Jenni Grainger gives a personal account of the harsh reality of juggling childcare and being furloughed while attempting to steer an organisation through a crisis.
Coronavirus has put every company at risk. While we might not go bust by March 2021, my company needs me. And it needed me in March 2020 more than ever. But I also have caring responsibilities in my personal life and this has been exposed to the max by the pandemic.
I know I am in a fortunate position. Told by an Idiot is a very positive employer. I am in a position of leadership, have job security and live in a dual-income household. Covid-19 has put others in much harder positions... more
30 Sep 2020
Feature
Is social prescribing a great step forward in healthcare or a cynical move to use cheap or voluntary services to plug increasing gaps in a massively underfunded health service? Steven Carne raises some questions.
30 Sep 2020
Feature
Taking indoor activity into outdoor spaces offers one possible solution to the challenge of social distancing. Kate Rolfe explores how it’s being done.
30 Sep 2020
Case study
Anastasia Tilston explains how a new community-led company in Chester is making space for artists in the city centre, with pop-up galleries stepping in to revive the declining retail offer.
30 Sep 2020
Case study
How can the sector better support its Black, Asian and ethnically diverse creative practitioners and workforce? Eclipse Theatre’s Amanda Huxtable shares insights from their report ‘How to plant magic beans AND build rockets to the moon…’
23 Sep 2020
Feature
God? Art? Heritage? Education? In the face of a financial reckoning and a crisis of balance, can cathedral choirs harness their transformational potential before becoming an irrelevant heritage industry for the soul, asks Thomas Leech.
23 Sep 2020
Feature
Many of the assumptions shared by Arts Council England’s original architects have outlived their usefulness, says Andrew Pinnock. Financial support for artists should be hard-wired into the funding system.
23 Sep 2020
Feature
As the Unlimited commissioning programme prepares to become an independent organisation in its own right, Paul F. Cockburn examines what that will mean for disabled artists, staff, governance and decision-making.
23 Sep 2020
Feature
As many creative people pause and rethink the path they're on, Mary Irwin explains how a new programme could help them harness their talent in a meaningful way.
23 Sep 2020
Feature
Recruiting on the basis of passion for the arts doesn’t make sense in vital income-generating roles, says Michelle Wright. Sector leaders need a talented pool of fundraisers with recognised knowledge and skills.
16 Sep 2020
Feature
Could fundraising overseas be a profitable enterprise for you, with an achievable return on investment? Nancy Bickson explains what you need to think about before taking the plunge.
15 Sep 2020
Feature
Even if people are willing to pay for digital performances, are they willing to pay enough? Robin Cantrill Fenwick examines the data emerging from the pandemic’s rush to digitise, and where the income opportunities lie.
15 Sep 2020
Feature
Apprenticeships could help level the playing field and help those from less advantaged backgrounds enter the arts and cultural sector, but it isn’t happening. Plain old prejudice is getting in the way, says Sara Whybrew.
15 Sep 2020
Feature
We are at a crossroads, says Jamie Beddard. Access, democratisation and engagement must not be sacrificed in the rush to return after the pandemic.
15 Sep 2020
Feature
When Professor Stephen Clift published a critique of an academic review of the impact of the arts on health outcomes, he was accused of not being ‘collegiate’ or constructive. Has the field of arts and health become too self-congratulatory?
11 Sep 2020
Opinion
England’s arts organisations will be asked to make decisions that affect more than people’s livelihoods.