Audiences Central News

The Kids In Museums Manifesto 2012

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:33:00 GMT

The Kids In Museums Manifesto 2012 is a useful tool designed to encourage and support museums and galleries in making visits for children, young people and families more enjoyable.

Compiled entirely from visitors’ comments, over 300 venues have signed up for the 20 point tool, including 2010 Winner Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, and Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, who were longlisted in 2009 and shortlisted in 2011.

Kids in Museums Manifesto 2012

1. Tell tales together with children and families. Share each other’s stories. Listen. Families and museums each have their own expertise.

2. Be welcoming and greet each visitor. Tell visitors what they can do at the door, don’t pin up a list of things they can’t. Curators, volunteers, front of house and those who work in the café should all be involved.

3. Play the generation game. Grandparents are increasingly important, and many families are more than two generations. Conversations between generations should be at the heart of what you do.

4. Invite teenagers into your gang. Provide a place for them to hang out. Set up youth panels. Ask them how they want to be involved. Museums can lead the way in letting people know the contribution teenagers make.

5. Be flexible in your activities, events and family tickets. Families come in all shapes and sizes. Design your pricing and programmes with all sorts of families in mind.

6. Reach beyond your four walls. Ask families how you can help make a visit possible. Take responsibility for the hurdles outside, even if they’re not put up by you.

7. Create a safe place for children and families. Museums can be havens and provide an opportunity for families to talk.

8. Be the core of your community, with spaces where families can meet.

9. Don’t say ssshhhush! If kids are being noisy, ask yourself ‘Why?’ is it because they’re excited? Great! Then capture this excitement. Is it because they’re bored? then give them something meaningful to do.

10. Say ‘Please touch!’ as often as you can. Everyone finds real objects awesome. Direct kids to things that can be handled. Teach respect by explaining why others can’t.

11. Give a hand to grown-ups as well as children. Sometimes it isn’t the kids who are shy – parents need your support too. Produce guides, trails and activities for families to enjoy together.

12. Be height and language aware. Display things low enough for a small child to see. Use your imagination with signs, symbols and words understood by all ages.

13. Make the most of your different spaces, outside as well as inside. Cafés, gardens, stairways and reception areas are valuable parts of the museum too.

14. Consider different families’ needs, with automatic doors, decent sized lifts, wheelchair-user friendly activities and Braille descriptions. Design your activities and events for everyone.

15. Keep an eye on visitors’ comfort. Make sure the toilets are always pleasant, with room for pushchairs and baby changing facilities. It’s the one place every family will visit. Provide somewhere to leave coats, bags, pushchairs, scooters and skateboards.

16. Provide healthy, good-value food, high chairs and unlimited tap water. Your café should work to the same family friendly values as the rest of the museum.

17. Sell items in the shop that aren’t too expensive and not just junk, but things kids will treasure and will remind them of their visit.

18. Look after your website – keep it up to date. Be honest. Let families know what’s available (and what isn’t) so they can prepare for their visit.

19. Use social media to chat to families. Don’t just post messages about what you’re doing – have a conversation.

20. Make the visit live on. Build relationships with your family visitors and let them know you want to keep in touch. involve them in long-term decision making at the museum, not just on the day. invite them back.

For more information see: www.kidsinmuseums.org.uk or Download PDF

ACE Creative People and Places fund open to 8 West Mids areas

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:12:00 GMT

The Arts Council has launched a new £37 million fund to aimed at ensuring more people living in places where levels of involvement are currently low experience and are inspired by the arts.

Over three years the Creative People and Places Fund will invest in around 15 programmes of activity that use radical new approaches to developing excellent, inspiring and sustainable arts experiences for communities not currently engaging with the arts.

The Arts Council has used the Active People survey to identify 71 areas of the country which fall into the lowest 20% of arts engagement. Grants of between £500,000 and £3 million will be invested in a number of these areas with the aim of increasing participation.

The areas pinpointed in the West Midlands region are:

Birmingham
Cannock Chase
Sandwell
Stoke-on-Trent UA
Tamworth
Telford & Wrekin UA
Walsall
Wolverhampton

It is reported that excellence, both artistic and in engaging communities, will be at the heart of successful applications, with the Arts Council investing in programmes that encourage long-term collaborations between local communities and arts organisations, museums, libraries and local authorities.

Alan Davey, Chief Executive, Arts Council England said: “We hope this programme will inspire new partnerships. We’d like to hear from consortia that include organisations we know are doing great work in developing audiences and, perhaps, others who may not have worked with the Arts Council before, but who could be part of innovative programmes that have a real impact in attracting new people to the arts.

“Though at this stage we can only offer funding for three years, we’d like to see applicants articulating a 10 year ambition for the communities they’re working with that will transform how local people experience and access the arts.”

As well as increasing artistic participation in these areas, the Creative people and places investment will help the Arts Council learn about the impact of different approaches to increasing engagement, The knowledge gained from the programme will be made available to arts organisations, museums and libraries, local authorities and the wider cultural sector.

There will be two funding rounds for applications to the fund, with first round opening on 30 January 2012. Interested consortia need to register their intention to apply with their regional Arts Council office by 23 March 2012 with the closing date for the first round of applications 13 April 2012.

The Creative People and Places programme is open to applications from any consortia that meet the eligibility criteria. All applications must be proposing work in one or more of the areas with the lowest 20% of arts engagement as identified by the Arts Council.

The Creative People and Places programme

Guidance For Applicants

Arts Council announces Renaissance partner museums

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:13:00 GMT

Arts Council England has announced the 16 major partner museums who will together receive approximately £20 million a year in funding for the next three years (April 2012 – March 2015) as part of its Renaissance programme for regional museums.

The West Midlands is host to two: Birmingham Museums Trust and Ironbridge Gorge Trust Museum.

The awards follow the Arts Council’s assumption of responsibilities for museum development from the Museums Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) in 2011. It is the first time major Renaissance grants have been awarded for a three year period via an open application system against published criteria.

The awards are also made in the context of the strategic goals in Culture, Knowledge and Understanding: great museums and libraries for everyone the document that sets out how the Arts Council is placing museums and libraries firmly at the heart of the organisation, its work and its vision for the future.

Alan Davey, Chief Executive, Arts Council England said that the insitutions "....have all been chosen for the excellence of their work, their innovative approaches to connecting audiences with their collections, and for their compelling plans for the future."

The 16 major partners represent a diverse range of museums across England, including local authority and university museums and independent trusts. Several successful applications came from consortia, meaning that 23 museum services will receive support through this part of Renaissance.

The Arts Council received 29 eligible applications for major partner funding, requesting a total of £116.4 million over three years. The 16 successful applicants requested £23.5 million a year against an annual budget of approximately £20 million. The exact amounts of each major partner’s award will therefore be finalised as part of the negotiations of their funding agreements and published in April.

One year’s transitional funding will be available to unsuccessful applicants who currently receive support from the MLA Renaissance hub scheme, to help them adjust to these changes. Levels of transitional funding will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis.

More details of the Renaissance Museum development fund are also announced alongside this list. This new fund will help to enhance the sustainability and resilience of the museums sector by enabling the sharing of expertise and knowledge, to maximize the benefits to audiences and communities. Applicants will bid to deliver development support for museums through local museum networks. The Museums development fund will open to applications on 7 February 2012 and close on 7 March 2012, with a total of £8 million available between 2012 and 2015.

Details of the Renaissance Strategic support fund – anticipated to be around £15 million a year – will be announced in the autumn. Strategic support will complement major partner and museums development investment, and will focus on any gaps or development opportunities not addressed by the other funds.

The final part of the Arts Council’s reworked Renaissance programme is the ongoing development of National programmes, including Accreditation, Designation, the V&A Purchase Grant Fund, the PRISM fund, support for national campaigns such as Kids in Museums and Museums at Night, and subject specialist networks.

Arts Council England states that it is confident that the various funding streams of its Renaissance programme will work together to provide a comprehensive package of support, driving excellence and delivering long term change in museums in England, with the aim of attracting more visitors to museums and enabling people to experience them in new and innovative ways.

For more information, see: We announce Renaissance Major partner museums and details of Museum Development fund

The 16 major partner museums are:

o Beamish and Bowes Museum
o Birmingham Museums Trust (Birmingham City Council; Thinktank)
o Bristol City Council
o Cumbria Museums Consortium (Tullie House; Wordsworth Trust; Lakeland Arts Trust)
o Horniman Museum & Gardens
o Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust
o Leeds Museums & Galleries
o Manchester Partnership (Manchester City Galleries; Manchester Museum; Whitworth Art Gallery)
o Museum of London
o Norfolk Museums & Archaeology Service
o Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter and Plymouth City Museum & Art Gallery
o Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton & Hove
o Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums
o University of Cambridge Museums
o Oxford University Museums and Oxfordshire County Museums Service
o York Museums Trust.

An announcement regarding Scene Central

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:33:00 GMT

As part of our closing down process, we’ve been working hard to ensure continuity for Scene Central - our ‘what’s on for the West Midlands’ website which we successfully launched in 2009 on the back of ArtsCentral.

Sadly, after much negotiation, plans to find a new home for the site fell through at the end of last week, so it is with much regret we have to inform you that Scene Central will cease on Tuesday 31 January 2012. The last Scene Central newsletter will be sent on Thursday 26 January 2012.

However, while Scene Central as a website winds down, we are still able to offer bespoke emails to the complete Scene Central database until Friday 16 March.

In addition, over 1,800 Scene Central users have given their consent to be contacted by arts and cultural organisations individually. There is, therefore, an opportunity for a limited number of organisations to purchase this valuable audience data. This is priced at £400 (net) for Audiences Central members, and £500 (net) for non-members. To find out more please contact Alison Finn at alison.finn@audiencescentral.co.uk

In a further attempt to find a legacy for the site, we will shortly be announcing a tender process for the transfer of ownership of Scene Central. More information will be available on the Audiences Central website soon, or contact us to register your interest.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support of Scene Central over the past few years, and if you have any queries, please let us know.

West Mids museums secure £337k

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:51:00 GMT

Thirty-six English museums and galleries have scooped a cut of £4million in grants through the DCMS/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund.

The announcement follows on from the Spending Review which stated that the DCMS and the Wolfson Foundation would each provide a further £4 million to enable the Fund to hold two bidding rounds in the 2011-15 spending period, each one awarding £4 million. This is the first of these two rounds, the second bidding round will be held in 2013-14.

