News and Policy Briefing / December
Last month saw major changes to HE as MPs voted to raise the cap on fees. Reforms for schools were also announced in a new White Paper. DCMS launched a major philanthropy initiative and the Commons CMS Select Committee took evidence from the Culture Minister, Ed Vaizey. Read on for details and other news
1) Higher Education fees
On 9 December MPs voted to raise the cap on tuition fees, effectively completing the transfer of funding for teaching from government to students for arts and humanities courses and making these courses dependent on the market.
See the BIS website for further information.
We have reported previously on craft course closures and had delayed an update because of the pace of recent policy developments but following such radical changes it is an important moment to keep you abreast of the changes.
The update summarises policy developments since the election, including the increasing focus on craft skills and practical learning by ministers, albeit using “craft” as a proxy for broader manual skills that many in the professional craft sector might not recognise, accompanied by a predisposition against the concept of Higher Education as the main route into the professional sector. It summarises the threat to craft courses from recent policy decisions and, finally, looks at the current situation, comparing UCAS data on undergraduate craft courses available in 2009-10 and 2010-11. It also sets out the Crafts Council’s position on the importance of maintaining craft teaching and research in Higher Education enabling the development of materials knowledge and craft practice to continue, and welcomes the potential broadening of routes into the professional sector.
Read the full paper here
Several representatives from across the arts and humanities spoke against what they saw as a qualitative weighting of the relative value of subjects with Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) still receiving government funding, The Crafts Council maintains that the UK’s reputation for innovation has flourished because of the investment in arts courses and the mixed creative ecology that has underpinned it. As our own research Making Value (2010) shows, there are significant spill-over effects from craft practices into a range of disciplines including STEM subject areas. This model is now severely jeopardised.
A number of MPs have raised concerns about the decision to, effectively, cease funding for arts and humanities subjects including Tristram Hunt (Stoke-on-Trent Central), John Denham, (Southampton, Itchen), Andrew Percy, (Brigg and Goole) and David Lammy (Tottenham).
See Hansard pp23-67 for the full debate.
2) New Schools White Paper
The Government has also unveiled plans for a major overhaul of the school system with a new White Paper The Importance of Teaching, published by the Department for Education on 24 November. The paper sets out wide-reaching reforms for school- age education with an emphasis on greater autonomy for head teachers and teachers.
The White Paper also covers, albeit briefly, the Government’s approach to the arts and cultural education, stating that:
‘Children should expect to be given a rich menu of cultural experiences. So we have commissioned Darren Henley to explore how we can improve music education and have more children learning to play an instrument. The Henley Review will also inform our broader approach to cultural education. We will support access to live theatre, encourage the appreciation of the visual and plastic arts and work with our great museums and libraries to support their educational mission.’ (p46)
The Crafts Council has submitted a response to the Department for Education concerning their strategy for cultural learning. We welcome the initiative to examine cultural learning through the Henley Review of Music Education, but strongly caution against privileging one art form in the school system. Our comments outlined the unique benefits of craft education, as distinct from other forms of cultural learning, and stressed that a range of cultural forms, including music, craft, art, drama and many others, should emerge from the Henley Review as important elements of the curriculum – there for their own sake and on their own merit, all offering something different but equally valid to our young people.
Along with many other cultural organisations, we await the broader recommendations about the delivery of cultural education from the Henley Review of Music Education, which is due for publication before the end of the year.
To read the Schools White Paper click here
And for further information on the Henley Review of Music Education click here
Read the Crafts Council response to the White Paper here
3) DCMS news
Philanthropy
The culture secretary Jeremy Hunt unveiled an £80 million ‘match funding’ programme and an action plan to boost philanthropy on 8 December at the European Association for Philanthropy & Giving (EAPG)’s annual conference in London. The fund will comprise £30 million of new money from DCMS and £50 million of lottery funds distributed through the Arts Council. The Department said the fund has the potential to raise more than £160 million in private donations for the cultural sector over the next four years.
In his speech Hunt said:
‘…philanthropy is not about replacing state funding with private support. Instead it is about a highly ambitious aim for this country to combine the best of US-style philanthropic support with the best of European-style public support.’
Key points in the philanthropy action plan include developing fundraising skills across the culture sector, increased public recognition for philanthropy, greater business and international investment and harnessing digital technology to boost philanthropy.
