Arts Project Manager

About the British Council

The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. It creates connections, understanding and trust through education, arts, culture, language and creativity and operates in more than 100 countries.

Position Details

• Job title: Arts Project Manager
• Job ID: 50132
• Location: Nigeria; the official role description identifies Lagos as the duty location
• Employment type: Full-time
• Contract type: Indefinite contract
• Pay grade: 6
• Deadline: 16 September 2026 at 21:59 IST, as displayed on the official portal
• Work eligibility: Applicants are responsible for confirming that they have the right to live and work in Nigeria.

Role Purpose

The Arts Project Manager will support delivery of the British Council’s country Arts portfolio by managing the daily coordination, logistics, procurement, compliance, financial tracking and reporting for assigned projects. These may cover the creative economy, cultural exchange, capacity building, grants and client-funded programmes.

Working under the Arts Programme Manager, the postholder will hold operational responsibility for assigned projects and help ensure that each initiative is delivered on time, within budget and in accordance with British Council quality, safeguarding, compliance and impact standards.

Key Responsibilities

Project Coordination and Delivery

• Coordinate assigned arts projects, grants and cultural initiatives against approved plans, milestones and expected outcomes.
• Maintain detailed delivery plans and track progress, risks, issues, dependencies and agreed actions.
• Coordinate the operational requirements for activities involving creative practitioners, partners, consultants, suppliers and other stakeholders.
• Escalate delays, delivery risks and significant changes to the Arts Programme Manager.
• Ensure activities comply with safeguarding, health and safety, data-protection and grant-management requirements throughout the project lifecycle.
• Maintain accurate project documentation and records for organisational and donor requirements.

Procurement and Contract Management

• Manage procurement and contracting processes for consultants, artists, creative practitioners, suppliers and delivery partners working on assigned projects.
• Prepare and coordinate procurement documentation and ensure processes follow British Council policies.
• Promote value for money while maintaining the required programme quality.
• Track contract performance, deliverables and timelines and escalate non-performance or compliance concerns.
• Support due diligence and proper documentation for programme partners and suppliers.

Financial Management

• Track project budgets, commitments and expenditure against approved plans.
• Process procurement-to-payment workflows and maintain the supporting documentation required for financial control.
• Identify and report budget variances, emerging financial risks and potential overspending.
• Contribute accurate financial information to internal, partner, funder and donor reports.
• Ensure compliance with British Council financial controls, audit requirements and applicable donor regulations.

Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning and Reporting

• Collect and organise programme reports from delivery partners, grant recipients, consultants and suppliers.
• Support timely monitoring, evaluation, learning and impact reporting against agreed indicators and programme outcomes.
• Maintain project files, reporting schedules and knowledge-management systems.
• Document implementation learning, achievements, risks and improvements.
• Provide reliable information to support management decisions and future programme development.

Stakeholder and Partner Relationships

• Build and maintain productive working relationships with artists, creative practitioners, government stakeholders, suppliers, funders, delivery partners and other cultural-sector actors.
• Coordinate communications and follow-up actions with internal teams and external partners.
• Promote collaboration that supports programme impact and the British Council’s cultural-relations objectives.
• Represent assigned projects appropriately when working with delivery partners and stakeholders.

Business Development Support

• Research relevant partnership and funding opportunities for the Arts portfolio.
• Draft sections of funding proposals, operational plans, project budgets and costings as requested.
• Provide practical delivery information for business cases and strategic planning.
• Contribute to the development of partnership arrangements and programme designs.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

• Promote inclusive, anti-racist and accessible approaches to project design and delivery.
• Support meaningful participation by women, young people, persons with disabilities and underrepresented communities.
• Champion safeguarding, wellbeing, environmental sustainability and inclusive cultural participation in project activities.

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience.
• At least two years’ experience managing arts, cultural, creative-economy or development programmes from inception through completion.
• Demonstrated understanding of recognised project-management methods and project lifecycles.
• Experience managing programme budgets, financial reporting, forecasting and expenditure.
• Experience managing grants, procurement, contracts, suppliers and delivery partners.
• Experience building and managing relationships with multiple stakeholders, including government, creative-sector organisations, donors and international partners.
• Experience coordinating monitoring, evaluation, learning and reporting processes.
• Knowledge of safeguarding, procurement, compliance and risk-management requirements.
• Experience using digital technologies and online collaboration tools to deliver programmes.
• Strong written and verbal communication, planning, organisation and stakeholder-management skills.

Desirable Experience

• Professional project-management qualification such as APMG PMD Pro, PRINCE2, PMP or Agile.
• Experience in arts, creative industries, cultural relations or international development.
• Knowledge of Nigeria’s creative economy and cultural sector.
• Experience developing funding proposals, business cases and partnership agreements.
• Experience managing international cultural-exchange programmes and artist mobility initiatives.

Equality, Diversity and Safeguarding

The British Council welcomes applications from all sections of the community and is a Disability Confident Employer. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum requirements are guaranteed an interview under the organisation’s scheme. The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults. Appointments involving direct work with vulnerable groups require appropriate checks in line with legal requirements and organisational safeguarding policies.

Application Instructions

Apply only through the official British Council recruitment portal. Complete the application before the deadline and provide clear evidence showing how your education and experience meet the essential requirements.

NGO Career Link is not the recruiting organisation and does not influence the selection process. Applicants should never pay anyone for recruitment or employment.