West Midlands winners have grabbed at total of £336,900, and are:

Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery: Soho House Museum, Birmingham
Refurbishment of Soho House Visitor Centre to house a new exhibition about Birmingham industrialist and entrepreneur Matthew Boulton (1728–1809) and the Lunar Society. Includes the return of the ‘Soho sphinxes’ to their original home. £65,000

Compton Verney Compton Verney, Warwickshire
Re-display of the Marx-Lambert Collection. Enid Marx designed the striking geometric designs of 1937 for the upholstery of London Underground trains. £17,400

Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust: Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron Telford, Shropshire
Redevelopment of the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron, with new gallery spaces, a new education space and improved access. £150,000

Shakespeare Birthplace Trust & RSC: Shakespeare's Birthplace and the Shakespeare Centre, Stratford-upon-Avon
Reimagining Shakespeare's Birthplace. The re-display of key objects and treasures from the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust’s unique collections. £67,000

Wolverhampton Art Gallery Wolverhampton
Update to the display of Sensing Sculpture, Wolverhampton Art Gallery’s interactive and tactile sculpture gallery originally developed in 2001 for visitors with visual impairments. £37,500

For more information, see:
www.culture.gov.uk/news/news_stories/8799.aspx
www.flickr.com/photos/thedcms/sets/72157628951343381/

£75K scheme to fund craft in museums

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:10:00 GMT

UK museums are being given the chance to acquire a piece of outstanding international contemporary craft with a 100 per cent grant.

The Art Fund and the Crafts Council have launched this year’s £75,000 Art Fund Collect scheme, which aims to boost public collections with craft.

Curators from museums and galleries across the country are being invited to apply for exclusive preview access to COLLECT, Europe’s leading art fair for contemporary objects, in order to select one work they would like for their museum.

Shortlisted curators will be given an hour before all other visitors to visit the 31 galleries of works at the fair. They will then present their chosen item to the Art Fund Collect judging panel, who will decide which objects have been best presented and most merit joining a public museum collection. In 2011, eight curators each had an object for their public collections funded through Art Fund Collect.

Curators have until 14 March 2012 to submit their applications to take part. The shortlist, compiled by the judging panel, will be announced in April.

For further information including how to apply, see:
http://www.artfund.org/grants/applications-for-funding/art-fund-collect

THSH wins Concert Hall Manager of the Year

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:39:00 GMT

Director of Programming awarded first ‘Concert Hall Manager of the Year’ by Association of British Orchestras.

Paul Keene, Town Hall & Symphony Hall Birmingham’s Director of Programming, has been honoured by the Association of British Orchestras (ABO) and Rhinegold Publishing as the first ever ‘Concert Hall Manager of the Year’. The award, presented at the ABO’s annual conference gala dinner (18 January) recognises the quality, creative ambition, diversity and formidable international partnerships which have been hallmarks of Paul’s programming both at Symphony Hall and Town Hall.

The citation asserts that the award is made in recognition of “the power of Paul’s personal vision, his tireless commitment to its delivery and rich contribution to cultural life in Birmingham and beyond” citing as examples a ‘quartet of standout events’ last season, all involving the partnering of visual arts with music: the Philharmonia’s Tristan und Isolde with vivid film projections by Bill Viola, Klaus Obermaier’s complex Rite of Spring 3D, Thomas Adès’s In Seven Days with Tal Rosner’s visuals and the Houston Symphony Orchestra’s The Planets, with HD footage from NASA.

Paul Keene is currently overseeing a major festival to celebrate Symphony Hall’s 21st anniversary which includes a series of Wagner operas, innovative projects, film screenings with live accompaniment, workshops and behind the scenes access.

Celebrate with British Film Week

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:36:00 GMT

British Film Week is among the proposals put forward to help capitalise on "a golden period" of UK cinema.

The proposal is part of a government commissioned review of the industry and is one of over 50 recommendations to be found in A Future For British Film: It Begins with the Audience:

"The Panel would like to see the various parts of the UK film industry come together and collaborate in developing and delivering a UK-wide project that celebrates British film across the years; a project that is innovative and makes British films available to all audiences. This initiative might take the form of an annual ‘British film week’ across the UK, possibly supported by an ongoing series of British film days."

Other recommendations include that the British Film Institue (BFI) "provides a single focused leadership body for UK film; that it fully recognises it now has an industrial as well as a cultural brief".

It also believes that the BFI should encourage sponsorship and philanthropy for film culture.

Arts Council England appoints new Executive Director, Arts

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 16:06:00 GMT

Simon Mellor has been announced as Arts Council England's new Executive Director, Arts.

Mellor, who is currently General Director of the Manchester International Festival (MIF), replaces Andrew Nairne who left in November to become the Director of the Kettle’s Yard gallery in Cambridge.

In a near 30 year career in the arts Simon Mellor has held a variety of roles. During his time as General Director the Manchester International Festival established a global reputation and featured work and performances from artists as diverse as Damon Albarn, Jamie Hewlett and Chen Shi-Zheng, Bjork and Victoria Wood.

He also spent 12 years at the Lyric, Hammersmith, the last six as Executive Director, and previously held roles at the South Bank Centre, Gloria Theatre Company, the Battersea Arts Centre and the Pegasus Theatre, Oxford.

As Executive Director, Arts Mellor will provide leadership in the development of Arts Council England’s current and future national arts strategy and policy agendas, providing a national and international overview of the arts while ensuring a strategic coherence and alignment across the organisation.

He will join Arts Council England in March 2012. Barbara Matthews will continue in her role as acting Executive Director, Arts until March when she will return to her post as Director, Theatre.

www.artscouncil.org.uk

More volunteers and more gallery visits reveals latest Taking Part survey

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 11:40:00 GMT

More adults are volunteering in the arts, and more are visiting art galleries and museums according to the latest Taking Part survey (covering the period October 2010 to September 2011).

Taking Part is a continuous face-to-face survey with adults aged 16 and over living in private households in England and Survey is commissioned by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in partnership with a number of our arm’s length bodies (Arts Council England, English Heritage, and Sport England).

The survey provides a wide range of data about engagement and non-engagement in culture, leisure and sport as well as more diverse measures that support a range of Government objectives. The report presents headline findings for the main culture and sport estimates along with updates on data to support the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and Big Society objectives.

key findings:

Culture
• In the year to 2011/12 Q2 (October 2010 to September 2011), 72.0 per cent of adults report having visited a heritage site in the last year. 3.3 per cent of adults report visiting a heritage site at least once a week, a significant increase since 2005/06.

• Between 2005/06 and 2011/12 Q2, the proportion of people visiting a museum or gallery in the last year significantly increased (from 42.3% to 47.1%).

• In October 2010 to September 2011, 39.0 per cent of adults had used a library in the last 12 months, a significant decrease from 48.2 per cent in 2005/06, but showing no further change from 2009/10.

• In the year to September 2011, the proportion of adults visiting an archive (in their own time and voluntary) in the last year remained steady at 3.7 per cent from the 2008/09 level.

Big Society
• In October 2010 to September 2011, the proportion of adults volunteering in the last 12 months remained at 23.8 per cent. 7.1 per cent of all adults had volunteered in any DCMS sector. Of those who volunteered, 8.8 per cent had done so in the arts sector which is a significant increase from 2005/06 (6.3 per cent).

• In October 2010 to September 2011 88.9 per cent of adults had donated money (including any donations into a collection box) in the last 12 months. 31.5 per cent of all adults had donated to one of the DCMS sectors.

Digital engagement
• In October 2010 to September 2011, 16.2 per cent of adults had visited a library website in the last 12 months, a significant increase from 8.9 per cent in 2005/06.

• Since 2005/06, the proportion of people visiting heritage websites increased from 18.3 per cent to 27.7 per cent.

• In October 2010 to September 2011, 25.9 per cent of adults had visited a museum or gallery website, an increase from 15.8 per cent in 2005/06.

• In October 2010 to September 2011, 39.5 per cent of adults had visited a theatre or concert website, a significant increase from 30.5 per cent in 2005/06.

• People are more likely to visit an archive or records office online than in person.

2012 Olympic and Paraolympic Games
• Almost two thirds (64.5%) of adults are slightly or strongly supportive of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

• The proportion of those strongly supportive of the Games has shown a significant decrease, falling from 48.4 per cent in 2005/06 to 39.7 per cent in 2011/12 Q2. The proportion of those who are slightly supportive has increased to 24.9 per cent from 22.5 per cent in 2005/06 whilst the proportion who are neither against nor supportive of the Games has also increased from 18.4 per cent to 24.5 per cent over the same period.

• 85.6 per cent of adults intend to follow the London 2012 Olympic or Paralympic Games; with 25.3 per cent of adults actively getting involved in the Games.

West Midlands statistics

Proportion who have engaged with the arts once or more in the last year in the West Midlands
Oct 2010-Sept 2011: 75.3%
2010/11: 75.7%
2009/10: 69.7%
2008/09: 72.1%
2007/08: 74.2%
2006/07: 74.1%
2005/06: 73.8%

ACORN (Oct 2010-Sept 2011/ West Midlands)
Wealthy Achievers 83.3%
Urban Prosperity 82.7%
Comfortably Off 78.9%
Moderate Means 73.9%
Hard-pressed 66.3%

Proportion who have visited a museum or gallery in the last year in the West Midlands

Oct 2010-Sept 2011: 41.9%
2010/11: 40.6%
2009/10: 42.0%
2008/09: 35.4%
2007/08: 39.3%
2006/07: 36.4%
2005/06: 35.3%

ACORN (Oct 2010-Sept 2011/ West Midlands)
Wealthy Achievers 54.5%
Urban Prosperity 64.2%
Comfortably Off 46.8%
Moderate Means 41.8%
Hard-pressed 31.8%

Proportion who have visited a heritage site in the last year in the West Midlands

Oct 2010-Sept 2011: 68.5%
2010/11: 66.4%
2009/10: 62.4%
2008/09: 64.5%
2007/08: 65.4%
2006/07: 67.1%
2005/06: 65.8%

Proportion who have digitally participated in culture in the last year in the West Midlands
July 2011- Sept 2011: 35.7%

For more information, including Statistical Worksheets, see: www.culture.gov.uk/publications/8734.aspx

Arts & Business merges with Business in the Community

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:20:00 GMT

Arts & Business, the leading charity for encouraging private sector investment to the arts, has formed a new alliance with Business in the Community (BITC).

In a statement, Arts and Business stated that: 'This merger will see Arts & Business return to its business roots, working with corporate members to promote their support of cultural projects across the UK.

'Financial restraint in both the public and private sector is putting increasing pressure on many of our country’s leading cultural institutions and the partnerships cultural organisations develop with business are ever more important to their future growth.

'The merger with BITC will ensure Arts & Business is best placed to demonstrate that supporting arts and cultural projects, no matter how big or small, can have a positive impact on business performance and transform communities.

'The charity was founded thirty five years ago on the principles that a strong relationship between the arts and business worlds is mutually beneficial and encourages both to prosper.

'On November 1st 2011 the Trustees of Arts & Business agreed to devolve the national operations and Arts & Business Scotland, Arts & Business Cymru and Arts & Business Northern Ireland became independent charities.'

artsandbusiness.org.uk/

www.bitc.org.uk

The state of UK arts 2011

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:13:00 GMT

The National Campaign for the Arts (NCA) aim to document the state of arts and culture in the country with the launch of the annual UK Arts Index.

Bringing together key data about the sector’s health, the Arts Index plots trends in tickets sales, corporate sponsorship, philanthropy and public sector funding, as well as other performance measures such as attendance levels for adults and young people, satisfaction levels and the number of people volunteering in the arts.

