Nigel Slee, Steve Mead and Kim Macari of Jazz North organized a very well-attended seminar, held yesterday downstairs in the Sela Bar in New Briggate in Leeds. More detail here. Claire Turner of Matt & Phred’s and Sandra Marcy of The Social Jazz site gave good advice on do’s and don’ts for approaching promoters, Steve Mead gave a guide to how to tackle each of the trio of main funding sources for grassroots jazz touring projects – it is just three, which is what makes the Welsh Amser Jazz initiative such a neat new model to be copied. Barak Schmool talked about the lessons he has learned about how collectives function at their best, and the warning signs for when they are about not to. Thanks for the invitation to speak, it was a great day.

And please will someone write a song about how, or why LS1 has, or needs no fewer than sixteen branches of Greggs the bakers.