Musicians, dancers, singers and performers whose work is rooted in folk or traditional music and arts from any culture are being invited to apply for grants of up to £2,000 to develop their careers.

Up to four awards of £2,000 each will be made this year by the Alan Surtees Trust, which was set up in memory of the co-founder and director of Shrewsbury Folk Festival who died in 2017. The festival continues to support the trust with an annual donation.

The grants will be made to those aged 16 to 30 who show exceptional skill, talent and promise in their field and are influenced by folk or traditional music and arts from any culture. The grants can be used to fund items such as new instruments and equipment, recording costs, mentoring or support for personal development.

Previous recipients include Maddie Morris, who was given funding to buy equipment to record and produce her own music and went on to win the 2019 BBC Young Folk Award.

Grants are invited from musicians, singers, dancers, artists or performers in the folk arts from any culture. Applicants can be solo artists, bands or groups.

Applicants should be aged between 16 and 30 at the time of application. They must live in the UK and not already have significant financial backing.

Four awards of up to £2,000 per person will be given for mentoring and tuition from experts in the genre, hiring of rehearsal and creative space, costs towards new instruments and equipment, recording and production of a debut album, production of promotional materials and marketing support or project research and development expenses such as artist fees or travel expenses.

The closing date for applications is April 30. For more information and to apply, go to: alansurteestrust.org.uk. The application form includes the option to submit a personalised video from applicants and this is encouraged by trustees. Only successful candidates will be contacted and the award recipients will be announced in June.