A crisis of confidence

Impending public funding cuts have dramatically shaken the confidence of the arts sector, according to a survey conducted by AP. A compelling 16% of arts organisation leaders describe themselves ‘likely’ or ‘very likely’ to close down in the next 12 months; a further 29% predict having to close one or more departments or functions and almost one in three anticipate having to make staff redundant. The research also reveals the fears of employees in the arts: over 30% are not confident that their jobs are secure for a further 12 months, while 70% of respondents would not expect to find work in the arts sector within six months if they became unemployed.
 

Over 100 chief executives, artistic directors and managers in charge of arts organisations across the UK have responded to AP’s first post-Budget survey, identifying their strategies to cope with current economic forecasts. Designed to measure confidence and assess the sector’s plans for the forthcoming year, the ‘State of the Arts’ survey received more than 500 responses from the industry in total, the results of which paint a dark picture of the arts.
More than half of leaders of arts organisations are less confident about the next 12 months compared to the previous year, which
itself saw only marginal recovery from the deepest recession since the Second World War.
Four out of five respondents predict that reduced levels of government funding to the arts sector will have a negative impact on their own financial position over the next 12 months. Just over half believe that levels of corporate sponsorship will decline, 59% expect funding will fall from trusts and foundations, while 62% predict that they will be affected by a reduction in government funding to the education sector. It is no surprise then, that arts leaders are considering cost-cutting strategies.
Not all leaders feel the end is nigh: 65% believe that full closure of their organisation is unlikely, and over 60% are confident in their Board’s ability to guide them. Seventeen percent of senior-level respondents are planning to cancel planned capital investment, but 26% are planning investment programmes. Cost savings are likely to be achieved by pay and recruitment freezes (65% and 44% respectively) and while 28% are preparing to make staff redundant, almost half (46%) expect to increase their use of freelancers, presumably to plug the gaps as roles are left empty. A quarter, however, predict that they will recruit more staff. Sharing resources with other arts organisations is on the cards for 72% of respondents, and artistic collaborations for almost two-thirds (62%).
As for engagement with audiences, the message is clear: while the total quantity of artistic output will remain roughly the same, there will be a swing towards programming more popular work (say 41% of respondents) and a reduction in the amount of challenging commissions (by 37%). Increased marketing activity will be used to attract audiences according to 74% of respondents. One of the desired outcomes from this will be increased ticket prices with 39% of organisations looking to raise revenue in this way. And the least surprising finding of all? It’s boom time for arts fundraisers: almost three-quarters (71%) of arts organisations are planning to step up their fundraising efforts.
Read more on p8–9.
Subscribers – see the summary statistics online at http://www.artsprofessional.uk