Government Policy on Arts and Wellbeing

1
Government Policy on Arts and Wellbeing

• Dr Ian Gibson
• MP for Norwich North
• Arts and Wellbeing Foundation Degree
• City College Norwich 1st December 2008

2
Dept Culture Media and Sport

• In 1997 Dept for National Heritage became DCMS
• Prior to this Arts and Sport had separate
  Ministers in separate departments
• The Rt Hon Andy Burnham MP is Secretary of State
  for Culture Media and Sport

3
Dept for Culture Media and Sport

• What is the DCMS there to do?
• Its Public Service Agreement (PSA) says the
  following Deliver a successful Olympic Games
  and Paralympic Games with a sustainable legacy
  and get more children and young people taking
  part in high quality PE and sport.

Alcohol and entertainment architecture and
design arts broadcasting communities and
local government cultural property education
and social policy gambling and racing
government art collection historic environment
- honours humanitarian assistance libraries
museums and galleries - national lottery
sport tourism Olympics - Paralympics
4
Dept for Culture Media and Sport

• In addition DCMS contributes to the following
  PSAs led by other Government departments
• Raise the productivity of the UK economy
• Improve the health and wellbeing of children and
  young people
• Increase the number of children and young people
  on the path to success
• Address the disadvantage that individuals
  experience because of their gender, race,
  disability, age, sexual orientation, religion or
  belief
• Increase long term housing supply and
  affordability 
• Build more cohesive, empowered and active
  communities
• The Arts is not mentioned specifically but has a
  key role to play in all these PSAs

5
Dept for Culture Media and Sport

• DCMS also has Strategic Objectives designed to
  compliment its PSA The objectives for 2008-2011
  are set out below
• Opportunity Encourage more widespread enjoyment
  of culture, media and sport
• Excellence Support talent and excellence in
  culture, media and sport
• Economic impact Realise the economic benefits of
  the Departments sectors
• Olympics Deliver a successful and inspirational
  Olympic and Paralympic Games with a sustainable
  legacy
• These aims are all very well but..

6
Dept for Culture Media and Sport

• How does it do it?
• Sponsorship of bodies including BBC, Ch4, Big
  Lottery Fund, BFI, National Gallery, Sport
  England, British Library, Arts Council England
  etc
• These bodies then use the objectives handed down
  by the DCMS to allocate funding to all DCMS
  projects.

7
The Arts

• DCMS work in the arts includes these key areas
• Arts Council England Funds Arts Council England
  to develop arts in England
• Access to the arts Works to increase access to
  the arts, both the numbers of people taking part
  and those attending arts events
• Arts education Supports the vital and positive
  role that arts education plays in the UK today
• Arts communities DCMS promotes the use of the
  arts to help individuals, communities and support
  social policy
• Funding for the arts DCMS funds arts in England,
  along with a number of other key organisations
• International arts Supports cultural exchange
  between the UK and other countries, as well as
  promoting British arts internationally
• The arts industry DCMS supports the significant
  contribution that the arts industry makes to the
  economy and our society
• Also Funds National Arts Organisations

8
The Arts

• Aims for The Arts
• The aim of DCMS work is to maximise the
  contribution from the arts sector to our
  strategic priorities Children and Young People
  Communities the Economy and Delivery.
• DCMS has these aims to achieve its strategic
  priorities to
• Broaden access for all to a rich and varied
  artistic and cultural life
• Ensure that the artistic activity we fund aspires
  to be world class
• Ensure that everyone has the opportunity to
  develop artistic talent and to achieve excellence
  in the arts
• Develop the educational potential of all the
  nation's artistic and cultural resources
• Raise standards of artistic and cultural
  education and training
• Ensure an adequate skills supply for the arts and
  cultural sectors
• Reduce the number of those who feel excluded from
  society, by using the arts

9
The Arts Health and Wellbeing

• Key document published by Arts Council 2005-2008
  was The Arts Health and Wellbeing It is a
  framework for delivery and is intrinsically a
  cross government initiative
• Work with the Dept of Health and other heath
  organisations and charities is key

10
The Arts Health and Wellbeing

• The Arts Health and Wellbeing document applied
  from 2006-2008 the AC invested 1.1 billion of
  public funds from Government and the National
  Lottery. This was the bedrock of support for the
  arts in England.
• Agenda for 20068 had six priorities
• taking part in the arts
• children and young people
• the creative economy
• vibrant communities
• internationalism
• celebrating diversity

11
The Arts Health and Wellbeing

• And two overarching aims
• to integrate the arts into mainstream health
  strategy and policy making, in order to make the
  case for a role for the arts in healthcare
  provision across the whole country and for a
  wider remit for the arts in terms of healthy
  living and wellbeing
• to increase, and more effectively deploy,
  resources for arts and health initiatives,
  through funding, quality assurance of artists'
  work and advocacy

12
The Arts Health and Wellbeing

• 2006-2008 increasing recognition that peoples
  health and wellbeing is influenced by a range of
  interconnecting factors. Firm commitment to put
  the arts at the heart of national life and people
  at the heart of the arts
• What next?

13
Great Art for Everyone

• The key Arts Council Document 2008-2011 is Great
  Art for Everyone
• Between 2008 and 2011 we will invest in excess of
  1.6 billion of public money from the government
  and the National Lottery.
• Increase of .5 billion on 06-08 but 2 years
  longer. The yearly figure is lower.
• What are the differences 06-08 vs 08-11

14
Great Art for Everyone

• Our ambitious vision for the arts in England is
  now designed to offer excellent art to the widest
  range of people and to shape an arts sector that
  has the confidence to take artistic risk and to
  innovate.
• The focus appears to be more out come specific.
  Excellence is a key factor. An important part of
  our work will be to develop a system where arts
  organisations honestly assess their own success
  and conduct peer reviews.
• New Grants for the arts programme, launched in
  April 2008, changes the way we assess
  applications so that applicants explain to us how
  their proposals will achieve artistic excellence
  and engage audiences.

15
Great Art for Everyone

• Four development priorities for 20082011
• Digital opportunity
• Visual arts
• Children and young people
• London 2012
• 1 of 4 targets is the Olympics but there are
  still plenty of opportunities for good projects.

16
Europe

• In making government policy and funding decisions
  we also have to take European directives into
  consideration.
• June 2008 European Pact for Mental Health Well
  Being. Mental Health is a human right.
• Five priority areas where the Arts have key role
  to play
• Prevention of Depression and Suicide
• Mental Health in Youth and Education
• Mental Health in Workplace Settings
• Mental Health of Older People
• Combating Stigma and Social Exclusion

17
Arts Council East of England

• Planned investment of 32 million between 2008
  and 2011
• The Garage, NR5 Project Future Radio, Norfolk
  and Norwich Festival (Creative Partnerships),
  Norwich Arts Centre
• Art and Wellbeing is integral to PSAs
• There are jobs and funding out there you will
  have to fulfil the 08-11 requirement of
  excellence and stand up to testing to get them

18
2008 and beyond

• We are all under financial pressure
• Factors to consider
• New PSA
• Olympics
• Credit Crunch
• Supply and Demand
• Sadly, there are finite resources and tough
  decisions have to be made.
• The funding is there
• Good projects stay the course.