Academic spotlight to fall on cultural partnerships

A new Cultural Enquiry into the role of cultural partnerships is aiming to articulate the benefits of partnership working among publicly funded cultural institutions. The investigation is being conducted by Culture at King’s, part of King’s College London, in collaboration with the BBC. It will examine the potential of partnerships for enhancing the quality and diversity of work, increasing public engagement and delivering value for money. Case studies and interviews with those in the sector who have experience of partnership working will underpin a set of recommendations on the conditions necessary for effective partnership working.

Deborah Bull, Director of Cultural Partnerships at King's, said: “To survive and thrive in today's economy, the cultural sector needs to constantly re-evaluate what works, develop new and imaginative approaches and solutions. This Enquiry aims to bring academic rigour and insight to that process, providing an opportunity for the sector to look at its challenges through a different lens.”

The work will be led by the BBC’s Commissioning Editor of General Factual Programmes for Radio 4, Jane Ellison, working within the Cultural Partnerships directorate in collaboration with academics and students across King's. She will continue to work on partnerships and commissioning for the BBC while she undertakes the Enquiry. In recent years she has overseen BBC partnerships with the British Museum, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and Radio coverage marking the Centenary of the First World War.

The first Cultural Enquiry from King’s explored the role of arts and culture in maximising the value of major sporting and national events. A second, due to report next year, will examine the ways in which successive governments have sought to provide children and young people with access to the arts.