Grants & Funding News

It's certainly been an eventful two months since our new structure came into being in April 2010. As our new team beds in, our 10-year strategic framework Achieving great art for everyone begins to emerge and a budget appears on the horizon, it's fair to say that these are changing times.

In this issue of e-news, Helen Lax, Regional Director, reflects on how the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) budget cut announcement means we need to be even more creative, entrepreneurial and collaborative.

It's certainly been an eventful two months since our new structure came into being in April 2010. As our new team beds in, our 10-year strategic framework Achieving great art for everyone begins to emerge and a budget appears on the horizon, it's fair to say that these are changing times.

In this issue of e-news, Helen Lax, Regional Director, reflects on how the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) budget cut announcement means we need to be even more creative, entrepreneurial and collaborative.

'I am a firm believer that the key to success lies in the ability to adapt,' says Helen, 'and there’s never been a greater need for all of us in the arts sector to be open to change.'

Jeremy Hunt MP, the new Culture Secretary is no stranger to the nation’s artistic strengths and is a passionate advocate for the arts. There's no doubt, however, that he takes up the post at a time of achievement and challenge for the arts.

In the last 15 years, the arts have been thriving with the growth of more visionary leaders, entrepreneurial business models and a global reputation for excellence and innovation. That is why the news that the DCMS budget is to be cut by 4.1 per cent in the current financial year was very disappointing. Arts Council England has been asked to manage a 4 per cent cut.

As our Chair Dame Liz Forgan said in her statement following the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's (DCMS) announcement last month: 'The task now is for us to do everything in our power to maintain the strength and achievements of the arts sector and minimise the impact of those cuts on the organisations we fund.'

'Our priority is to do our best to protect art and artists, and to make sure that we make and communicate our decisions as quickly as possible.'

We have a real window of opportunity to make a strong case for sustained arts investment in advance of the forthcoming budget on 22 June. It is vital that as Jeremy Hunt, is making the case to the new Government for sustained arts investment, we all play our part in supporting that case.

We must drive home the argument that the arts present fantastic value for money. The arts budget is tiny; the return on that investment is huge. In fact, for less than 17p a week per person we have a cultural life in this country that is the envy of the world. To support your conversations Arts Council have produced key points about why the arts matter.

We will keep you posted on events as they unfold. The new team at Arts Council is finding its feet, but we are continuing our work to champion the arts and make our case over the coming months.