The DCMS philanthropy drive is part of a range of wider Government initiatives to stimulate giving which include a Cabinet Office Green Paper on giving in the context of the Big Society (due for publication in December/January), a review of tax incentives led by the Treasury, and an independent review into the culture of giving by leaders in philanthropy, business and the Third Sector, led by Thomas Hughes-Hallett, Chief Executive of Marie Curie Cancer Care. The secretary of state also commissioned two reports to inform the strategy, by Neil MacGregor, Director of the British Museum, on the role endowments in DCMS funded museums and galleries, and by Alan Davey, Chief Executive of ACE, on the use of endowments in the arts.
For the DCMS announcement and to access the reports click here
Departmental Business Plan
Earlier last month, along with all other Government Departments, the DCMS published its Business Plan for the next four years, which builds on the draft Structural Reform Plan published in July. In common with other Government agendas the plan signals greater devolution of decision making power to sectors and communities. The Department’s vision statement says:
‘Our vision is to help create the conditions for growth in the creative and cultural, tourism and leisure economies, removing barriers to innovation and levelling the playing field. Where we judge there is a need for a particular intervention, we will provide real support and set strategy and direction. But we want our sectors to drive their own agenda.’ (p2)
The plan sets out six key priorities for reform, relevant measures in summary include:
- Reducing red tape and stimulating private investment in creative and cultural institutions.
- Encouraging philanthropic giving and investing more lottery money in the arts.
- Strengthening cultural organisations by reducing administration and focusing funding on the frontline.
More here
4) BIS News
Departmental Business Plan
Also of relevance is the BIS Business Plan which centres on four themes:
- Secure an economy that is more dynamic and more balanced between public and private sectors and between regions.
- Safeguard the UK’s long-term growth by promoting skills and by turning knowledge to commercial use.
- Stimulate enterprise and trade to drive the rebalancing and private sector growth.
- Remove Government as an obstacle to growth whilst ensuring responsible corporate behaviour.
Section 4 of the plan (pp15-16) focuses on skills and measures include an increase in the number of adult apprenticeships to 75,000 by 2014/15.
More here
Skills for Sustainable Growth
The Department for Business has also published a new strategy for the skills sector, Skills for Sustainable Growth, following a consultation to which the Crafts Council submitted a response in October.
The strategy details Government plans for reform of the skills system. It aims to improve information about skills for both learners and employers and increase the role and responsibility of employers in shaping the system. The strategy also aims to reduce bureaucracy and there is particular emphasis on social mobility.
In our response to the consultation, we highlighted the economic significance of craft skills and their spill-over effects to other sectors, and stressed the need for business skills in creative courses and an apprentice system appropriate for the cultural sector. We also argued that employer led skills councils are an effective way to deliver skills to the sector.
More from BIS here
Read the Crafts Council response here
5) Local Government:
Last month a number of significant announcements clarified the Government’s plans for changes at the local level.
Localism Bill
On 13 December, the communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles unveiled a bill which will devolve power to local councils and neighbourhoods. He said:
‘The Localism Bill will herald a ground-breaking shift in power to councils and communities overturning decades of central government control and starting a new era of people power.’
The bill includes the following key measures: – Devolving significant new powers to councils.
- Establishing powerful new rights for local people and communities.
- Creating incentives for economic growth.
More here
Local Arts Funding
A number of local authorities have announced cuts in arts funding – which is non-statutory. Last month, Somerset County Council became the first local authority to cut funding for the arts. Darlington, Rochdale, Moray and Leicester have all announced cuts, with Leicester City Council abandoning plans to re-locate and re-open the City Art Gallery, a significant regional venue for contemporary craft, and instead incorporating its exhibition programme into the overall offer at the New Walk Museum and Art Gallery. Other local authorities and public agencies are considering or cutting their budgets including Birmingham City Council, with an overall 17 per cent cut. As part of this, the Council announced that it will cease to fund Craftspace after the provision of 50 per cent transitional funding next year. Cuts in the London Borough of Barnet and the London Development Agency which will impact on Hidden Art and other studio based organizations.
The Crafts Council very much regrets these cuts, whilst we recognise that in the current environment some cuts are inevitable. The contemporary craft infrastructure is already lean and these losses are potentially very damaging to the national ecology, visibility and growth of the sector.
Local Enterprise Partnerships
As we reported last month BIS announced that 24 LEP proposals had been invited to progress to the next stage, with a further three partnerships now added. See the BIS news item for a list of the 27 approved partnerships.
