Time to think...

January can be a time to take stock, look ahead and plan for the coming year. However, 2024 presents challenges which, on their own, seem hard for any artist, arts organisation, museum or library to face. Piling one on top of another, it’s easy to understand how they cause a sense of being overwhelming.

We’ve heard the concerns of all people in the sector from board level to volunteers. There are worries about the lasting impact of the pandemic – with audiences unpredictable and with talent leaving. Inflation means higher bills for individuals and organisations.  Pressure on our funds creates more competition.  And there’s uncertainty about future investment, illustrated most starkly by some recent Local Authority section 114 notices. 

Space to think is more essential than ever, helping us all imagine ways to adapt and do things differently.  But in a world spinning faster and faster, people tell me they have precious little time to stop and reflect.

Extending our investment programmes

To help create some thinking time – for us and our sector - we’ve decided to extend two of our major investment programmes for an extra year. We’ve already done that with our Creative People and Places National Portfolio.  Today we’re announcing the extension of our 2023-26 National Portfolio Investment Programme to the end of March 2027. All those we currently support through these programmes will be able to apply for an extension to their funding. We plan to share more information in spring 2024.

We hope this will provide some certainty in an uncertain world and allow organisations to plan, look at new business models and increase collaboration. It will also give the Arts Council more time to build in your feedback to an improved, more accessible application process for the next portfolio.

We understand some organisations will be disappointed as they’d hoped to apply for the chance to join our National Portfolio sooner.  For those organisations we will continue to support your plans and help you develop in other ways for this additional year – read on to find out more about our investment and development programmes, and how we will advocate for our whole sector.

What else do we need to focus on in 2024?

Looking more broadly we need to help our sector through our other investment and development activity.  And with you, we need to demonstrate to national and local politicians that sustained investment in excellent art, culture and creativity makes life worth living and creates future growth, even in hard times. 

Our own approach to investment.

We do not have all the answers. Our funding is limited. But we will do everything in our power to help you manage the pressures you are facing.

Competition for our investment is very high but we’re always looking at ways to help applicants.  For example, we’ve recently simplified the application for National Lottery Project Grants for people and organisations looking for smaller amounts of investment. These changes came into effect last autumn, and we expect them to bed in over 2024 for applicants, making a positive difference.

We also recognise with the current pressures organisations and individuals face, it might mean doing less to maintain quality - or turning to the tried and tested. Whether project funding recipients or regularly funded organisations, we understand and want you to share revised plans with us.  It can be hard to open up to a funder about problems, but let me assure you everyone is struggling to different degrees in this difficult environment.  Our teams will listen with empathy.  Please trust us with your intelligence, so we can help you, as well as keep a weather eye on wider trends.

Our approach to development support

As you try and adapt to circumstances, we will be here to help.  Our Transforming Governance programme is available for board members of cultural organisations who need to make changes in the organisations they run, offering resources and support, whether funded by the Arts Council or not.

We hear the issues faced by executives, so we are working with Clore Leadership to create the Leadership Now assemblies, to bring people together because a problem shared is a problem halved, and perhaps a creative solution found. Please sign up to take part.

Our Digital Culture Network is there for creatives and practitioners, arts organisations, museums and libraries to harness the power of digital in their work, from box offices and e-commerce to social media and marketing. And our Investment Principles Resource Hub provides inspiration, ideas and guidance across multiple topics from inclusion to environmental responsibility.

Advocating for our sector in 2024

Any arguments we make to advocate for creativity and culture must be backed with hard facts. We gather data and conduct research to do this. It’s why we’ve recently invested in a project by the University of Essex’s Business School and East 15 Acting School to look at the working conditions and experience of freelancers.  It’s why we’re co-investing with the RSA to understand how creative corridors across England can drive growth. 

Good, evidenced based arguments for public benefit work:  we, alongside sector partners, used data to inform the government’s decision to extend higher rates of tax relief for theatres, orchestras, and museums and galleries until April 2025.  This work will continue this year.  

Our advocacy matters locally too. We know many local authorities are facing financial difficulties. But less cultural investment now has a long-term impact, with the risk that our villages, towns and cities could become greyer, less attractive places to live and work.  Creative and cultural spaces can be the catalyst to drive regeneration, improve wellbeing and instil a sense of pride in the place you call home, which is why we will ask all local authorities to keep making plans for culture.

The balance between hope and reality

As I’ve outlined, there is much we can do to influence and shape our world, but our resources are limited in the face of powerful forces.  How do I hold out hope for the future when the day to day feels tough?  It is by reminding myself of the boundless imagination, creativity and inter-connectivity of each one of you we support. 

The people in our sector are precious, but perhaps of late, often feel fragile and alone.  A thoughtful change maker recently pointed out to me that many of us have been practising endurance, not resilience, since the start of the Pandemic.  Their words have stayed with me.  I think a good use of 2024 would be for us, in partnership, to consider how to build resilience at a sector and individual level, so we can all sustain our commitment to the work, the audiences, the participants and the next generation - that matter to us.  I don’t pretend for one minute there are easy solutions to the current challenges we face.  I don’t pretend that we can protect everything or everyone, as much as I wish we could.  But I do think we will spark ideas if we work together.  We will do our best to play our part in that work in 2024.