Produced by the NCA in partnership with Audiences UK and Audiences London, the inaugural 2011 Arts Index report summarises data from across three years – 2007/8–2009/10 – and is the first indicator of how the arts sector across the UK is faring since the economic downturn.

Based on the highly influential US Arts index, and providing a ‘state of the nation’ type health-check for the arts sector, the authors hope that the UK Arts Index will become a key source of information for all those working in the arts in the UK – from government, policy makers and funders to arts organisations and individual artists.

The UK Arts Index 2011 finds that:

1. There has been a sustained decline in private sector support
Business contributions and individual giving fell by 17% and 13% respectively from 2007/08 to 2009/10. While recession had an immediate and predictable effect, the decrease became more marked between 2008/09 and 2009/10. This contrasts with a rapid recession-linked drop in funds from private trusts and foundations in 2008/09, which later stabilised in 2009/10 as the financial climate improved. This decline did not affect the overall Arts Index score as it was offset by a large, one-off injection of cash from the Lottery, much of it through programmes designed to mitigate the impact of the recession. The US Arts Index shows a steady decline in philanthropic giving over the past decade. Given the Government’s stated intention that cuts to the arts should be supplemented by philanthropic donations, these UK and US trends are worrying.

2. While public funding was stable, the Index was constant
The arts remained healthy through recession thanks to stable levels of Arts Council England and Local Authority funding combined with Lottery funds to mitigate recession. The Index does not reflect recent cuts to both which began to take effect in England in 2010/11.

3. Employment figures went down
Employment in the arts fell by nine points between 2008/09 and 2009/10; at the same time earned income scores went up. Since private sector income has fallen and public sector funding stayed level, it’s possible that earned income has been raised through belt-tightening. This could also suggest that arts organisations are working harder to produce great art with fewer people.

4. Adult attendance remained stable and levels of satisfaction rose
Adult attendance remained static at just under 70% of the UK population, despite the recession. Meanwhile, the quality of experience recorded went up by five points. Active participation in the arts went down by four points, however. This area of work has fallen victim to cost-cutting and we anticipate a bigger reduction still with next year’s funding cuts.

5. There is a large and growing gap between some of the English regions
There is a real difference in scores across the English regions, especially those related to resources available. London stands out; its average score is 165 points higher than the second highest region.

NCA: The 2011 UK Arts Index

BBC News: Slump in corporate arts donations

The Guardian: How healthy is the arts sector?

The Guardian: Sam West on the first UK Arts Index: why we need one and how to use it

Big Give reboot Christmas Challenge

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 11:22:00 GMT

The Big Give's Christmas Challenge relaunches today (Tue 6 Dec) following a server crash disrupted services and donations on the official launch day (Mon 5 Dec).

"Since the problems occurred we have worked tirelessly to identify any donor issues, contact all participating charities and resolve the website difficulties," says the organisation.

Donations to charities who are participating in the Challenge are matched by a combination of Big Givers, who have chosen to support a wide range of charities, and major donors and friends of your chosen charity.

Matching donations, Big Givers include Candis Magazine, The Waterloo Foundation, ICAP, Ethiopiaid, Sobell Foundation, Pilgrim Trust and Garfield Weston Foundation.

Among the West Midlands-bases arts and heritage related organisations hoping to swell their funds are:

Thinktank Trust
Chedhams Yard Trust
The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust
Saint Nicolas Place
Newhampton Arts Centre
Birmingham Royal Ballet
Dancefest
Women & Theatre
Art-Sense
art360hereford
The Lichfield Festival
Compton Verney
Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings
Pentabus Arts ltd
Coventry Heritage & Arts Trust Ltd
Carpet Museum Trust
Performances Birmingham Limited
Belgrade Theatre Trust (Coventry) Limited
The Courtyard Centre for the Arts
Royal Shakespeare Company
Full Potential Arts
Hartlebury Castle Preservation Trust
Ledbury Poetry Festival
Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre Development Trust
Central Youth Theatre
Motionhouse Dance Theatre
Nuneaton & Bedworth Leisure Trust
Stage2
CBSO
Orchestra of the Swan
Craftspace
Lichfield Arts
Foursight Theatre Ltd
Sound It Out Community Music
Blue Eyed Soul Dance Company
West Midlands Historic Buildings Trust
Big Brum Theatre In Education Company Ltd

- mac birmingham are hoping to celebrate their 50th anniversary in 2012 by commissioning Birmingham born artist Jony Easterby to create Sounding the River, a series of bespoke art works that explore the River Rea as a key connecting point for Birmingham. For this they require £134,736.

- Thinktank's fundraising target: is £2,500,000 for The Science Garden, a world class, 2,750 sqm Science Garden in the new Birmingham City Park.

- Coventry Heritage & Arts Trust Ltd's target is £2,250 to purchase a work of art, Dresden by Matthew Picton; £1,000 for the Coventry Watercolour Album by William Henry Brooke; and £9,000 for the Lunt Roman Fort horse training ring appeal.

- Belgrade Theatre Trust (Coventry) Limited's are aiming for £59,436 for Acting Out, a BTEC accredited course in Acting & Dance for young people.

- Craftspace are hopinh to raise £25,000 for their Crafts = Skills for Life project.

- CBSO have a target of £250,000 for the CBSO Youth Orchestra, which was formed in 2004 with the specific aim of providing young musicians (aged 14-21) from across the Midlands the highest quality forum in which to experience professionally supported orchestral playing.

For more information on The Big Give and the individual projects looking for funding, see: www.thebiggive.org.uk

Funds for films

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 10:17:00 GMT

Creative England has opened two new schemes of Lottery funding, delegated from the BFI, to support the development of filmmaking talent in the English regions.

The Development Fund and Film Networks Fund will be key drivers in delivering Creative England’s Talent Development aims: to nurture emerging and established regional filmmaking talent by supporting development of their work; to encourage a diverse and engaging on-screen cultural identity for the English regions; to stimulate innovative creative and commercial approaches to filmmaking; and to promote the talent and creativity of the English regions to the world.

The Development Fund is inviting applications from individual writers, writer/directors and/or producers based in the English regions for the development of all types of feature films, including animation and documentary. Applications are also invited from writer/director/producer teams. Funding is available for the costs of developing a screenplay (or the equivalent for documentaries) such as research costs, writer’s fees, script editor/developer support and script readings. Funding will also be available for screenplays that are ready to be presented to potential financiers, to help with budgeting, scheduling, casting, producing teaser trailers/pilots, and other expenses associated with raising finance and generating sales and distribution interest. The Development Fund totals £250,000 in its current round and applications are welcomed on a rolling basis. Awards will range from £2,500 to £25,000.
.
The Film Networks Fund is open to networks and organisations whose work supports and promotes filmmaking activities in the English regions. Funding will be available for a range of eligible activity including provision of editorial and technical support for emerging talent looking to produce work, delivery of networking, screening and industry speaker events and master classes, and provision of peer-to-peer support, mentoring, training and advice. The Film Networks Fund is a fixed call with £150,000 to award in this round. Awards will range from £2,500 to £25,000, and the deadline for applications is 30 January 2012.

As well as distributing Lottery awards, the Talent Development team will also provide advice, brokerage and practical help to filmmakers in developing and producing their projects.

Read more and access the fund guidelines and application forms:
www.creativeengland.co.uk/news/5-december-2011-creative-england-opens-two-new-funds-support-development-regional-filmmaking-ta

Arts Council's touring programme open

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 15:50:00 GMT

Arts Council England have published guidance for applicants to their new Strategic Touring Programme.

The £45 million programme aims to encourage collaboration between cultural organisations so more people across England experience and are inspired by the arts, particularly in places that rely on touring for much of their arts provision.

Awards of £10,000 and above will support touring across all artforms. The Strategic Touring Programme is open to applications from any individual, organisation or consortia that meets the eligibility criteria, with £15 million of funding available in the first year of the programme (2012/13).

For more information about the programme, including guidance for applying and frequently asked questions, see the dedicated section on the Arts Council England website.

Link: www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/strategic-funding/grant-programmes/strategic-touring-programme/

Working with interns

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 10:25:00 GMT

Arts Council England and Creative & Cultural Skills have published a new guide for working with interns.

Entitled Internships in the Arts - A Guide for Arts Organisations, the guide offers advice on how to develop high-quality and mutually beneficial employment opportunities, and sets out the legal obligations for arts and cultural organisations offering internships.

Recommendations include:

- an open, transparent and fair recruitment process
- internships being well planned and based on a wider internship and equal opportunities policy
- offering meaningful experiences and responsibilities that contribute to the aims of the organisation
- paying interns at least national minimum wage

The guide also highlights the legal obligations for organisations offering internships, including the need for them to ensure that they are operating within the requirements of the National Minimum Wage Act.

To download the guide, see: artscouncil.org.uk

For more information, see: Guidelines for Employers offering Work Placement Schemes in the Creative Industries

Arts Council England to create music education hubs

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:53:00 GMT

Arts Council England has taken on a new role as fund holder in establishing and monitoring a new national network of music education hubs in partnership with the Department for Education.

The hubs aim to realise the vision set out in The Importance of Music: A National Plan for Music Education and ensure that every child aged 5-18 has the opportunity to sing, learn an instrument and take part in an ensemble performance.

The Department for Education has asked Arts Council England to act as fund holder for the music education hubs, established across England through an open application process, and to select and monitor the hubs. The Department for Education has allocated £171m between 2012-15 for the hubs to deliver music education.

Music education hubs will replace the existing music services model, they will be collections of organisations working together in a local area, to create 'joined up, high quality music education provision' for children and young people, in and out of school.

Hubs will be expected to form strong partnerships with local authorities, schools, music organisations, practitioners and communities to provide quality music education across the whole country - while delivering better value for money and greater accountability.

The establishment of a network of hubs was a key recommendation of Darren Henley's Review of Music Education in England (2011), in order to create a joined-up approach that delivers excellent music education for children and young people across the country.

Arts Council England will also match Government funding of a further £500,000 per year to fund In Harmony, Sistema England from 2012-13. The programme will be expanded to enable more children from deprived backgrounds to benefit.

The closing date for applications is 17 February 2012 and successful applicants will be announced in late April. Music education hubs will be in place in September 2012.

You can find out more information about hubs, including the full prospectus and application criteria on the Arts Council;s dedicated music education hubs funding pages: www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/music-education-hubs/

Culture Secretary urges businesses to make the most of 2012

Thu, 24 Nov 2011 11:46:00 GMT

Businesses in the West Midlands were urged to make the very most of the opportunity of the country hosting the Olympics and Paralympics, as Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport Jeremy Hunt took his nationwide ‘2012 tour’ to the county.

Mr Hunt also hosted a School Games summit in Worcester, where he joined Sport England for the announcement of £3million National Lottery investment in the Worcester Community Sports Arena and Dawley Sports and Learning Community.

Addressing more than 100 hoteliers, businesses and tourism bodies from across the West Midlands at Birmingham’s Hippodrome (23 November 2011), the Secretary of State hailed the region’s stunning natural beauty and great historical significance. He said there were big wins to be had in 2012 for the West Midlands, in particular its tourism industry.

