Opportunities at IOU Creation Centre
Current opportunities at the IOU Creation Centre and the IOU Hostel, Hebden Bridge
Below you can find all our current opportunities, to join the IOU team, become a Trustee or for artist call outs.

PhD Research Proposal IOU at 50: Shaping Arts Ecology and Envisioning the Future City
We are excited to announce our partnership with The University of Huddersfield with a PhD Research Opportunity: IOU at 50 – Shaping Arts Ecology and Envisioning the Future City
This exciting opportunity is a chance to explore IOU’s fifty year archive working alongside Founder and Artist Director David Wheeler
The project comes with a tuition fee-waiver (for 3 years) and a bursary plus
a 6 month residency at the IOU Hostel, Hebden Bridge and inclusion in IOU’s 50th-anniversary exhibition
Join IOU’s Board of Trustees and Shape the Future of Experimental Arts
Would you like to play a key role in shaping the next 50 years of IOU and its Creation Centre, strengthening our position as the North’s leading hub for Art, Engineering, and Technology?
We are looking for new Trustees to join our Board and help guide our vision, advocate for our work, and champion IOU’s future. We welcome applications year-round to keep our leadership fresh, relevant, and responsive to the evolving arts landscape.
Who We’re Looking For
If you are passionate about contemporary art, committed to IOU’s mission, vision, and values, and have skills in finance, contemporary art, business development, advocacy, or accessibility, we’d love to hear from you.
Current Trustee Opportunities

We are specifically seeking a Treasurer with financial expertise to:
- Oversee the charity’s finances
- Ensure proper financial processes and procedures are in place.
- Report to the Board of Trustees on IOU’s financial health.
- Chair the Finance Committee
IOU’s Creation Centre is a space for innovative arts production, fabrication, installation and performance. To help us maintain and develop this unique resource, we are seeking a trustee with expertise in technical, production, and/or building management to:
- Provide insight into venue operations, production logistics, and technical requirements.
- Support infrastructure planning and maintenance of our Creation Centre.
- Help IOU stay at the forefront of environmental, technical and digital innovation in the arts.
We are keen to hear from younger, emerging, and mid-career artists with experience in multi-disciplinary or interdisciplinary contemporary arts, freelancing, and artist residencies, ensuring IOU remains artist-led and artist-focused.
We are also particularly interested in working with artists who have expertise in engineering and technology, helping us push the boundaries of experimental arts and innovation.
To support IOU’s long-term sustainability, we are also looking for trustees with commercial expertise who can help us diversify our income, develop business partnerships, and advocate for IOU at the highest levels.
We strongly encourage applications from individuals with lived experience and/or expertise in disability and accessibility, to help ensure that IOU continues to embed inclusivity at every level of our work.
To Apply
Please send a brief expression of interest and CV to
Joanne Wain, CEO, at Joanne.wain@ioutheatre.org.
If you’d like an informal chat before applying, feel free to email.
We warmly welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds and all sectors of society.

IOU Labs Artist Development Programme: Space. Tools. Time. Advice
STTA is IOU’s artistic development programme for individuals or groups practising any discipline who are interested in IOU’s approach to making. It is designed to help realise projects that are in development by providing support in the form of studio space, IOU staff time, workshop tools and advice from IOU arts professionals or a combination of all four.
Applications for STTA are open all year around to any artist or organisation who requires project support. Your idea can be at an early stage when we may be able to advise you on next steps or more developed, perhaps having some development funding attached to your project that is for working with IOU on the STTA programme.