A group of 15 arts and culture specialists from Northern Ireland will be in Finland this week to learn how to gain practical support for small businesses in the sector.

As part of a drive to help arts and cultural organisations to benefit from European funding, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland worked with Craft NI and six other partners to develop a learning and development programme with Tiato, the Finnish national crafts organisation.

Joe Kelly, chief executive of Craft NI, said: “The main aim of the programme we will undertake is to gather information on professional practice in Finland, to use that for the benefit of the craft sector in Northern Ireland and to promote and increase the internationalisation of the sector and to share innovative practice.”

The Arts Council will also host an information session on the EU Lifelong Learning Fund on November 23 at its office in Belfast. The advisory session, which is free to attend, is an opportunity to receive one-to-one advice and support from Ecorys, the agency which manages the fund.