Policy & Government
Not just art, but social change
Backed by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Visual Arts, a report published this week calls for urgent investment and sets out a clear roadmap to secure the future of the visua…
Towards a manifesto for arts education
A recent conference* in Gateshead explored the transformational value of creative learning. Professor Fiona Crisp of Northumbria University and director of Baltic Centre Sarah Munr…
Opportunities and challenges of deepening devolution
In the current operating environment, Ben Walmsley of the University of Leeds argues it is vital for cultural professionals and local authorities to seize the potential offered by…
Systemic devaluing of arts in English state schools
For the second consecutive year, the Cultural Learning Alliance has published a ‘report card’ on what has been happening to Expressive Arts education in state secondary schools…
Online harms: How to protect yourself from social media abuse
Online spaces provide enormous opportunities to connect and share, but they are often overtaken by hateful and abusive behaviour. John White of The Space, explores the current tren…
How will Trump’s policies impact funding for UK arts?
In light of President Trump’s funding decisions in the USA, Cause4’s Michelle Wright and Thomas Williams explore how cuts to USAID and DEI budgets might impact the future of ar…
Consultation on copyright: Doing nothing is not an option
Scraping artists’ work is like automating shoplifting, says chair of DACS, Margaret Heffernan. She argues that current copyright law is woefully inadequate in protecting artists’ r…
How devolution could revitalise the future of UK arts
The announcement last week of additional funding for the arts was very welcome news but, says Matthew Cleaver of Anvil Arts, more could be done to improve access to the arts across…
What do we mean by producing dance?
In the second of this series looking at the challenges of producing dance, ’Funmi Adewole, Rachel Krische and Efrosini Protopapa share initial findings from the work of the Futur…
A digital strategy for the UK cultural sector
Researcher Susan Oman spent two years embedded within DCMS on a policy fellowship. Here they explain why the resultant digital policy recommendations depend on shared understanding…
Soft power: The role of culture in a hyper-globalised world
The new Soft Power Council has been set up in response to a volatile world at a time when democracy is in peril. So, writes Melissa Nisbett, it would be a strange decision to allow…
CreaTech: A lever for growth?
A new report on the intersection of creativity and technology – CreaTech – is published this week. Its findings, according to lead researcher Eliza Easton, reveal an unparallel…
Making a difference in cultural policy
The Cultural Policy Unit is a new, independent think tank dedicated to formulating bold, imaginative and practical policy ideas in the service of the UK’s creative and cultural ind…
A riposte from the margins
In response to Nick Hytner’s recent dismissal of the concerns of a new generation of artists as ‘ill-informed’, Chrissie Tiller argues it is crucial to engage with their desi…
Performing artists and precarity: The true impact of Covid
A new book examining what the pandemic meant for freelance performers has been published. Mimi Doulton thinks its an invaluable resource for researchers and policymakers – and it’s…
Legislative theatre and the civil society covenant
Katy Rubin, director of The People Act, considers how to bring government and citizens together into creative collaboration for effective participatory democracy.
Culture and civil society
The government published its Civil Society Covenant Framework last autumn. Jason Jones-Hall of the cultural placemaking organisation, Five10Twelve, examines what it means for the c…
What might a Trump presidency mean for the UK’s creative industries?
As the UK’s creative industries are an increasingly international part of the UK economy, Bernard Hay of the Creative Policy and Evidence Centre considers what effect the new US…
The state of opera
Harry Hyman, founder of the International Opera Awards, reviews the state of opera in the UK and outlines what needs to be done in the year ahead.
The power of the imagination
The culture sector has suffered years of neglect. But David Micklem is infused with optimism about what might lie ahead.