He also stated that the region would feature in major international and national marketing campaigns to promote UK tourism in 2012 and called for local tourism businesses to sign up to the 20.12 per cent discount scheme.

The Birmingham event, showcased the business, tourism, cultural and sporting opportunities that the Games bring.

Jeremy Hunt said: “Last year, 32.8 million visitors came to Birmingham alone, bringing £4.6 billion into the local economy. Next year, with the Games and our biggest-ever tourism marketing campaign we can do even better. With the Torch Relay passing right through the area for seven days – including key landmarks like the Iron Bridge and the Black Country Living Museum - we have a once-in-a-generation chance to show the world the very best of the West Midlands. From world-beating attractions like Alton Towers to spectacular scenery like Ironbridge Gorge and fantastic historic sites like Warwick Castle, the West Midlands has it all - and we need to make sure the whole world knows.”

BBC and ACE announce The Space

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 14:41:00 GMT

Arts Council England and the BBC have announced a £4.5m partnership to create "an experimental digital arts media service and commissioning programme that could help to transform the way people connect with, and experience, arts and culture."

Entitled The Space, the "pop up service" will run for six months - launching in May and continuing until the end of October 2012.

The aim of the programme is to "challenge artists, arts and cultural organisations to collaborate with each other and partners to capture and create a wealth of cultural experiences, drawing on the richness of the summer of arts in the Olympic year."

Arts Council England is investing £2.5 million of its strategic digital innovation funds which will be made available to arts and cultural organisations via a Lottery grant programme. The BBC have committed a £2 million support package including providing the technology solution and training and mentoring for successful applicants.

The programme is designed to encourage experimentation, innovation, and provide an opportunity to learn more about how to connect audiences with arts and culture using digital technologies. The service will use technology across four digital media platforms: PC, mobile devices, tablets and connected TV.

It will showcase a host of content, from both established and up-and coming companies and artists, and will include celebrity curation and critique, live broadcasts and some of the best content from the Arts Council and BBC archives.

In a joint statement, Alan Davey, Chief Executive, Arts Council England, and Roly Keating, Director, Archive Content, BBC, said: "What’s really exciting about The Space is that it will provide a communal playground for arts and cultural organisations, for technology wizards, and for audiences – anyone who’s open to new ways to connect with culture – to come in, to be creative, and to feed back about their experience."

The Arts Council expect their investment in The Space to significantly build the digital skills of the arts and cultural sector, ensuring that they are at the forefront of emerging digital technologies, and making their work available to even more people.

The £2.5m fund is open to arts and cultural organisations as well as museums and libraries (as long as the work that is primarily arts focused). Artists can also apply but must do so in partnership with a lead organisation.

Partnerships and collaborations between arts organisations and independent production companies or digital media specialists are welcomed, but in these cases, the arts organisation must also be the lead partner.

Expressions of interest should be sbmitted between Monday 14 November and Friday 9 December 2011.

For more information, including Guidance For Applications, see: Arts Council -The Space

ACE launches Libraries Development Initiative

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:09:00 GMT

The Arts Council and the Local Government Association have launched the Libraries Development Initiative with the aim of creating "vibrant, sustainable 21st century library services within the framework of Achieving great art for everyone and Culture, knowledge and understanding: great museums and libraries for everyone."

The Arts Council state that they "...want to work with the library sector to explore this vision for arts and culture working together," and describe this Initiative "as the essential first stage in this process."

The Libraries Development Initiative will run between March 2012 and March 2013 and support around 8-10 projects.

Each project will be awarded a maximum of £20,000, though amounts of funding allocated to each project will differ according to the scope and scale of work.

Successful projects will explore how embedding arts and culture in libraries can improve people's experiences, bring benefits to the library service and develop cultural provision in local areas. Projects will also look at new ways of working that will enhance libraries' sustainability and relevance as vibrant hubs in their local communities.

Applicants should complete an expression of interest form that explores one of the following four designated areas of activity:

Part 1: new delivery models for arts and culture working together
Part 2: coordinating partnerships to achieve national policy outcomes
Part 3: books and reading
Part 4: commercial partnerships

The deadline for expressions of interest is 5pm, Friday 2 December 2011.

For more details and how to apply, see: www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/libraries-development-initiative/

Discount scheme to boost domestic tourism

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:12:00 GMT

As part of a push to encourage domestic tourism during 2012, the Government have announced a new discount scheme.

Speaking at the World Travel Market, Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport Jeremy Hunt is encouraging organisations to offer 20.12% discounts.

The 20.12% discount initiative will be launched next year by VisitEngland as part of a campaign to use the Olympic Games to boost domestic tourism.

Under the scheme, holidaymakers booking a UK short break before the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games will be eligible for the '20.12' discount.

VisitEngland’s campaign is supported by a £3 million investment from the Olympic budget and is expected to deliver 12,000 new jobs and £480 million in extra spend over three years. There will also be a 'heavy' advertising campaign.

Among those already signed up for the scheme are Cottages4You, Superbreak (who specialise in short breaks such as theatre breaks and theme parks), Bourne Leisure (Haven Holidays, Warner Leisure Hotels and Butlins) and The Eden Project.

Mr Hunt will be taking to the road over the next couple of months as part of a ‘regional roadshow’ to promote the tourism, cultural and business opportunities of the 2012 Games. Beginning in Cumbria on Wednesday, he arrives in Birmingham - his West Midlands stop - on Wednesday 23 November 2011.

Olympic Torch route confirmed

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:24:00 GMT

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) have confirmed the journey the Olympic Flame will take prior to the Games next summer.

More than 1,000 villages, towns and cities across the UK have been named as part of the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay route which will mean that more than 95 per cent of the population to be within 10 miles of the Flame.

The Torch Relay will also take in hundreds of landmarks and travel by different methods of transport, including horseback, tram and steam-train.

Two new schemes have also been launched alongside the publication of the route. The Local Leaders initiative is encouraging people to create their own celebrations in their community for the Torch Relay and other key London 2012 moments. LOCOG have also created the Get Set for the Olympic Torch Relay education resource, available to all schools registered with Get Set, London 2012’s official education programme.

Links:
- Torch Relay Route Map
- Local Leaders
- Get Set

London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay route: West Midlands

Thursday 24 May 2012

Ledbury
Bartestree
Lugwardine
Hereford
Leominster
Ludlow
Clee Hill
Cleobury Mortimer
Far Forest
Callow Hill
Bewdley
Kidderminster
Droitwich Spa
Fernhill Heath
Worcester (Evening celebration)

Friday 25 May 2012

Worcester
Powick
Malvern
Malvern Wells
Ross on Wye

Wednesday 30 May 2012

Oswestry
Pant
Llanymynech
Shrewsbury
Cressage
Much Wenlock
Benthall
Broseley
Ironbridge
Telford
Newport
Gnosall
Haughton
Stafford
Shelton
Stoke on Trent (Evening celebration)

Thursday 31 May 2012

Stoke on Trent
Cobridge
Burslem
Middleport

Saturday 30 June 2012

Burton upon Trent
Streethay
Lichfield
Hopwas
Tamworth
Great Wyrley
Newtown
Bloxwich
Leamore
Birchills
Walsall
Willenhall
Wolverhampton
Dudley
Oldbury
West Bromwich
Smethwick
Birmingham (Evening celebration)

Sunday 1 July 2012

Birmingham
Solihull
Earlswood
Redditch
Astwood Bank
Alcester
Evesham
Wickhamford
Broadway
Newbold on Stour
Alderminster
Stratford-Upon-Avon
Warwick
Royal Leamington Spa
Kenilworth
Coventry (Evening celebration)

Monday 2 July 2012

Coventry
Rugby
Dunchurch

Arts Council announce £7.5m Audience Focus

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:23:00 GMT

The Arts Council England have announced an Audience focus grant commission. The fund is "intended to address major support needs in the sector; it will support a small number of large-scale national, sector-wide or major cross-regional collaborative activities."

The indicative budget available is £7.5m from 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2015, and it is anticipated that ACE will support in the region of 10-15 awards over the next three years, with the minimum award in the region of £100,000.

ACE are looking to invest in "high impact, exciting and ambitious proposals" that:

- have the potential to help funded organisations reach significantly more people and new audiences, or
- develop shared approaches to marketing and audience development that make significant savings for participating organisations

The outcomes we are looking for are:

- an increase in the numbers of people who regularly engage in the arts
- a wider range of people engaging in the arts; focusing on those who may have some engagement or are not currently engaged
- more resilient funded arts organisations, museums and libraries – through increased earned income from the public and also via efficiency savings from collaborative activity
- sustainable projects and services which support the arts and cultural sector to continue to increase reach and improve engagement

This audience development fund is open for applications from 4 November 2011 to 9 January 2012.

For more information see: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/strategic-funding/commissioned-grants/audience-focus/

UK library visits continue to fall

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:39:00 GMT

Visits are down and volunteering is up in the UK's libraries according to the latest annual survey from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).

The number of visits has dropped by 7.5 million in the 12 months up to 31 March 2011.

Statistics also reveal a drop in the number of public libraries, static and mobile (from 4,612 to 4,579); a drop in the total number of books held by libraries (by close to 1m); and a 2.9% drop in the number of book loans to 300.22 million.

But there was a rise in the number of children's fiction books available and the number of loans of children's fiction books, as well as a rise in volunteering (22.3% to 21,462 people). Over the same period, the number of library staff dropped by 4.3% to 23,681.

The most visited library in the UK is Norfolk& Norwich Millennium with 1,496,186 visits. Birmingham Central Library is second with 1,197,350 visits.

CIPFA: Latest Public Library Statistics Released

BBC News: UK library visits fall by 7.5 million

An Announcement from Audiences Central

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 12:00:00 GMT

It is with great sadness that the Board of Audiences Central announces that Audiences Central will cease trading on 31 March 2012.

As an Arts Council England regularly funded organisation (RFO), Audiences Central - the audience development agency for the West Midlands - has been enthusiastically supporting cultural organisations for many years, working with large, established theatres, to small independent practitioners. Delivering ground-breaking projects, such as The Big Picture, and establishing much-valued networks, its reputation as a leader in the field of audience development and engagement is well-earned.

In the spring of 2011, Arts Council England announced that the regional audience development agencies would not be part of the new National Portfolio, and it is this announcement which has led to the Board’s difficult decision.

The Board and all members of Audiences Central staff, along with external partners, have invested considerable time and effort investigating alternative business models in an attempt to ensure the organisation could continue without funding. Unfortunately, given the challenging economic climate and timescales for potential lifelines, this has not been possible.

We would like to stress that until closure, the staff of Audiences Central remain committed to delivering the exciting Arts Council England funded audience development project, ABC: Audiences Black Country; supporting organisations with membership and via regional networks; and offering advice, expertise and such in-demand services as Scene Central.

The success of ABC and other work will ensure that Audiences Central’s legacy will continue beyond April 2012, and the Board and team remain firmly committed to investigating ways that organisational support and the work delivered by the company will carry on after March 2012.

