Latest Opinion
National Lottery at 30: Unacknowledged legacy
This week marks 30 years since the start of the National Lottery, which has raised more than £50bn for good causes over those decades. Mark Dunford was a lottery officer at Arts Council England at the time.
We need to address the skills void in the cultural and heritage sector
Anna Jobson and Laura Gander-Howe first crossed paths at Arts Council England and again at Creative and Cultural Skills. Now co-di…
Scottish creative ambition
Scotland’s arts sector has suffered continuing uncertainty in terms of public arts funding this year. Fiona Gibson, chief execut…
Museums and the cultural complacency trap
Benji Wiedemann, of brand consultancy company Wiedemann Lampe, says museums need to think more about their cultural purpose and co…
Money makes the world go around but art gives life shape
It’s time the Knowledge Exchange Framework gave credit where credit is due and admitted that art is doing its part, says Dr Mich…
Arts learning and the budget
As Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to deliver her first budget, Joe Hallgarten makes a last-minute case for increased investment…
Manifesto for a transformative workplace
Clore Leadership recently released ‘Imagine it Different’ – a report on a programme they undertook looking into the world of wor…
‘I’d like to thank my parents, and Lisa Nandy’
In celebration of the diverse and vibrant landscape of British and Irish arts, Phil Edgar-Jones of Sky Arts shares how he has tur…
New look, same values
After a two-year, behind-the-scenes project, Arts Professional has a new look – here’s an introduction to our new website.
Royal Court Writers’ Card: A beacon of hope for playwrights
Playwrights are feeling wrung out and scared, says Fiona Moon. But a recent announcement from London’s Royal Court Theatre has ign…
Want to be accessible and inclusive? Start with your culture
It’s more important than ever, says Lauren James, head of content and web projects at Splitpixel, for the arts to be accessible…
Chair of the board: Is the job even doable?
Given the increasingly complex environment in which charities operate, Michelle Wright offers some straightforward advice for maki…
From Olympians to musicians: What sport can teach the arts
Why are athletes praised for being elite, while the same epithet applied to musicians carries a connotation of being exclusionary?…
Developing AI policy for trustees and CEOs
Do your governance and leadership teams have a strategy for the use of AI? Or are your teams just experimenting without direction?…
Dynamic disaster? Lessons from the Oasis ticketing row
With headlines raging around Ticketmaster and Oasis, will there be fallout for arts organisations that price dynamically? Robin Ca…
Unrest, rest and action
Part of the point of art is the lens it offers us to look at the world in a different way, to converse with people and perspective…
A lost decade in culture
Asked to reflect on the effect of Conservative rule on culture, John Kampfner concludes it was a period of stunning missed opportu…
What have creative practices ever done for us?
Some humanities subjects have been declared obsolete and – by extension – useless areas of education and research. Mig…
Emerging arts leaders need more support
There is no need for alarm over an increase in churn of arts leaders, says Jodi Myers. But the sector should consider what support…
Let’s talk about excellence: A view from social arts practice
A key question for the new government has to be how to create the conditions for artists of all backgrounds to flourish, argues Pa…
Arts funding policy under the new government
In a period of fast change, financial pressures, despair about public service provision and political upheaval in the UK and abroa…
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