UK Shared Prosperity Fund application resources

The communities and place investment priority aims to foster a sense of local pride and build resilient, healthy, and safe neighbourhoods.  

Three of the suggested interventions directly relate to arts, museums, and libraries. These include:  

• E4: Enhanced support for existing cultural, historic and heritage institutions that make up the local cultural heritage offer. 
• E6: Support for local arts, cultural, heritage and creative activities. 
• E11: Investment in capacity building and infrastructure support for local civil society.  

Resources relating to local context  

• The Active Lives Survey - A survey about people in England (aged 16+) which provides information on people’s engagement with culture at a local tier local authority level.
• The Audience Agency - The Audience Agency offer a range of tools which support collecting and analysing local data. 
• Our Priority Places Data - This page lists the methodology we used for identifying priority places, along with the full data for every local authority in England.

Resources relating to outcomes  

• Meta-evaluation of place-based programmes - Our evaluation of 6 place-based investment programmes which shares learning from five fundamental areas which are needed to ensure impactful place-based programmes. 
• Great Place report - A year 3 report into our programme which pilots new approaches to local investment in arts and culture and includes case studies. 
• Creative People and Places evidence review and evaluation - Our review of the programme, which aims to address the gap in engagement in parts of the country where involvement in arts and culture is significantly below the national average. The review shares learning about more people choosing, creating, and taking part in art experiences in the places where they live. 
• The Impacts of Hull UK City of Culture and Evaluation of Coventry City of Culture - The Hull and Coventry City of Culture evaluation findings, which demonstrate community and place-based outcomes from cultural activities.  

Resources relating to delivery  

• Levelling Up Fund Round 2 application resources - our resources for those making a submission to Round 2 of the Levelling Up Fund. The ‘advice on capital’ section contains useful delivery information relating to capital projects.  
• Julie’s Bicycle resources - contains practical tools and support for the cultural sector on tackling climate action.  
• Social Prescribing – our resources on how you can approach social prescribing to best enable cultural engagement which promotes wellbeing, better mental health, and reduced health inequalities.  
• Investment Principles resource hub - While UKSPF applicants won’t need to demonstrate their contribution to ACE Investment Principles, our Investment Principles resource hub contains a variety of toolkits on topics such as inclusivity, climate and impact. These can support with both delivery and possible funding from other organisations.

The supporting local business investment priority has the primary objectives of creating jobs, boosting community cohesion, promoting collaboration, and increasing private sector investment in growth-enhancing activities.  

Resources relating to local context  

• The British Library Business & IP Centre – Industry databases and publications which provide information on a variety of topics including competitor analysis. The British Library also host a Living Knowledge Network which connects libraries, their collections, and their people.   
• Private Investment in Culture Survey – A survey which provides evidence for the UKSPF ‘increase private investment’ objective, by demonstrating how individual giving, business investment, trusts, and foundations play a role in funding arts and culture in England. The latest report will be published in June 2022. 

Resources relating to outcomes  

• A High Street Renaissance – A report which demonstrates the role culture and creativity plays in generating spend on the high street.  
• Social mobility in the Creative Economy - Rebuilding and levelling up? – A report outlining how government, industry and educators can work together to build a more socially inclusive Creative Economy. 
• Culture-led regeneration - Achieving inclusive and sustainable growth – An LGA guide which looks at examples of cultural-led regeneration in different types of councils, including urban and rural, unitary, county and district. 
• Evaluation of the Creative Local Growth Fund - Our evaluation of the fund which supported business growth initiatives designed to help culture contribute to local economies. It shares learning on metrics relating to employment and GVA, as well as impacts of the programme.  
• Evaluation of the Cultural Destinations Fund - Our evaluation of the fund which contains reflections on barriers and enablers to cultures contribution to the visitor economy, as well as evidencing outcomes. 

Resources relating to delivery  

• Dynamism Essential Read – Our resource to support arts organisations, museums and libraries to respond to the challenges and opportunities of the next decade, including business innovation in the cultural sector.  
• Creative places - Supporting your local creative economy – An LGA guide on how councils can best support local creative economies which includes sections on what’s happening in your area, how to set local goals, and how to deliver them.  
• The Voice for Philanthropy – Provides best practice guidance to support organisations to promote more and better philanthropy.  
• New Philanthropy for Arts and Culture – Provides networks, research, and resources to support attracting new philanthropy into the arts and culture sector. 

The people and skills investment priority has the primary objectives to boost core skills which support adults to progress in work, reduce levels of economic inactivity, support people furthest from the labour market to overcome barriers to work, and support local areas to fund gaps in local skills provision.  

Resources relating to local context  

• Leadership, workforce development and skills in the arts, creative and cultural sector: Evidence Review – A review which demonstrates the context of skills in the arts, creative and cultural sector, through evidence relating to skills gaps, skills need assessments, and entry and progression routes.

Resources relating to outcomes  

• Getting in and getting on - Class, participation, and job quality in the UK Creative Industries - This report explores the issue of class and job quality in the creative industries, and identifies new policy, programmes, outcomes and practices that might prove successful in overcoming barriers to work.   
• Workplace perspectives: skill needs, mismatches and development in the Creative Industries – An over-arching assessment of the skills required and supplied in the creative industries and the creative economy. The research highlights the skill challenges facing the creative economy, and acts as a starting point to help shape what can be done to resolve them. 

Resources relating to delivery  

• Recruitment and Workforce Development Toolkit - Our toolkit which provides best practice downloadable resources, templates, and guidance. 
• Creative & Cultural Skills – An organisation which aims to create an inclusive and skilled cultural sector by shaping skills, education and employment best practice, through providing training, resources and events.