solo activities. There will be plenty of time to meet with your peers, get to know each other and learn from one another’s professional, lived and learned experiences.

Leadership Pulse is

For leaders who have been working in a leadership or change-making role in arts and culture for a minimum of 5 years
A self-directed programme where you determine our own personal learning journey.
Heavily focused on self-reflection, rather than taught content.
An opportunity to learn new things about yourself, where you will gain most by stepping out of your comfort zone, to explore who you are and would like to become as a leader.
An opportunity to get your teeth into knotty questions facing the cultural sector.
An opportunity to learn with and from others in a cohort of peers from across a range of artform/ cultural sector areas.

Leadership Pulse isn’t

A business management course or creative enterprise focused programme.
Training.
A qualification or accredited programme.

Download Application Guide

Programme Details

Leadership Pulse takes place in October 2026 and February 2027 and includes:

Two 5 day residential workshops including accommodation, meals, and refreshments. You’ll learn about yourself, your leadership, and explore the skills and strategies of leadership. You’ll work with facilitators, Clore Leadership staff, associates, and speakers. You’ll hear from a range of guest leaders about their leadership journeys.
A 360° leadership profile – to explore what that means for you and your leadership.
Small Group Conversations – with members of your cohort.
Coaching Session – individual support as you journey through your learning.

Access budget provision for D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent, or for those with caring responsibilities.

Why Choose Leadership Pulse?

We’re looking for leaders who are:

Dynamic, strategic, and collaborative.
Intellectually curious, creative, and possess emotional intelligence and integrity.
Entrepreneurial and passionate about making a difference through culture.
Ready to take on significant leadership challenges and effect change.
Who are deeply reflective, able to ask themselves honest and searching questions.

This adaptive programme is for leaders from across the cultural sector, who are ready to make a step change in their leadership careers and the cultural sector. Whether working independently or as part of an institution, you should demonstrate an aptitude and appetite for effecting significant change. We’re committed to increasing the diversity of leaders in arts and culture and particularly welcome applications from leaders from the Global Majority, and D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent who are currently under-represented in the sector.

Testimonial

Doing Leadership Pulse was absolutely transformative! If you want to drive change through authentic leadership, this is for you! I’m grateful to have met amazing people and to be part of this fantastic network of leaders!
Dr Liliana Araújo

Eligibility Criteria

Applicants to Leadership Pulse need to be able to demonstrate the following:

Have been working in a leadership or change making role in arts and culture for a minimum of 5 years. You will be asked in the application to provide a CV outlining that you meet the level of experience required.
Demonstrate that you are / have an ambition to lead and are making a significant impact through your work/ practice.
Demonstrate a deep commitment, passion, and understanding of the cultural sector and its broader context.
Demonstrate an understanding of your leadership potential.
Demonstrate curiosity, self-reflection and self-awareness and openness to learning about yourself and others.
Be in a position to influence practice and/or policy and effect change in your organisation, sector and beyond, as an artist or cultural professional.
Specialist Fellowships may have additional eligibility criteria. You will be asked how you meet these criteria within the application.
Be open to sharing your learning with others.

Costs & Funding

Thanks to funding from Arts Council England and Clore Duffield Foundation, we can offer subsidised course fees to eligible applicants.

Band A – 1-15 employees: £1,000 +VAT
Band B – 16- 50 employees: £1,600 +VAT
Band C – 51-199 employees: £2,000 +VAT
Band D – 200+ employees: £2,400 +VAT

The unsubsidised cost of a Leadership Pulse course place is £5,000 +VAT. There may be a limited number of unsubsidised places on each course, priority will be given to those who meet the criteria for a subsidised place.

Included in your Course fees:

The cost of two residential programmes including tuition and all course materials.
Accommodation, meals and refreshments for the duration of the residential courses.
Coaching.
Access budget provision for D/deaf or disabled and neurodivergent leaders or those with caring responsibilities.
Central support from the Clore Leadership team.

Our courses are supported by Arts Council England and to be eligible for a subsidised place applicants must be:

Working in England (normally in the arts, museums and/or libraries sector).
Committed to developing their career as a cultural leader in England.