Peter Rees-Steer, Chair of Audiences Central said: “Audiences Central and the work it has successfully delivered has been a vital part of the regional arts community for many years, and so the decision to cease trading has been a deeply upsetting one for the Board and the staff, but one which we hope our members and clients will understand given the shift in funding environment and the wider economic climate.

“We will do everything we can to ensure that our services and the fabulously talented people who have made Audiences Central what it is today continue to support the sector, and thereby leave a lasting legacy for the organisation.”

Arts Council England launches strategic funding

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 12:56:00 GMT

The Arts Council has published details of how it will invest £440 million of strategic funding between 2012 and 2015, including two new programmes for Capital and Touring.

Strategic funding will be used to complement the organisation’s £1.04 billion investment in National Portfolio organisations. The strategic funding will be used to target key areas and seize opportunities – including investment in capital, touring and encouraging private giving.

The Arts Council Plan for 2011-2015, published alongside the strategic funds announcement, sets out in more detail how strategic funding will be used to realise the priorities set out in Achieving great art for everyone – the Arts Council’s ten-year strategic framework for the arts.

Alan Davey, Chief Executive, Arts Council England said: “Much of this new strategic funding comes from our Lottery income, following the Government’s decision to increase the share of Lottery money to the original four good causes. The funding will allow the Arts Council to invest in flexible and targeted ways to help realise our priorities and ambitions for the arts, building on our core investment in the National Portfolio.

“The aim is for the Arts Council to work alongside our National Portfolio, and other artistic and cultural organisations, to deliver our shared aims and ambitions for the arts. I’m sure creative and ambitious organisations across the country will relish the chance to undertake work that ensures the arts keep pushing boundaries and play an even greater role in our national life.”

Any National Portfolio organisation that applies will need to show how the activity supported by strategic funding is in addition to its core programme.

How the strategic funding will be invested

Strategic funding will be invested in three ways:

1. Targeted grant programmes

There will be three targeted grant programmes that organisations can apply to. These are:

The £180 million Capital programme, which focuses on improving existing arts facilities to help organisations become more sustainable and resilient businesses, including increasing their environmental performance. This programme is now open for applications.

The £50 million Catalyst Arts programme, which is designed to enable arts organisations to diversify their income streams, attract significantly more funding by increasing their fundraising potential, and help them to develop and explore innovative new approaches to securing private giving. This programme is now open for applications.

The £45 million Touring programme is designed to encourage collaboration between organisations so more people across England experience and are inspired by the arts, particularly in places which rely on touring for much of their arts provision. This programme will open for applications on 5 December 2011.

2. Grant commissions

Grant commissions are a new way of doing things for the Arts Council. This approach enables the arts sector to apply to deliver a particular piece of work to a detailed and specific brief given by the Arts Council. These grants will draw on knowledge and expertise from England’s fast growing creative economy to help achieve the Arts Council’s goals and priorities.

A £7.5 million Audience focus fund will see the Arts Council commission initiatives that increase, widen and sustain audiences and visitors for the arts, museums and libraries. The Arts Council is looking to invest in high impact, exciting and ambitious proposals that: have the potential to help funded organisations reach a significantly more people and new audiences, or develop shared approaches to marketing and audience development that make significant savings for participating organisations

The Audience focus fund opens for applications on 4 November 2011.

An open selection process will be launched to find a national provider to continue the development and delivery of the Artsmark scheme as it extends to cover the Arts Council’s new responsibilities for museums and libraries. This £4.5 million fund is now open for applications.

A fund is also being developed to invest in a small number of areas with low arts attendance and engagement, to develop inspiring and sustainable arts and cultural programmes that help get more people involved in the arts. The Creative People and Places fund will launch in early 2012.

3. General strategic grant programme

In spring 2012 the Arts Council will open a General strategic grant programme, giving organisations the chance to apply to undertake work that helps realise the priorities in Achieving great art for everyone. Organisations will be able to approach the Arts Council with creative solutions to achieve priorities not being fully addressed by the National Portfolio and the other strategic funds. The priorities identified as not fully addressed will be set out in the Arts Council’s Area delivery plans, which will be published in the spring.

BBC Performing Arts Fund announces Community Dance scheme winners

Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:52:00 GMT

The BBC Performing Arts Fund has awarded over £172,000 to dance groups across the UK through its Community Dance scheme.

Grants of up to £5,000 have been awarded to 41 not-for-profit groups in order for them to carry out training, attract new audiences, encourage new members and raise their profile in their communities.

The scheme also encourages groups to take on more challenging projects through commissions and working collaboratively with other local organisations as well as professional artists.

The successful groups were able to demonstrate that their projects were challenging and ambitious yet achievable, that their project would develop the group and its members, and that the group would collaborate with and have an impact on the wider community.

Three organisations from the West Midlands received grants:

Central Youth Theatre (£3,800)
• Multi-generational project introducing members to forms of social dance
carried out in Wolverhampton across the years – including 1920’s ragtime,
Northern soul, and ballroom.
• Creating a touring performance work that the young people will take into old
people’s homes and community venues.

Fanga Drum ‘n’ Dance (£3,000)
• African dance and drumming group.
• To develop the group’s dance skills, raise their aspirations and possibly
progress onto college courses to gain formal qualifications.
• Working with Dudley Age UK, libraries and schools.

Rainbow Sunshine Company (£5,000)
• Group with a range of disabilities who would like to work with Wolfgang
Stange, Artistic Director of Amici Dance Theatre company.
• Create a new piece for the group to perform at Bedworth Civic Hall.
• Will work with local dancers and train up volunteers.

For more information, see:

Complete list of Community Dance organisations

BBC Performing Arts Fund

Creative industries: a driver for growth

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 14:11:00 GMT

Creative Industries Minister Ed Vaizey has urged West Midlands business leaders to invest in the creative industries as part of ambitious plans to boost the economy of Greater Birmingham and Solihull.

The Government minister was in Birmingham (25/10/11) to discuss the Creative City initiative.

Led by the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership, The Creative City initiative aims to stimulate investment by:

- Creating a fund to build on existing public sector funding of the arts through loans, grants, match-funding and investments. The allocation of funds will be based on the potential for job creation and economic growth.

- Outlining the vision for a new ‘museum quarter’, including a new museum of photography and the development of a new contemporary art gallery.

- Exploring ways to unlock private sector and philanthropic support for culture, linking cultural development to wider economic growth.

Links/ Further Reading:

- DCMS

- The Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP)

- Birmignham City Council Newsroom

- Curzon Square: A Vision for Birmingham's New Museum Quarter

JOLT session summaries

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 10:17:00 GMT

Notes and presentations from JOLT, Audiences Central's annual symposium, are now available to browse and download.

The one-day event, which took place at mac birmingham on Thursday 20 October 2011, was attended by over 70 delegates - with many travelling from mainland Europe.

See below for summaries, presentations, speaker biographies and questions:

Welcome/ Plenary

Cultural Identity and Audience Development

The Cultural Olympiad

Engaging Faith communities

The Cost of Volunteering

Click For More

Know Your Neighbours

Tapping into Tourism

The Value of Community Engagement

Day 2: Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)

Delegates (and non-attendees) are encouraged to continue the debate around each topic using the Twitter hashtag #acsymp11 and individual hashtags relating to each session.

We can also distribute questions by email: info@audiencescentral.co.uk (please put 'JOLT' as part of your title/subject).

This event is part of Audiences Central’s rolling programme of organisational support and contributes to Audiences Europe Network’s exciting international project, Extending The Margins.

Film Culture Fund opens for applications

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 16:51:00 GMT

Creative England’s Film Culture Fund opens for applications on Monday 17 October 2011, with a total of £490,000 delegated Lottery funds from the BFI to distribute in the first round.

The Film Culture Fund aims to boost access for audiences to a wide range of film content in the English regions outside of London, to enrich audiences’ experience through education opportunities, and to bring the unique resources of regional screen heritage into wider film provision.

It is looking to support the provision and interpretation of both specialised and mainstream film in England, by investing in:

- audience development within the film exhibition sector
- film education activities which are linked to and support film exhibition
- infrastructure (e.g. cinemas, film festivals, film societies and other platforms)
- the acquisition, preservation and conservation of and access to regional screen heritage.

Applications are now invited from cinemas, film archives, film festivals, mobile cinemas, film societies and other eligible organisations working in the English regions outside of London.

Awards will range from £2,000 - £50,000 depending on the project. Funded activity can include programming, education, reaching under-served audiences and regional screen heritage.

Creative England’s Head of Film Culture Jay Arnold, said: “I’m very pleased to open Creative England’s first funding scheme. We’re looking for strong project ideas that we can get behind to help nurture film culture in all its variety, to the benefit of local audiences around the country, and we’re interested in hearing from organisations from all parts of the English regions.”

Eddie Berg, the BFI’s Director of Partnerships, said: “Creative England will be crucial delivery partners for the BFI’s Forward Plan and we welcome this clear commitment of support for the exhibition, archive and film education sectors, whose work is so important to audiences across England.”

The deadline for applications is midday on 28 November 2011.

Download the Film Culture Fund guidelines and access the online application form at www.creativeengland.co.uk/film-support/film-culture

For more information about Creative England film funding, call 0844 824 6041 or email lottery.admin@creativeengland.co.uk

Announcing Catalyst

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 15:15:00 GMT

DCMS, Arts Council England (ACE) and the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) have announced further details of the £100 million Catalyst scheme to boost private giving to culture.

The scheme is designed to enable arts and heritage organisations to diversify the way they generate income, increase their fundraising potential and develop new ways to secure private giving.

It includes a £55 million endowment scheme jointly funded by DCMS, ACE and HLF, which was announced by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt in July and multi-million-pound capacity building schemes funded by ACE and HLF.

Full guidance for applicants to the scheme has now been published and applications opened on 29 September for heritage awards under the Catalyst: endowments programme. Applications for arts awards are set to open on 1 November 2011.

“Supporting a culture of giving is one of my top priorities,” Mr Hunt said. "[This]announcement shows that we are making rapid progress, with £100 million now available to help culture and heritage organisations strengthen their fundraising skills and attract significant sums from private sources.

"I remain incredibly grateful to everyone who gives money to support these vital sectors and look forward to the Catalyst scheme making a huge impact on the financial resilience of organisations across the country."

Alan Davey, Chief Executive of ACE, said increasing private giving was an important part of making the arts more sustainable and resilient. He added: "Critically, Catalyst is about attracting new money to the arts, increasing the pool of donors whose generosity continues to make such a vital contribution to our mixed economy funding system."

For more information, including details of how to apply, see:
www.catalyst-artsandheritage.org.uk/

Goodbye Screen WM; hello Creative England

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 15:10:00 GMT

Screen WM closes its doors on Friday 30 September after nine years supporting screen media in the West Midlands, to be replaced by Creative England as the new umbrella body for the creative sector.

The closure of Screen WM follows the coalition government’s decision to replace the UK Film Council’s support for film-making, which core-funded the regional screen agencies, with funding through the British Film Institute.

In November 2010 the Minister for the Creative Industries, Ed Vaizey, announced that Creative England would be formed to build on the work of the regional screen agencies, becoming operational on 1st October 2011.

