The Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) report Countries of Culture: Funding and support for the arts outside London says that cultural projects support other policy areas and that best practice should be shared between local authorities.
The report looks at various areas, including the current funding situation, new income streams, new operational models, the importance of partnerships, diversity and accessibility, digital technology, and skills and staffing.
It concludes ‘In addition to its own intrinsic value, culture plays an important role in helping to deliver a wide range of policy objectives. There are innovative projects all across the country where culture supports other policy objectives, like health, education and economic development. We believe it would be helpful to publicise these projects more and also capture the lessons learned.
‘The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) should continue to work with the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to ensure that case studies and best practice are effectively shared with local authorities. The Culture White Paper was a welcome indication that this collaboration has begun.’
The inquiry held six evidence sessions and received more than 100 submissions from arts organisations across the country and visited Glasgow, Staffordshire and Buxton to hear from local government, business, education and cultural representatives.
