GMG member Chris Bye has enthusiastically undertaken a number of courses offered by the GMG’s Evolve training project over the last 18 months. We are now delighted to announce that he has recently succeeded in become Music Relationship Manager for the Arts Council in the North West.

Chris found out about his new job by regularly checking the Arts Council England (ACE) website. He applied at the start of the year and was invited for assessment around February and an interview in March, and was then offered the post.

So Chris has ‘upped sticks’ to Cheshire and is now working with individual artists, organisations and local authorities to drive the development of music across all genres in the North West.

“It is a demanding but incredibly rewarding role”. Chris says

Chris was able to access free industry-specific training through the GMG’s Evolve training project. He completed training and received qualifications in Marketing & Finance for Creative Businesses, Professional Video Production, and 2D Animation (Adobe After Effects). The knowledge and skills gained from these courses have proven helpful in this bid to progress in his chosen career.

“The Marketing & Finance for Creative Businesses course was a great help to my career development, both in terms of recognising pre-existing skills and developing new ones." Say Chris

He added. “The GMG were extremely helpful and supportive. They are always looking for new ways to strengthen and expand the region’s creative network and individuals therein. They definitely played a part in my attaining a job I love and are an organisation worthy of enormous praise.”

The GMG is busy with plans to offer more industry bespoke training in the future. If you have an interest in specific training please let us know by emailing Jess (the Evolve Project Manager) by clicking here

The Evolve training project is funded through a grant from the European Social Fund and supported by the Skills Funding Agency.