And as one of the ACE Craft RFOs has heard – Creative Industries were flagged as a priority in the initial bid that covered Dorset, Bournemouth and Poole. Dorset is not one of the successful 24 and has been asked to consider working with parts of Hampshire (outside of the successful Solent bid) and Wiltshire. However, given that LEP’s are being asked to be entrepreneurial and raise their own funds plus the possibility of local business rates it may transpire that businesses organise themselves in their own self defined areas.
Regional Growth Fund
Lord Heseltine has been appointed Chair of the Independent Advisory Panel which will review submissions to the Regional Growth Fund. The Fund which was launched by the government as part of the Local Growth White Paper on 28 October 2010 aims to stimulate new private sector jobs in the areas disproportionately affected by the cuts in public expenditure, and will provide £1.4bn over three years for projects that will help to create a more balanced economic profile in affected areas.
The Crafts Council submitted a response to the BIS consultation in September which referred to Taking Part data showing that craft is strong in areas of deprivation and citing craft projects which have made contributions to regeneration and job creation.
See the BIS news item
Read the Crafts Council response here
Microfinance for small firms
Speaking to the Community Development Finance Association (CDFA), on 13 December, Minister for Business and Enterprise Mark Prisk announced reforms to support community development finance institutions (CDFIs) enabling broader use of their current support and inviting them to bid to the Regional Growth Fund. He stated that the Government will increase access to the scheme (which guarantees 75 per cent of a loan to small businesses) for CDFIs, which typically make more risky investments than other lenders. This could have positive outcomes for craft businesses seeking loans.
More here
6) Sector News
ACE to take on MLA functions
It has been confirmed that Arts Council England is to take on responsibilities for museums and libraries from the Museums Libraries and Archives Council, which will be abolished in March 2012. Additional funding of £46 million will be available from 2012/13 to carry out this work and ACE will now run:
- Renaissance in the Regions
- Museums and libraries development work
- A range of statutory cultural property functions
See the MLA announcement for details.
Funding for Non-National Museums
The DCMS has now announced that it is:
‘exploring whether the Department’s non-national museums may be more effectively sponsored through other bodies in the longer term’.
The seven museums in question include the Geffrey Museum and the Design Museum. The department has said that guaranteed funding for the next four years will be transferred to their new sponsors if negotiations are concluded before 2014/15. Responsibility for funding the museums after 2014/15 will belong to new sponsors.
More here
The shadow culture secretary Ivan Lewis also asked Jeremy Hunt in Parliament on 8 December how much funding will be made available to non-national museums in the coming three years. The department has produced a table detailing funding for each of the Department’s non-national museums over the period.
See Hansard p166.
Sector Qualifications Strategy – revised
Creative and Cultural Skills is working with industry and awarding organisations to develop a new Sector Qualifications Strategy (SQS) for the creative and cultural industries including the craft sector. Due in March 2011, it will set out a strategy for the rationalisation and development of new vocational qualifications. The Crafts Council is working with Creative and Cultural Skills on the strategy as part of its continuing partnership following joint publication of the Craft Blueprint.
More here
Business Ambassadors
The Prime Minister David Cameron has appointed new Business Ambassadors to promote UK excellence overseas, the ambassadors include a number of figures from creative sectors, a full list is available here
Cultural Metropolis
Following a period of consultation, Mayor of London, Boris Johnson has published his Cultural Strategy Cultural Metropolis, setting out priorities and recommendations for culture in the capital.
There are five key priorities for 2012 and beyond:
- Maintaining London’s position as a world city for culture:
- Widening the reach of excellence: Facilitating access to high quality local cultural services.
- Education, skills and careers: Increasing access to cultural education with a focus on music education. Supporting London’s universities as a source of skills and innovation is also mentioned.
- Infrastructure, environment and the public realm: Ensuring that planning processes encourage culture to flourish in venues and public spaces.
- Culture and London in 2012: Forming cross-sector partnerships to produce works based on the Olympic values ‘international friendship, young people and achieving excellence’.
To read the Culture Strategy: Cultural Metropolis, click here
Read the Crafts Council response to the consultation here
Creative Clusters and Innovation report
A new NESTA research report undertaken in collaboration with Birmingham and Cardiff Universities argues that although the economic significance of the creative industries is well charted, evidence of their spill-over effects into other parts of the economy has only recently been examined (including in the Crafts Council’s own report Making Value 2010). The NESTA report examines the role that creative industries play in local and regional innovation systems. The report includes findings on craft, showing a particularly high concentration of craft firms in Yorkshire and the Humber, the East and West Midlands and London and the South East. The manufacture of jewellery, metal products and pottery was found to be concentrated in Yorkshire and the Humber, the East and West Midlands. The report also includes specific recommendations for policymakers.