Applicants Outside the UK

We do welcome applications to our courses from applicants based or working outside of the UK, but our unsubsidised course fee would apply and you should check your eligibility for any bursary you are applying for. Our course content is delivered in English and overseas course participants would be responsible for making their own travel arrangements and securing the visas necessary to attend the course.

Funding and Bursaries

Through support from our funders and partners we are able to provide a range of bursaries supporting the costs of course places for applicants. You are able to apply for any bursaries to which you are eligible. You can also apply for a place without a bursary.

Creative Scotland Bursaries

The Creative Scotland Bursaries will support a culture leader, who is working independently or within an organisation, to develop their career as cultural leader in Scotland. Creative Scotland particularly welcomes applications from the Global Majority and D/deaf, disabled or neurodivergent candidates in recognition of the current under-representation in leadership positions. Applicants must live and work in Scotland within a cultural discipline supported by Creative Scotland.

Available for: Emerging Leaders and Leadership Pulse.
Bursary support available: A small number, covering the full course fee.

Exclusions:

Applicants working in the museums and heritage sector and other disciplines not eligible for Creative Scotland funding. For details visit Creative Scotland Funding page.
Students in full-time education or undertaking a long-term, formal or accredited course of learning.

D/deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent Leaders’ Bursary

Bursaries for applicants who identify as D/deaf, disabled* and neurodivergent leaders.

Available for: Emerging Leaders and Leadership Pulse.
Bursary support available: A small number, covering 50% of the applicable fee.

*The Equality Act 2010 defines a disabled person as someone who has a physical or mental impairment, and the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities

Freelancers’ Bursary

A small number of reduced fee places are available to freelance applicants on each course. Freelance bursary applicants may also apply for other bursaries, providing they meet the eligibility criteria.

Available for: Emerging Leaders and Leadership Pulse
Bursary support available: Up to two bursaries available on each course.
Course fee after bursary £500 + VAT

Gatsby Foundation Bursary

Bursary funded by Gatsby is available for applicants working in theatre. Applicants must be committed to developing their career as a cultural leader and be working in the UK.

Available for: Emerging Leaders and Leadership Pulse.
Bursary support available: A small number, covering the full course fee

Global Majority Leaders’ Bursary

Bursaries for applicants from the Global Majority.

Available for: Emerging Leaders and Leadership Pulse
Bursary support available: A small number, covering 50% of the applicable fee.

Linbury Trust Bursary for Former Dancers

Bursary for applicants who are former dancers. Applicants must be committed to developing their career as a cultural leader and be working in the UK.

Available for: Emerging Leaders and Leadership Pulse.
Bursary support available: A small number, covering the full course fee.

Access support for your application

You can make your course application in alternative format (E.g. audio or video) in our applications portal. If you need support email [email protected] leave us a message and we will get back to you.

Application Guide in BSL/Audio or captions available here

Supporting your access on the residential course

We will discuss any support you might need with you before you start the residential to make sure we can make adjustments or put the additional support you need in place. We have worked with many D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent leaders previously. The support you need is individual to you, but the kinds of things we have put in place before includes;

Providing a note taker throughout the residential
Support for a Personal Assistant to attend with you
Captioning of online residential sessions
Supporting the costs of BSL interpreters
Providing written materials in different formats

Support for those with caring responsibilities

To help support those with caring responsibilities we provide Carers Access Support which can support costs of up to £75 per day towards additional childcare or other caring related costs during residentials/workshops and during your residential.

Our Venues

Our residential locations have undergone an access audit which we are able to provide should you wish. The training spaces are ground level, with accessible toilets located nearby. Accessible accommodation is available and we will ask you about your specific accommodation needs prior to the course.

Online Q&A’s

The following online Q&A’s are taking place

Thursday 7 May, 2 pm: General Access (Captions, BSL and recording will be available)
Wednesday 14 May, 11 am for Global Majority applicants only (will not be recorded)

If you can not make the online Q&A sessions, don’t worry we will have a recording available as well as copy of some questions put to our team.