Since its formation in 2002, Screen WM has been responsible for supporting, promoting and developing the screen media industries in the West Midlands.

Over the past nine years, it has co-financed 17 feature films, attracting co-investment worth nearly £40 million.

In 2008, the agency launched the first regional hub for Channel 4’s 4iP fund, securing a £10 million investment in the West Midlands’ digital media sector.

Chair of Screen WM, Dr. Samir Shah, said: “Screen WM has been responsible for transforming the filmmaking landscape in the West Midlands, putting the region on the map for feature films such as Atonement as well as attracting major returning drama series including the BBC’s primetime drama Hustle, and Jed Mercurio’s forthcoming police drama Line of Duty, both of which are currently filming in Birmingham.

“By securing the opportunity to become the first regional hub for Channel 4’s 4iP fund, Screen WM helped to position the West Midlands at the forefront of digital media innovation, and has supported many of the leading lights in this sector to develop their own businesses as a result.

“In addition, the agency has supported the development of a vibrant film culture which continues to build new audiences for all types of moving image content both for enjoyment and as tools for learning.

“Since the Creative England announcement, Screen WM’s board and senior management team have worked closely with Creative England to ensure a smooth transition, preserving key activity and building on Screen WM’s achievements.

“I would like to thank all of the staff at Screen WM for their hard work and dedication in supporting the individuals, companies and organisations that make up the region’s screen media industry, and we look forward to seeing the sector go from strength to strength.”

Caroline Norbury, Chief Executive of Creative England, said: “Creative England will be officially up and running from next week (week beginning 3 October 2011), and I am looking forward to taking the successes that Screen WM has achieved for the West Midlands industry and building upon them in this new era. I would like to thank Screen WM for helping to make the transfer of film provision as seamless as possible, and we look forward to a new chapter in creative industries support in all the English regions outside London moving forward.”

For more information about Creative England see: www.creativeengland.co.uk

Revised Renaissance plans welcomed by museums

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:24:00 GMT

Arts Council England haveopened applications for the revised Renaissance in the Regions major grants programme for regional museums - as part of the preparation for the Arts Council assuming key responsibilities formerly held by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) on 1 October 2011.

The funding for the reworked Renaissance major grants programme - which replaces the MLA's core museums fund - is £20 million a year. For the first time, major grants to regional museums will be awarded via an open application process, assessed against published criteria, in a similar way to the National portfolio funding process for arts organisations earlier this year. We hope that by opening up the application process a new mix of museums across the country will find support through Renaissance.

Maurice Davies, the Museum Association’s head of policy and communications, said: “We welcome the new application process. The Arts Council’s guidance is very clear, and it is also very clear about the goals. This will allow for a really transparent and fair application process for regional museums.”

For more information see:
www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/renaissance/renaissance-major-grants-programme/

www.museumsassociation.org/news/13092011-ace-launches-20m-renaissance-grants-programme

Arts Council publishes museums and libraries framework

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:44:00 GMT

The Arts Council has laid out its plans for museums, libraries and archives in a new publication, Culture, Knowledge and Understanding: Great Museums and Libraries for Everyone - a Framework for Future Cooperation.

This publication sets out how they will place museums and libraries at the heart of their work and vision for the future; it is a companion piece to the 10-year strategic framework for the arts, Achieving Great Art for Everyone.

At the heart of the framework are five 10-year goals, the substance of which have been adapted to reflect the needs and priorities for museums and libraries and sit alongside Arts Council's existing goals for the arts:

• Goal 1: Excellence is thriving and celebrated in museums and libraries
• Goal 2: More people experience and are inspired by museums and libraries
• Goal 3: Museums and libraries are sustainable, resilient and innovative
• Goal 4: The leadership and workforce in museums and libraries are diverse and highly skilled.
• Goal 5: Every child and young person has the opportunity to experience the richness of museums and libraries.

In the long-term, it is expected that Arts Council England will not have separate strategies for museums, libraries and the arts. They will use the same framework to drive all programmes and inform all funding decisions. They will evaluate success using common goals for museums, libraries and the arts, and will establish a robust evidence base that can inform policy-making
and demonstrate public value in what they fund.

In the short-term, however, Arts Council believe that they must first reflect on the diversity of their extended remit to understand fully the specific challenges and opportunities facing museums and libraries.

In her Forward, Dame Liz Forgan, Chair, Arts Council England, says: "In the current fiscal squeeze, it is perhaps no surprise that people sometimes question the role of public funding in culture, seeing it as an ‘add-on’ or ‘nice to have’ in straightened times. I would fiercely argue the counter: that the arts and culture are absolutely central to the life of the nation, and that every individual should have the right to experience their richness as part of their life experience, personal development and wellbeing. I would go further, and say that at times of difficulty, they are even more important, but that this is why public funders must be stringent in demanding excellence."

Alan Davey, Chief Executive, Arts Council England, says: "[The publication] clarifies the framework for the decisions we will make for the remainder of this spending period. It also starts to explore some of the benefits and opportunities for museums and libraries and the arts in being able to work across a wider cultural footprint."

Read full document: artscouncil.org.uk

£3 million from Olympic budget to boost domestic tourism

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:20:00 GMT

Three million pounds from the Olympic budget is to be used to boost domestic tourism to maximise the economic legacy of the London’s Games for the whole country.

The investment, announced by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, will kick start a new tourism campaign to make the most of the Torch Relay and the Cultural Olympiad to showcase the whole nation.

Over the next three years it is expected to deliver:
- 12,000 new jobs
- £500 million extra tourist spending
- 5.4 million more hotel rooms occupied
- a 10% increase in overnight short breaks

Alongside this investment, VisitBritain are also leading a £100 million campaign to attract more overseas visitors to the UK which is expected to lead to four million extra international visitors over the next four years and £2 billion extra spend.

Source: www.culture.gov.uk/news/media_releases/8423.aspx

Call to cut music bureaucracy

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:16:00 GMT

The Government has launched a consultation seeking to deregulate entertainment licensing in the UK.

At present, under terms of the Licensing Act 2003, any venue or event looking to promote live music, no matter how small, must apply for permission from their local authority.

Reports from the Government-commissioned Live Music Forum (2007) and the Culture, Media & Sport select committee (2009) both concluded that such an approach has proved detrimental to grass roots live music.

When Government last consulted on the issue, in early 2010, 74% of respondents who expressed an opinion said that they favoured an exemption for small venues.

A Private Members Bill, instigated by Lord Tim Clement-Jones and seeking to exempt venues under a 200 capacity, is currently awaiting report stage in the House of Lords. In March 2011, this Bill gained support across the political spectrum.

Feargal Sharkey, chief executive of UK Music said: “Earlier this year, UK Music highlighted how large-scale live music attracts £1.4bn of tourism to the UK. However, the success of our festivals and arenas – indeed, the success of our entire industry – is reliant upon a vibrant grass roots music scene. This is where raw talent emerges. Nominees at last Tuesday’s Mercury Music Prize all began their careers playing in the back rooms of pubs and clubs.

“This is a world away from the purpose of the Licensing Act, which is to prevent crime and disorder and to protect vulnerable people from harm. The police should always have the ability to intervene in events where there is a legitimate concern on these grounds, but there is absolutely no evidence that live music encourages crime or disorder. Quite the opposite, in fact. For the UK, music is a unique asset.

“We are therefore delighted that Government has adopted such a forward-thinking approach. Enabling live music to flourish has potential to drive social cohesion, entrepreneurialism and economic growth. While continuing to support Lord Clement-Jones’ Live Music Bill, UK Music warmly welcomes this consultation and all other measures that would remove red tape for the benefit of musicians and creative talent."

John Smith, General Secretary for the Musicians’ Union said: “We welcome this consultation and the Government's intention to cut red tape for live music. At the very least, we hope that the result will be to implement an exemption for small venues putting on live music with fewer than 200 people in attendance, which we have been lobbying for for many years now.

“We therefore also support the proposals outlined in Lord Clement-Jones’ Live Music Bill, which state that an exemption to the Licensing Act should take place when ‘the live music entertainment takes place in the presence of an audience of no more than 200 persons’.”

Paul Latham, COO International Music at Live Nation Entertainment and UK Live Music Group chair said: “Live music provides a huge boost to the UK’s economy and is a significant part of this country’s social fabric. To ensure future success it is vital that we sustain a healthy grass roots scene, where musicians and artists from every region have the widest possible opportunity to build a career. It is pleasing that Government recognises this fact and we look forward to engaging with this consultation in the weeks ahead.”

Source: www.ukmusic.org

More information: www.culture.gov.uk/news/news_stories/8413.aspx

Birmingham arts centre in running for national award

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 14:16:00 GMT

mac birmingham is in the final of the National Lottery Awards 2011.

The most visited arts centre in the country is in the running for Best Arts Project, and is only one of two West Midlands-based projects, the second being Staffordshire sports project Chase Trails Cycle Project.

The Awards are an annual search to find the UK’s favourite Lottery-funded projects, and they recognise and celebrate the difference that Lottery-funded projects make to communities across the UK.

After receiving a huge swell of support during the semi-final back in June, mac secured enough votes to get through to the final, and the second round of voting is about to begin.

There’s no panel deciding – it all rests on the public vote.

mac birmingham is up against three other arts projects: Shapeshifter Productions' The Smiling Sessions, which found musicians visiting sheltered homes in London; Inclusion Through Practice project by Razed Roof, an inclusive performing arts group for people with and without learning disabilities based in Harlow; and a purpose-built centre in Leeds for Northern Ballet and Phoenix Dance Theatre.

The winner will be featured in a one-off primetime programme on BBC One in early November, and receive an extra £2,000 on top of their Lottery funding. mac have stated they will spend this on improving facilities for our customers, especially children and people with disabilities.

Voting continues until midday on Monday 26 September 2011.

To register your vote for mac birmingham, call 0844 836 9673 or visit www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards/

mac: www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards/best-arts-project/93/

The National Lottery Awards are an annual search to find the UK's favourite Lottery-funded projects. Lottery players raise £28 million each week for projects all across the UK and the Awards are designed to highlight how that funding has changed the UK for the better. Now in their eighth year, the Awards recognise the incredible difference that Lottery-funded projects have made to people, places and communities all across the UK. They also celebrate the talent, hard work and amazing dedication of the people involved in running them.

Since The National Lottery began in 1994, over 350,000 grants have been given out across the arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment. The Awards have seven categories, reflecting the different types of projects that benefit from Lottery funding.

The categories are:
• Best Arts Project
• Best Education Project
• Best Environment Project
• Best Health Project
• Best Heritage Project
• Best Sport Project
• Best Voluntary/Charity Project

We're shaking up audience engagement

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 11:43:00 GMT

How DO we really engage with our local communities?

Should we be focussing on using volunteers to such an extent?

What will changes in funding and income mean to our commitment to widening access to our cultural offer?

These are just some of the pertinent questions we'll be asking in our forthcoming exciting annual symposium, JOLT.

Part of the European Extending The Margins project - which looks at hard to reach audiences - JOLT features cultural leaders from across the UK and Europe who'll be looking in depth at the key challenges faced by the arts and heritage sectors, and opening up the deabte to include you.