Access the report here
Creative Clusters map
NESTA is also making the data set from the report available in the form of an online map of the UK’s creative hubs. The map will enable users to examine creative industry concentrations by highlighting the location of creative businesses across each UK region.
View the map here
Born Creative
Leading UK think-tank DEMOS, has published a series of essays, Born Creative which examine the following issues: Can training really make early years professionals more creative? Does the curriculum foster creativity? How amenable should public spaces be to young people? The publication shows the importance of cultures, environments and networks in the enrichment of the early years learning and considers the role of leaders, policy and parents in creating them.
Access the publication here
The Crafts Council has long argued for the reintroduction of craft in the curriculum and our new programme Firing-up aims to rekindle interest in ceramics teaching by reintroducing kilns into schools.
More about the programme here
A Creative Block?
The Work Foundation, another leading UK think-tank, has published a new report examining the effect of major long- and short-term trends on the creative industries’ ability to assist the UK recovery. A Creative Block? The Future of the UK Creative Industries demonstrates how, despite strong economic performance and strengths, the UK creative industries are now under threat from a combination of recession-induced cuts, global trends towards convergence and digitalisation, and concrete action from other governments to maximise the recovery-boosting economic potential of their own creative industries
Access the report here
Digital audiences: engagement with arts and culture online
A new report co-commissioned by the Arts Council, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, and Arts & Business surveys how people engage with arts and culture online, and looks at attitudes towards using online technology to engage with the arts.
Access the report here
7) Parliamentary Round up:
Culture Media and Sport Committee:
The Commons Culture Media and Sport Select Committee launched an inquiry into funding for the arts and heritage in August to which the Crafts Council submitted written evidence. Last month we reported on the first and second oral evidence sessions which were of relevance to the sector. On 1 December in the fifth oral evidence session Minister for Culture Ed Vaizey gave evidence. The uncorrected transcript is available here
Wednesday 1 December:
Session 5: Ed Vaizey MP, Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, with witnesses Dame Vivien Duffield DBE, Chair, Clore Duffield Foundation; and Rosalind Riley, Trustee of The Brook Trust.
The minister opened by reiterating his department’s commitment to minimising the impact of cuts on frontline services. When asked by the Committee whether cuts to local government had been factored into funding decisions the Minister refereed to the decision to protect Renaissance in the Regions.
Much of the early debate focussed on recent Arts Council England (ACE) spending and the position of the organisation after the cuts. The Minister affirmed his support of ACE and for maintaining the ‘arms-length principle’.
The discussion also covered recent funding changes for the arts, and Vaizey stressed the importance of mixed funding models and Government subsidies to stimulate the commercial end of the sector. He also discussed philanthropy, ahead of Jeremy Hunt’s announcement later in the month, stressing that the Government aims to increase philanthropy although not as a means to fill the gap in public spending. The Minister commented that he is also encouraging arts organisations to apply to the Regional Growth Fund.
The discussion also covered film, heritage, video games and museums with Vaizey stressing his confidence in the ACE takeover of MLA functions. The reminder of the session took evidence from witnesses.
In Parliament:
Local Access to European Funds
On 18 November Adrian Bailey Labour/Co-operative MP for Bromwich West asked Ed Vaizey what assessments had been made about access to European regional development funds following the abolition of Regional Development Agencies. The minister replied that his Department is working with the Department for Communities and Local Government to develop new delivery structures for the European regional development fund to replace the RDAs, they intend to announce the delivery mechanism in the Spring.
See Hansard p8
Museums Finance
On 29 November Sarah Newton the Conservative MP for Truro and Falmouth asked Jeremy Hunt about progress in ensuring that National Museums support museums in the regions. Hunt replied that in settlement letters National Museums were asked to develop proposals to support smaller regional organisations – plans are expected to be announced in the next few weeks.
See Hansard p6.
Higher Education
Ivan Lewis asked Jeremy Hunt on 15 December whether he had discussed the withdrawal of teaching support funding from arts degree courses with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Vince Cable, before the decision was announced. Hunt replied that he had not.
See Hansard p135.
And finally…
Show of Hands
The minister for culture Ed Vaizey has written an article for leading men’s magazine GQ in which he argues that craft is an important part of the current zeitgeist. He references a number of global advertising campaigns which use craft as a powerful marketing tool and influential publications which expound the virtues of craftsmanship. The Crafts Council is delighted to see such direct endorsement of the sector by the Minister.
Read the article here
