Arts cuts on the cards in South Wales

15 Feb 2019

The local authority in Neath Port Talbot has given the green light to a new budget with an increase in council tax and savings of £5.8m, which will include cuts to leisure centres and the arts.

ICO calls for greater transparency for arm’s length arts services

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15 Feb 2019

A proposed extension to the Freedom of Information Act would see leisure trusts, which increasingly run arts services, returned to “direct public scrutiny”.

Slow progress on diversity at England’s largest arts organisations

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15 Feb 2019

The proportion of ‘unknown’ data on ethnicity at large organisations has rocketed up, raising serious questions about the quality of data.

Young people under-represented in the arts, research finds

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15 Feb 2019

Detailed information on the demographics of the creative workforce has been released for the first time in seven years.

Calls to support rural culture in Scottish Government consultation

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15 Feb 2019

Ministers have been warned that plans for a new Governmental culture champion have been met with ‘mixed’ reaction from the sector.

Heritage gives £4bn boost to Scottish economy, report finds

15 Feb 2019

The increase has been attributed to a 2m growth in tourist visits in one year.

Luxury flat owners lose privacy case against Tate Modern

14 Feb 2019

Lawyers for the gallery defeated arguments put forward by the owners of the £4m flats that they were under “near constant surveillance” from visitors to the Tate’s popular top-floor terrace.

Art and music classes boost academic performance, finds decade-long study

14 Feb 2019

A longitudinal study of low-income students in Florida – who were tracked from kindergarten to eighth grade – assessed the impact of choosing to study the arts on reading and maths scores, finding those who had taken these classes had better grades, and social and language skills, than their peers.

Academic collaborations central to new Bloomsbury Theatre programme

14 Feb 2019

The University College London-run venue, which opens this week after a three-and-a-half-year revamp, will investigate how research and theatre relate to each other through a new ‘Performance Lab’. One of the first acts will be an experiment by a neuroscience professor into what happens to the body when people laugh.

Social media following is a factor in casting roles, actors say

14 Feb 2019

Several actors have shared experiences online about adverts and auditions that either required information on or a set number of followers on platforms including Instagram and Twitter. The Casting Director’s Guild described the trend as “disheartening”.

Preston artist studio expands to meet demand

12 Feb 2019

The Birley, set up by University of Central Lancashire graduates in 2014, is to take over the first floor of its Preston city centre premises and triple the available studio and project space.

Creative industries group opposes EU copyright plans

11 Feb 2019

A collective including representatives of the music and broadcasting industries has written an open letter arguing that the EU’s copyright directive should be halted, as it would risk leaving European rightsholders worse off. But the Council of Music Makers, which includes the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and the Musicians’ Union, says the directive proceedings should continue.

Fringe producer loses venue after exploitation accusations

11 Feb 2019

Major producer C Venues has lost the right to use Adam House, its base at the festival for almost 20 years, following accusations that it exploits its staff. The University of Edinburgh has handed the venue to rival outfit Gilded Balloon, after the Fair Fringe campaign claimed that C Venues’ business model was “built on exploitation, underpayment and overworked staff”.

MP calls to scrap GCSEs

11 Feb 2019

Conservative Robert Halfon, Chair of the Education Select Committee, says the exams have become “pointless”, and should be replaced with a baccalaureate that will include technical and creative subjects to give young people the skills that employers are looking for.

Arts attendance in Northern Ireland falls by a quarter as cuts bite

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08 Feb 2019

Annually Funded Organisations are suffering “damage to long-term sustainability”, having slashed marketing budgets in the face of core funding cuts of almost 40% over three years.

Mayor launches trust to support affordable artist workspaces

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08 Feb 2019

The Creative Land Trust, backed by seed funding of £4m from City Hall and £2m from Arts Council England, will seek additional finance from property developers and ask London councils to safeguard affordable workspaces.

Report challenges Minister’s claim of ‘stable’ arts GCSE takeup

08 Feb 2019

An analysis of the Department for Education’s own figures finds that since 2014, the proportion of students taking music GCSE has fallen by 17%, and the proportion taking at least one arts GCSE has fallen by almost 18%.

Exploitation rife as unpaid work subsidises the arts

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08 Feb 2019

Working practices that “wouldn't be tolerated in any other industry” have become the norm across the sector, with employees and freelances expected to work for nothing to enable their artistic output to be delivered. 

Civic cultural partnerships key to driving growth, says report

Photo of Cliffords Tower York
08 Feb 2019

An enquiry backed by the UK’s four arts councils recommends that creative industry tax reliefs should be extended, that more cultural organisations adopt contactless giving, and that cities across the UK introduce fiscal measures such as a tourist tax to fund culture.

UK nations back calls for Town of Culture award

Photo of Yvette Cooper MP
08 Feb 2019

MPs from Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England spoke in favour of setting up a new award to rival the City of Culture award, which has been credited with rejuvenating areas of the UK.

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