Lighthouse Arts And Training Ltd

What Lighthouse Arts And Training Ltd does

Lighthouse Arts And Training Ltd (trading as Lighthouse) is a Brighton-based registered charity and private limited company founded in 1986 that runs youth-led programmes for people aged 16-30 from underrepresented backgrounds seeking to enter the creative industries. Its core products include Lighthouse Young Creatives (LYC), a six-month personal and professional development scheme launched in 2018; Future Creative Leaders (FCL), a 12-month paid leadership programme launched in 2024; and Pathways Not Projects, a four-year national initiative launched in 2025. Lighthouse also operates the Lighthouse Project Space, a 130-square-metre public youth-led art venue at New England House opened in 2024, and produces the Open Sessions talks series and Light+ podcast.

The underlying technology centres on production-skills training across video-making, photography, music, design, digital media, VR and immersive technologies, combined with an open-source digital platform developed as part of Pathways Not Projects that enables cultural organisations to track impact, share insights and embed youth voice. Distribution is primarily direct through the Brighton HQ at 28 Kensington Street, the Project Space, and partner-led channels such as the Brighton Festival programme We, Generate.

Lighthouse's revenue model blends grant funding from Arts Council England, UKRI/Innovate UK (including a Future Leaders Fellowship), Sussex Community Foundation, Henry Smith Foundation, Chalk Cliff Trust, Enjoolata Foundation and Art Fund, with individual donations and monthly giving, corporate sponsorship (Brandwatch, Brilliant Noise, Baxter & Bailey, MPB, Storythings), venue and office hire, and ticket sales (mostly free or £5). The organisation is led by CEO and Artistic Director Alli Beddoes.

Name

Lighthouse Arts And Training Ltd

Legal name

Lighthouse Arts & Training Limited

Website

https://lighthouse.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Lighthouse is a Brighton-based arts charity, founded in 1986, running youth-led training, mentoring, and paid leadership programmes for 16-30 year olds from underrepresented backgrounds pursuing careers in the UK creative industries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Arts Education & Youth Development

NAICS

Fine Arts Schools (61161), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts & Culture Service/Support Organizations (Networks, Advocacy, Capacity Building) (BPAGAHAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Media Arts & Film/Photography Nonprofits (BPAGAHAJ)

Keywords

• Arts education
• Youth creative development
• Community arts programmes
• Creative industries training
• Cultural leadership training

Headquarters

HQ city

Brighton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Membership: Charitable donations from individual supporters including monthly giving programmes ('Building a Creative Legacy Together') to support young creatives from underrepresented backgrounds.
2. Venue Hire: Rental of office spaces and venue facilities, with rental income directly supporting charitable aims.
3. Ticket Sales and Event Revenue: Revenue from event tickets (e.g., Brighton Festival events, workshops, performances) and programme participation fees.
4. Grants and Funded Programmes: Majority of funding from public funders including Arts Council England, UKRI/Innovate UK, Sussex Community Foundation, Henry Smith Foundation, Chalk Cliff Trust, Enjoolata Foundation, and Art Fund.
5. Corporate Sponsorship: Cash and in-kind sponsorship from Sussex-based creative and digital businesses supporting Lighthouse Young Creatives programme.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lighthouse is a Brighton-based arts charity delivering youth-led creative-industry development programmes — including Lighthouse Young Creatives, Future Creative Leaders, and Pathways Not Projects — that provide production-skills training (video, photography, music, design, digital media, VR, immersive tech), mentoring, business development support, showcasing, and networking for young people aged 16–30, especially those from underrepresented backgrounds. It complements these programmes with free and low-cost public exhibitions, talks (Open Sessions), a podcast (Light+), festivals, venue hire, and an open-source digital platform adopted by cultural institutions nationally.