Can you offer any new solutions?

What are the tools you’re using to engage with hard to reach groups?

What DOES the future hold for us all?

Among the announced speakers are mac's CEO and former Arts Council West Midlands Chiar, Dorothy Wilson MBE; Néstor Yanes Díaz; Director of Arts and Museums, Tenerife, Spain; David Brownlee, Chief Executive, Audiences UK; and Abid Hussain, Relationship Manager, Diversity In Arts Practice, Arts Council England.

JOLT takes place at mac, Birmingham, on Thursday 20 October 2011. More speakers will be announced very soon, but Early Bird booking is now open, with Audiences Central members entitled to free places and/ or discounts (see booking forms for more details).

For more information, including how to book, see: JOLT: Shaking up audience engagement.

Visitor Attractions in West Midlands boosted by 2% increase in 2010

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 12:12:00 GMT

Admissions to England’s visitor attractions rose by 3 per cent in 2010 according to VisitEngland’s Annual Visitor Attractions Survey.

The boost in visits was driven predominantly by free attractions which increased by 6 per cent with paid attractions reporting an overall decline of 1 per cent reflecting the predisposition of the nation to tighten its belt during times of economic uncertainty.

The majority of the top twenty free attractions were museums or art galleries, with the British Museum retaining its top spot with 5.8million visitors followed by the Tate Modern, National Gallery and Natural History Museum. Regional museums and galleries also featured heavily including the Ashmolean Museum, Merseyside Maritime Museum, Museums Sheffield and the World Museum Liverpool.

The Tower of London topped the paid for category with 2.4 million visits, followed by St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Windermere Lake Cruises, and Flamingo Land Theme Park & Zoo. Many of the most visited paid for attractions were categorised as historic properties and included The Tower of London, Stonehenge, Houses of Parliament & Big Ben, Chatsworth House and Leeds Castle.

Following the pattern from last year’s study, the performance of attractions varied by category, with visits to museums and art galleries showing a significant increase of 5 per cent, higher among those with free entry. Country parks were up by 5%, and workplaces and places of worship, up by 4 per cent, also outperformed the market.

Across the regions, the strongest performance was in London with (+6 per cent) and the North West and South East, ( both +3 per cent).

West Midlands

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery ranked 19th in the Free Attractions category nationally, with a rise of 13.2%. In the West Midlands table, 9 out of 20 entries are categorised as art galleries and museums.

Ironbridge Visitor centre came in at 16th in the England-wide Paid For Attractions list, with a 0.1% rise from 2009 to 2010. Ironbridge sites featured heavily in the West Midlands Top 20 with a total of five placings, though Enginuity, Coalport China Museum and Coalbrookedale Museum Of Iron all suffered a drop of between 303% and 9.2%. Artrix, in Bromsgove, saw a rise of 1.6% in paid visitors, and is the only 'arts centre' to be included in the WM list.

Overall, the West Midlands region saw a 2% rise in visitors from 09/10.

Top 10 West Midlands Attractions - Free
Rank/ Name of Attraction/ Category/ 2009/ 2010/ % Change
1 Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery Museums/ Art Galleries/ 644259/ 729231/ 13.2
2 Sandwell Valley Country Park/ Country Parks/ 354962/ 400000/ 12.7
3 Coventry Transport Museum/ Museums Art Galleries/ 376021/ 368508/ -2.0
4 Kingsbury Water Park & Nature Reserve/ Wildlife/ 355122/ 340010/ -4.3
5 Coombe Country Park/ Country Parks/ 378318/ 333116/ -11.9
6 The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum/ Museums Art Galleries/ 220000/ 319000/ 45.0
7 Royal Air Force Museum Cosford/ Museums Art Galleries/ 344994/ 310089/ -10.1
8 National Memorial Arboretum Visitor/ Heritage Centres/ 267836/ 274900/ 2.6
9 Holy Trinity Church/ Places of Worship/ 220000/ 240000/ 9.1
10 Jinney Ring Craft Centre/ Workplace/ 220000/ 220000/ 0.0
See Top 20 list

Top 10 West Midlands Attractions - Paid
Rank/ Name of Attraction/ Category/ 2009/ 2010/ % Change/ £ charge
1 Ironbridge - Ironbridge Visitor Centre/ Museums Art Galleries/ 566967/ 567510/ 0.1/ 21.95
2 Attingham Park/ Historic Properies/ 260035/ 277428/ 6.7/ 8.50
3 Blists Hill Victorian Town/ Museums Art Galleries/ 22666/ 236024/ 6.0/ 14.95
4 Ryton Pools Country Park/ Country Parks/ 149191/ 148147/ -0.7/ DK
5 Baddesley Clinton/ Historic Properties/ 131165/ 130696/ -0.4/ 8.40
6 Charlecote Mill/ Historic Properies/ 122735/ 128653/ 4.8/ 8.15
7 The Secret Garden - Illuminated Trail/ Garden/ 128000/ 118000/ -7.8/ 7.50
8 Croome Park (Natonal Trust)/ Country Parks/ 75279/ 114004/ 51.4/ 5.40
9 Park Farm/ Historic Properties/ 119255/ 113844/ -4.5/ 12.00
10 Hanbury Hall (Natonal Trust)/ Historic Properties/ 99329/ 111300/ 12.1/ 8.0
See Top 20 list

Download: Annual Survey of Visits to Visitor Attractions.

Libraries of the future

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 10:28:00 GMT

Libraries could share their premises with other organisations in proposals by the Local Government Association and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA).

Future Libraries: Change, options and how to get there - Learning from the Future Libraries Programme Phase 1 suggests new cost-cutting plans to keep open some 400 libraries amid funding cuts.

These include the idea that libraries could be merged or share facilities with churches, health centres, arts providers or be run in partnership with the private sector or other neighbouring councils.

The Future Libraries Programme pilots have identified four options for helping to ensure the survival of libraries in the 21st century:

1. Running libraries in partnership with the private sector, charities and other councils.

2. Extending the reach and range of library services by integrating them with other community facilities like churches, shops and village halls and providing public services such as health centres and the police surgeries in existing libraries.

3. Sharing services like back offices and mobile libraries with neighbouring local authorities to make stretched resources go further.

4. Giving library users the ability to play a more active role in running library services themselves..

Cllr Chris White, Chair of the Local Government Association's Culture, Tourism and Sport Board, said: "Public libraries are among the most valued services provided by councils. We know that people of all ages and from all backgrounds are quite rightly very protective over their local library.

"By breaking down the barriers of tradition, councils are bringing libraries into the 21st century and meeting the needs of a new generation of library users.

"The best libraries are at the heart of councils' approaches to everything from lifelong learning to wellbeing, job seeking, volunteering, education and encouraging more people to get online."

Read the full report at local.gov.uk - Future Libraries...

Read more:
BBC News: Plan to create libraries of the future

Birmingham arts organisations face cuts

Fri, 05 Aug 2011 15:30:00 GMT

The Birmingham Post has reported that Birmingham City Council have slashed £15 million from its budget for charitable causes and voluntary organisations.

More than 200 groups have lost all or a sizeable percentage of their funding as the council looks to save £212 million this financial year.

Leading arts organisations are facing cuts of between 9% and nearly 60%.

Among those affected are African Cultural Exchange (50% cut), Birmingham Contemporary Music Group (59% cut), Birmingham Jazz (59%), Birmingham Opera Company (14%), The REP (17%), BRB (18%), CBSO (9%), Craftspace (50%), DanceXchange (15%), Ex Cathedra (14%), mac (14%), performances Birmingham (23%), RBSA (50%), sampad (9%), SoundItOut (50%), Stan's Cafe (50%), The Drum (16%), Women & Theatre (50%)

Source: falseeconomy.org.uk

Read full list of organisations at http://falseeconomy.org.uk/files/vol-cuts.xls

West Mids attractions vie for tourism award

Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:52:00 GMT

The Black Country Living Museum and warwick Castle have been shortlisted for the British Travel Awards 2011.

A total of 16 venues have made the shortlist for the Best UK Heritage Attraction, including two from the West Midlands.

The winner will be announced at a ceremony on Wednesday 2 November at the Battersea Evolution in Battersea Park, London.

BCLM and Warwick Castle face stiff competition from Beamish Museum, Buckingham Palace, Castle Drogo, Chatsworth House, Dover Castle, Edinburgh Castle, Knebworth House, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, Roman Baths & Pump Room (Bath), SS Great Britain, Stonehenge, the Tower of London, Windsor Castle, and York Railway Museum.

Members of the public are being asked to vote until the end of September.

Other categories include Best UK Theme Park, Best UK Seaside Town along with various avards relating to retailers, operators, hotels and so forth.

For more information, including category details and how to vote, see: www.britishtravelawards.com

Arts Council reveals Renaissance plans

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:25:00 GMT

Arts Council England as announced further details of how it will deliver the Renaissance in the Regions funding programme for museums, after it takes over this function from the Museums Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) on 1 October 2011.

£300m has been invested since Renaissance in the Regions started in 2002.

The programme was reviewed in 2009 and MLA had well developed plans for its next generation, to be implemented from 1 April 2012. Arts Council England’s brief was to carry these plans forward, allowing for the 15 per cent reduction in the Renaissance budget between 2012 and 2015.

The new programme aims to build on the success of Renaissance by encouraging excellence, leadership and change in regional museums and enhancing the important cultural, social and economic contribution that they make to our communities.

There were four strands to the MLA Renaissance proposals, one of which will stay the same, and three of which will change.

The National Programmes strand will transfer on 1 October, continuing as before. This includes the programmes MLA delivered to support standards within the museum sector, such as Accreditation, Designation, the provision of national security advice and initiatives including Kids in Museums and Museums at Night.

However, the Arts Council will take a new approach to the other three areas of the MLA’s proposals. These three strands will be:

- A programme of major grants: This grant programme will begin with an open application process, similar to the Arts Council’s National Portfolio programme, and is a revision of the MLA core museums concept. The programme will look for a group of museums with the appetite and capacity to play a wider leadership role in the sector in delivering on the Arts Council’s strategic goals.

Full details of the funding criteria and application process for Renaissance will be made available in early September, and the application process will conclude early in 2012.

- A strategic support fund: The Arts Council will also run a funding programme similar to MLA’s proposed challenge fund. The details of this fund are "still under discussion".

- Museum development: A commitment to museum development will be maintained, with a £3m investment. The Arts Council will also complete the new approach the MLA was developing to strengthen the infrastructure for this area.

For more information, see: www.artscouncil.org.uk

In September Arts Council will publish a companion document to Achieving Great Art for Everyone, their 10-year framework for the arts. Following observations by Estelle Morris, this document will layout how they will interpret strategic goals for museums and libraries between 2012 and 2015.

Fall in live music sales

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:03:00 GMT

The UK's live music scene witnessed a drop in box office takings last year for the first itme in a decade.

PRS For Music's Adding Up The UK Music Industry 2011 report reveals that primary ticket sales fell from £956.9m in 2009 to £843.5m in 2010, a fall of 11.8 percent.

