Arts Council England and NPO Funding

It is a tough bag to hold for certain, and not an envious position in the least, especially with the limited funds available and the amazing and deserving organisations.

On the back of the funding announcements today, John Tusa author of Pain in the Arts wrote for The Guardian Here is What a Wise Arts Policy Might Look Like. His piece is very well written, we've summarised it so forgive us for being very, very brief here.

1. Arts budgets should not be linked to national prosperity. They ought to be ring fenced and protected.
2. Forget about the calls for "value for money" regards the arts. So many studies have proven the multi-pronged impact that arts has on communities, and people. (From Mr. Tusa: "letter to the Guardian in June 2013 from 20 economists from John Maynard Keynes' Political Economy Club. They grossed up the sums attributable to the creative economy and tourism at 16% of the national economy and concluded: "These are the most obvious multiplier benefits of the arts to the economy.")
3. Government arts spending is 0.5%. This is a tiny amount, so why the microscope? Why the constant need for micromanaging arts organisations, when they prove they are efficient and provide benefits? It is akin to companies going on cost cutting measures and taking away all the morale boosting initiatives - turns out to be a really bad idea in the long run.
4. Understand what the arts really are - it isn't just about London. To truly understand arts impact, we need to look to the wider national framework and leave behind the "prejudices of London" behind.
5. Embrace and own the English arts funding model (the mix of box office, donors, public funding). The American model is not necessarily better or going to work here.

The underlying issue that Mr. Tusa raises is about trust. Trust that arts organisations know what they are doing. Trust that they are delivering "value". Trust that they are delivering benefits to their communities. And trust that they are running efficiently.

There are plenty of studies that met this out. After all if arts organisations are not achieving, their patrons will certainly let them know. We know that not everyone in the arts community got what they needed from today's funding announcement, and for that we are gutted for you.

For those that got funding today - congratulations! Here's to smarter thinking about arts policy and funding for the future.