Arts Council begins consultation on next ten-year strategy

A new public consultation has been launched to determine what the mission, vision and objectives for Arts Council England (ACE) should be over the next ten years.

The funder’s current ten-year strategy, Great Art and Culture for Everyone, will come to an end in 2020, and ACE is asking for input from the public, arts workers and stakeholders to shape its new strategy for 2020-30.

“We want to hear from everyone – including those individuals who don’t participate in the art and culture that the Arts Council currently invests in – about what they think the arts and culture scene in England should look like in 2030, and what the Arts Council’s role could be in making that happen,” ACE said.

Working with consultants BritainThinks, ACE has launched an online discussion platform and will be holding a series of workshops across the country, alongside a public survey.

Launched yesterday, the discussion is the first phase of a two-year process. ACE plans to publish the strategy in Autumn 2019, just before it takes effect.

Online discussion

The online platform, which will be live until 11 April, will encourage people to share their views on a range of topics, including how ACE can strengthen the social impact of its work; how publicly funded arts organisations can become more accessible and diverse; and how the sector should respond to the uncertainty created by Brexit, reduced public funding and the impact of new technologies.

Two wide-ranging topics are currently up for discussion on the platform: the threats and opportunities facing the sector over the next ten years; and the role of the arts in society.

New questions, activities and topics will be posted on the platform regularly, with the BritainThinks team guiding and moderating the discussion.

Darren Henley, Chief Executive of Arts Council England, said: “This is a very exciting time for all of us, an opportunity for us to contribute to a visionary piece of work that will influence the direction of the arts, museums and libraries in England for many years to come. It's your future – please do have your say in it.”

Parallel to the discussion, ACE is conducting its own evidence review and has commissioned a future scoping report from NESTA.

Findings from the discussion will be shared later this year, before a draft framework for the strategy is put out for consultation in the autumn.