Product overview

Lighthouse Arts And Training Ltd is a Brighton-based arts charity offering multiple interconnected youth development programmes. The core offerings include: Lighthouse Young Creatives (LYC) - a six-month talent development scheme for 16-25 year olds launched in 2018; Future Creative Leaders (FCL) - a 12-month paid programme for underrepresented young creatives; Pathways Not Projects - a four-year national initiative with an open-source digital platform; and Open Sessions - free public talks series. The organisation also produces the Light+ Podcast series, partners on Re-Imagine Europe (a four-year European collaboration), and programmes youth-led festivals and events. All programmes focus on digital innovation, community-driven practice, and building equitable pathways into the creative industries for young people facing systemic barriers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lighthouse Young Creatives (LYC) A six-month personal and professional development scheme for young people aged 16-25 in Brighton & Hove who aspire to work in creative industries but face exclusion through lack of access and barriers to participation. Provides production-skills training, business development support, mentoring, showcasing, and networking.
• Future Creative Leaders (FCL) A 12-month paid programme offering young creatives from underrepresented backgrounds (Global Majority, working-class, care-experienced, low-income, invisible disabilities) the opportunity to work closely with Lighthouse's leadership team to explore creative leadership, co-curate programmes, and explore alternative governance structures.
• Pathways Not Projects A four-year national initiative building long-term, inclusive pathways for young people from underrepresented backgrounds into creative industries. Includes an open-source digital platform co-created with young people for tracking impact, sharing insights, and embedding youth voice across cultural institutions.
• Open Sessions Free public talks from professionals working in the creative industries, sharing career-defining moments and practical advice for getting started in the sector.
• Light+ Podcast Podcast series introducing extra voices, opinions and perspectives to enable deeper understanding and exploration of Lighthouse's programme themes, including seasons on hospitality, club culture, immersive technologies, and community topics.
• We, Generate (Brighton Festival 2026) A bold youth-led programme for Brighton Festival 2026, devised by Future Creative Leaders, exploring how young people can actively shape culture and imagine fairer worlds through workshops, live events, and conversations featuring contributors such as Jordan Stephens, Mikaela Loach, Joycelyn Longdon, and Steam Down.

Quantifiable outcome

• 58% of Lighthouse Young Creatives participants go on to gain employment in creative sectors
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Re-Imagine Europe ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFour-year collaboration with 10 cultural organisations across 9 European countries: Sonic Acts (NL), Paradiso (NL), Elevate Festival (AT), Ina GRM (FR), Kontejner (HR), Landmark/Bergen Kunsthall (NO), A4 (SK), Disruption Network Lab (DE), Radio Web MACBA (ES), Urban Paradoxes (NL). Co-funded by Creative Europe programme of the European Union.
• SpacemakerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegeneration agency that helped develop the concept for Lighthouse Project Space, working in Brighton, London and Stockholm.
• Brighton FestivalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual partnership for youth-led programming including We, Generate showcase by Future Creative Leaders, and commissioning support.
• BrandwatchcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor providing business mentorship and expertise to Lighthouse Young Creatives programme.
• Brilliant NoisecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDigital agency sponsor providing business mentorship and sponsorship to Lighthouse Young Creatives.
• Baxter & BaileycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDesign agency sponsor providing business mentorship and sponsorship to Lighthouse Young Creatives.
• MPBcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor providing top-of-the-range camera equipment for Lighthouse Young Creatives programme.
• StorythingsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerContent studio providing business mentorship to Lighthouse Young Creatives.
• Platform BminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerBrighton-based next-generation broadcaster producing Light+ podcast series for Lighthouse.
• Carousel (Oska Bright Film Festival)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership providing consultancy support to deliver structured mentoring to Oska Bright Film Festival programming team members. Builds on prior Guiding Lights programme participation.
• Boiler Room 4:3coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFilm platform partnership producing Last Dance short films exploring UK club culture with Lighthouse.
• Class DivideminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrassroots campaign partnership on Neolithic Cannibals project addressing educational inequality in Brighton & Hove.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• British Youth Music Theatre: UK charity creating musical theatre opportunities for young people aged 11-21 through workshops and productions; aligned charity model focused on youth creative pathways.
• Spike Island: Bristol-based arts organisation supporting emerging artists through studio provision, exhibitions and commissions; comparable mission and audience-developing charity structure.
• Roundhouse: London-based charity supporting 11-25 year-olds to access creative industries through training, mentoring and performance programmes; nearly identical youth-arts access model to Lighthouse with similar funder base.
• South London Gallery: London gallery with established education and young people's programmes addressing access and representation; comparable arts charity with community education focus.
• National Youth Theatre: UK-wide charity developing young people's creative skills through performance programmes, comparable in mission and grant-funded youth creative training, though with a theatre-specific focus.
• Ideas Test: Charity using arts and creative technology to tackle inequality with young people, closely aligned to Lighthouse's underrepresentation focus and community-led model.
• Phoenix Brighton: Brighton-based art space supporting emerging artists through studios, exhibitions and development programmes; operates in the same local ecosystem and comparable arts charity model.
• Battersea Arts Centre: Community-focused arts centre running development programmes for emerging artists and young creatives, with a comparable mix of venue hire, ticketed events and grant-funded youth work.

Broad incumbents

• BRIT School: Free performing and creative arts school for 14-19 year olds; a much larger, established institution addressing the same youth-into-creative-industries mission with a broader curriculum.

Regional players

• Sage Gateshead: North East music and arts venue with significant young-creative learning programmes; comparable venue-plus-youth-development structure but operating in a different region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/LighthouseBTN
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lighthouse-arts

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lighthouse Arts And Training Ltd