At-the event spend (often referred to as 'ancillary revenues'), which had grown nearly 60 percent over the previous five years, also faltered in 2010, falling 3.5% to £444m (from a revised £460m) as a result of fewer people going to live events.

Factoring in sales via re-sellers, PRS notes that total live revenues fell from £1.59bn to £1.48bn, down 6.8 percent.

UK festivals continued to perform strongly (with primary ticket sales increasing by 20 per cent as capacity rose and the numebr of festivals grew), and arenas and mid-sized venues held up, but there was a notable decline in the number of stadium gigs in 2010 compared to the previous year - with some major names not touring or opting to play smaller venues.

The report repeats finding by the National Arenas Association’s (NAA) which noted that while music continued to make up 60 percent of arenas’ footfall, music attendances were down 20 percent on 2009.

The outlook for 2001 is more positive though, with the re-appearances of several major acts (for example Take That, Rihanna).

"Our view," says the PRS, "is that the live music business is not entering a cycle of boom and bust, but rather showing signs of maturity and cooling to a more sustainable growth path, after a period of unprecedented growth."

Read the full report: prsformusic.com

Film viewing on the rise

Tue, 02 Aug 2011 11:31:00 GMT

More people are watching more films across more platforms and cinema remains robust during difficult economic climate are just two of the findings from the British Film Institute's (BFI) 2011 Statisical Yearbook.

2010 saw UK cinemas enjoying another strong year, achieving record box office
receipts (£988 million) with Toy Story 3 the highest grossing release of 2010,
followed by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.

The UK population watched films on a total of 4.6 billion occasions. This represents an average of 81 film viewings per person across all formats including cinema, television, home entertainment and view on demand services (VoD).

Although UK cinema admissions were down 2% on 2009, reaching 169.2
million, UK box office receipts, this year achieved record levels and
numbered £988 million, up 5% on the previous year.

This growth was supported by a strong line up of 3D films which accounted for 24% of UK and Republic of Ireland box office revenues in 2010 (£242 million), up from 16% in 2009 and just 0.4% in 2008.

UK cinema admissions for the first six months of 2011 were 80.7m, up 0.7%
on the first half of 2010). This represents the second highest first half
admissions of the last five years.

The highest grossing film in the first half of 2011 was - somewhat predictably - The King’s Speech (£45.4 million).

The UK is the third largest film market in the world, behind the USA and
Japan.

To view the full report see: Statistical Yearbook11

Top 10 UK box office films 2010
1. Toy Story 3 - £73.7m
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 - £52.38m
3. Alice in Wonderland - £42.54m
4. Inception - £35.8m
5. Shrek Forever After - £32.38m
6. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse - £29.75m
7. Sex and the City 2 - £21.65m
8. Iron Man 2 - £21.8m
9. Clash of the Titans - £20.2m
10. Despicable Me - £19.9m

Grants available for The People's Record

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 13:32:00 GMT

Funding to support museums, libraries and archives to run community projects that will generate materials for The People's Record (www.peoplesrecord.org.uk) is now available, MLA has announced.

A total of £15,000 is available for grants of up to £1000. Applications from projects that have previously received Peoples Record funding are welcome, as well as new projects.

The People's Record is part of MLA's 2012 programme which aims to create a collective record of the public's response to hosting the 2012 Games.

Since 2008 MLA has funded museums, libraries and archives to lead projects in their communities to record their response to 2012 and to tell their stories.

All the projects explore at least one of the People's Record core themes:

- Health, Sport & Wellbeing
- Changing Places
- Young People's Aspirations

The materials the projects generate such as films, oral history recordings, photographs, writing and visual art can be published on the People's Record website to ensure that the material is preserved as a permanent record beyond 2012.

From 1st October 2011 Arts Council England will assume the role of lead strategic agency for libraries and museums in England from the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), and will take over management of the Peoples Record project.

For full details of the available funding and how to apply, please visit http://www.mla.gov.uk/what/programmes/2012_programme/peoples_record

Supporting growth in the arts economy

Fri, 22 Jul 2011 15:53:00 GMT

The Arts Council has published a new 'think piece' which aims to inform their policy around the arts and the creative economy.

Entitled Supporting Growth in the Arts Economy and written by Tom Fleming Creative Consultancy, authors Tom Fleming and Andrew Erskine illustrate synergies between the arts and the creative economy and discuss suggestions for the Arts Council's approach. The Arts Council aims to sustain and exploit links between the arts and the creative industries, in line with the five goals in our strategic framework Achieving great art for everyone.

Policy around the arts and creative economy aims to:

- develop a sustainable and resilient arts sector
- help arts organisations to generate income from new and different sources
- identify areas where arts contribute to the wider economy
- encourage the use of digital technology to reach more people and generate new revenue

The report states that old rules are not fit for purpose and the Arts Council needs to move quickly and confidently to ensure existing success is sustained and that the arts delivers greater outcomes for more people over the coming years.

It also states that Arts Council should align the goals of Achieving Great Art for Everyone more clearly and productively with opportunities across the creative economy.

Of digital engagement it argues that Developing successful, revenue generating subscription models for the digital content of arts organisations needs to be explored. Citing Spotify, Last.Fm and ad-based models for streaming music, it sees the need for a ’cultural’ subscription model, providing access to multiple platforms across different devices.

Ultimately the Arts Council should support artists, arts organisations and creative businesses to engage bigger and more diverse audiences in deeper, more gratifying and productive ways. Concurrently, markets grow, the arts ecology is sustained and replenished, and the creative economy enters a new period of competitiveness.

Read the full report: artscouncil.org.uk

RSC home on architecture shortlist

Fri, 22 Jul 2011 14:13:00 GMT

The RSC's recently refurbished and revitalised home is in line for the 2011 Stirling Prize.

Organised by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), the prize is considered to be the post prestigious in British architecture.

The brief called for the retention of Elizabeth Scott's grade II* listed theatre facade and foyer and the rebuilding of the larger theatre to form a new 1,000 seat thrust-stage auditorium, plus new facilities for actors and audience, all within a new urban masterplan.

The Prize judges viewed the architects' overall planning as "....thoughtful and cohesive. This is best shown in the formation of the new lobby, the arrangements for delivery of sets to the stage, the opening up of the path to the riverside and finally the new tower that works both as marker and viewing platform."

Bennetts Associates Architects have been praised for creating a main auditorium which has "an exciting atmosphere."

Judges conclude: "It is historic in its references, contemporary in its design. This is a good working theatre, not a precious one."

There are six buildings on the Stirling Prize shortlist, including sports facilities and museums.

Now in its sixteenth year, the RIBA Stirling Prize is awarded to architects of the best new European building 'built or designed in Britain'.

The winner will announced at the RIBA Stirling Prize dinner on Saturday 1 October 2011. This year's venue is Magna Science and Adventure Centre in Rotherham, winner of the 2001 RIBA Stirling Prize. The ceremony will be broadcast on a special edition of BBC Two's The Culture Show, presented by Kevin McCloud.

For more information, see: architecture.com/

* The RSC recently announced that Nigel Hugill has been selected as the new Chairman of the RSC. He will be formally appointed at the Company's October AGM when current Chairman, Sir Christopher Bland, steps down after seven years.

Coffin Works secures £1m HLF grant

Fri, 22 Jul 2011 13:56:00 GMT

Newman Brothers Coffin Works, in Birmingham's historic Jewellery Quarter, has secured a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of close to £1million.

Birmingham Conservation Trust (BCT), who were previously responsible for restoring top city-centre heritage attraction the Back-to-Backs, will carry out urgent conservation and repairs to the Grade II* listed building and its contents.

Once the maker of the world’s finest coffin furniture, including fittings for the coffins of Churchill, Chamberlain and Diana, Princess of Wales, the Coffin Works was at the centre of the coffin trade in Birmingham, with the city itself the industry market leader in the 19th-century. Reaching the finals of BBC Restoration in 2003 for its unique interiors, the site can now look forward to a bright future with a four-year project, which represents the first phase in a larger scheme to provide new uses and a long term vision for the Coffin Works as tourist attraction.

Anne Jenkins, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund in the West Midlands said: “This exciting project will see the Coffin Works – leader in its field and one of only three remaining in the UK at the time of closure – preserved for future generations. When complete it will present the public with a rare opportunity to explore the modern heritage of death in the UK, a fascinating subject set to become an enduring attraction for Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter.”

Elizabeth Perkins, BCT Trust Director explains further what the HLF money will mean: “After ten years of working on this project this grant makes all the difference. HLF’s support means we will now be able to attract the remaining funds we need to rescue this fantastic building and its remarkable contents from crumbling decay. We can set about transforming the Coffin Works into a place where people can come to find out more about its intriguing past, learn new skills, meet new people, take part in activities and even carry on their businesses. Once repaired, the building will be the new home for Birmingham Conservation Trust and we are really excited about involving people in all aspects of the project from the meticulous repairs and conservation work on the contents, to fun events such as Gothic suppers in the Shroud Room!”

The HLF grant amounts to £999,400. BCT's total target is presently £455,000, of which £30k is public donations.

The grant follows an earlier announcement that Dudley Zoological Gardens (is to undertake a £1.15million programme to renovate four iconic Tecton structures built when the opened in 1937.

The HLF has awarded development funding of just over £123,000 for the three year project. The first-round pass* means that DZG have up to two years to submit more detailed plans and apply for a full HLF grant of just over £970,000 towards the project

A fifth of UK museums face cuts of over 25%

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 13:50:00 GMT

A Museums Association (MA) survey has revealed that a fifth of all UK museums have been cut by over 25%.

The survey, The Impact Of Cuts On UK Museums, shows that of museums being cut by 25% or more:

• Over 60% of them have cut back their public events

• half of them have reduced opening hours

• Over 85% have cut staff

Museums Association director Mark Taylor said: "Local authorities that have made cuts to their museums of over 25% impoverish their communities. Services have been cut and opening hours restricted - there’s a risk, in some cases, the doors will be slammed shut forever.

"Many local authorities haven’t yet made a final decision so still have a chance to do the right thing for present and future generations by not cutting so ferociously.

"The survey shows it’s a myth that you can cut funding without affecting front-line services. People across the UK have less access to the learning, inspiration and enjoyment that museums bring."

The survey also found that for UK museums as a whole:

• 22% of museums are reducing their opening hours

• 30% are cutting education staff

• 46% of survey respondents expect the quality of service in their museum to decrease over the coming year

• 41% say knowledge and expertise are being lost at their museum

Though many respondents recognise the need for cuts, quoting an anonymous West Midlands curator, the MA reports that cuts have been made without consultation with staff who could have identifed more effective savings.

48% of local authority museums surveyed stated they - like BM&AG/Thinktank - are looking at Trust status. The MA note that nationally, many museum staff feel under-informed about the implications of adopting trust status and question the long term viability of change.

Link: The Impact of Cuts on UK Museums

Link: The Impact of Cuts on UK Museums - Appendix

For further information, see: www.museumsassociation.org

BBC News: Fifth of museums hit by 25% funding cuts, finds survey