Arts Strategy 2009

arts strategy 2009–2013

Preface

I am delighted to have the opportunity to write the foreword to the new Arts Strategy for Warwick District Council.

This document is the result of extensive consultation between different organisations and interested groups across the district. The strategy was adopted by the council’s Executive in December 2008, and will form the starting point for a way forward for arts within the district until 2013.

Its purpose is to be a flexible and ‘live’ reference point, and a guide for arts organisations that already work with, or hope to work with, the council. The Action Plan should be seen as a framework within which the council can make effective use of the available resources towards supporting the local arts scene for the benefit of residents, visitors and those active in the sector.

The uncertainty presented by the current economic climate will create both challenges and opportunities for the arts sector throughout the country. However, this strategy highlights how, in Warwick District, we have a thriving and vibrant arts community, and demonstrates the council’s continued commitment to such an essential and valued part of our lives.

Councillor Chris White, Portfolio Holder for Culture at Warwick District Council


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Contents

2 Executive Summary

Page Section

5 Acknowledgements

6 Introduction

9 National context

12 Regional context

14 Local context

16 About the District

19 The local arts scene

26 Warwick District Council’s Arts Development service

30 Consultation Process

32 Questionnaire results

34 A note about the scope of the Arts Strategy

36 Action Plan


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Resource recommendations

Executive Summary

The Arts Strategy explores current 1. arts provision within the District and includes an Action Plan. The Action Plan is intended to provide a framework for the delivery of the Council’s Arts Development service until 2013.

The Arts Development service 2. covers a wide range of artforms including visual arts and photography, crafts, 3D arts and sculpture, film and digital arts, dance, theatre, music and opera, street arts, and creative writing.

The Arts Strategy Action Plan also 3. looks at how the Arts Development service might feed in to public art initiatives in partnership with the relevant Warwick District Council Economic Development staff.

The Strategy also considers the 4. relationship of the arts to cultural tourism.

An intensive consultation process 5. has taken place including one-to-one interviews, public consultation

meetings and online questionnaires. The Themes, Strategic Aims and Objectives of the Arts Strategy Action Plan have been identified through the consultation process.

The period covered by the Arts 6. Strategy includes the Cultural Olympiad – a national initiative linked to the London 2012 Olympic Games. The Arts Strategy aims to reflect 7. the key themes of the Warwickshire Local Area Agreement 2008–2011 and the objectives of the Warwick District Council Corporate Strategy 2008–2011.

Warwick District is culturally 8. rich and has a vibrant and active local arts community together with a confident and high profile professional arts sector. The District is proud of its cultural heritage and boasts a high level of arts provision. It compares well to other areas. Music and visual arts are particularly strong. There are also a large number of annual cultural festivals. The District Council’s commitment to and investment in the arts has been important in maintaining this excellent level of arts provision.

Activity that is currently less well developed includes grass roots community work with hard to reach groups, including black and minority ethnic communities; public art as a strategic area of work; innovation and risk within the arts; and monitoring and evaluation of arts activity.

A Cultural Quarter for the area 9. is being developed in south Leamington, with its hub at Spencer Yard. Advantage West Midlands has made an offer of funding for the second phase of the redevelopment works. The Cultural Quarter and the redevelopment of Spencer Yard present exciting arts opportunity and potential for the area. However, the site currently suffers from poor public access, signage and lighting and a lack of


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public information/understanding about what the Cultural Quarter is and its potential benefits to the area. The Arts Strategy Action Plan suggests a number of steps that might be taken towards addressing these issues.

The Arts Development Service is 10. currently staffed by one part-time Arts Development Officer [ADO] (20.5 hours per week), based within the Cultural Services Unit and reporting to the Heritage & Arts Manager.

The consultation process for this 11. Arts Strategy showed that people greatly valued the arts development services provided by Warwick District Council and the one-to-one support provided by the ADO.

However, stakeholders felt that the part-time

role limited the capacity of what the Officer could achieve and was insufficient to fulfil the demands of the role.

The role of ADO is a broad one, 12. encompassing all the artforms listed at point 2 above. In order for the role to function in a strategic way, within the limitations of the time and resources available, the direct organisation of events is not the best use of this role. Instead, the role should exist to support and facilitate other arts providers. The Arts Strategy consultation process identified a number of ways in which this could be done. This approach also helps to ensure the sustainability of arts development work, by ‘skilling up’ local providers. It is important to ensure that the 13. process for obtaining financial support for arts activity from Warwick District Council is transparent, accessible and properly monitored. This Arts Strategy recommends that organisations should access Arts Development funding either through the Key Clients arrangements as part of the Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire Arts Partnership, or through a

new Arts Development Grants scheme based on the current Cultural Grants scheme. The Strategy recommends an increase in both the Council’s Key Clients and Grants budgets to address this, through the reallocation of existing Arts Development resources.

If the number of Arts Development 14. Officer hours remains the same, this will limit the ability of the Arts Development Service to achieve all of the proposed actions in the Arts Strategy Action Plan. Some of the proposed actions require either additional Arts Development Officer hours or external funding in order to be achievable. These actions are indicated within the Action Plan and where possible, sources of external funding have been identified.

The Arts Strategy Action Plan has 15. three key Themes. Each theme has a Strategic Aim and a number of Objectives. Each Objective has proposed actions associated with it. The Themes, Strategic Aims and Objectives are shown below.


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Theme 1: Arts for everyoneStrategic aim: Increase participation and attendance in the arts

Objectives:Raise the profile of the District’s arts zactivityFacilitate increased opportunities to zparticipate in and experience the artsAdvocate using the arts to create zstronger, safer, healthier communitiesFacilitate increased engagement with zhard to reach groups through the artsEngender a culture of creativity for zyoung peopleCelebrate the achievements of local zarts organisations and practitionersSupport local arts activity to celebrate zthe Cultural Olympiad

Theme 2: A thriving creative economyStrategic aim: Develop the role of the arts in economic development and enterprise

Objectives:Strengthen the District’s arts zinfrastructure so that the arts can thriveEnhance the ability of creative zbusinesses to contribute to the local economyFacilitate communication and zcollaboration between organisations and sectors

Theme 3: Unique spaces and placesStrategic aim: Use the arts to help make the District an attractive place to live, work and visit

Objectives:Use the arts to revitalise and enhance zthe District’s public spacesDevelop a vibrant, well-used Cultural zQuarterCelebrate Warwick as a festival town zDevelop international links zIncrease and enhance cultural tourism zin the lead up to 2012

Arts Strategy Action Plan:

Themes, Strategic Aims and Objectives

Vision statement:We will build on Warwick District’s culture of creativity by stimulating accessible, diverse and innovative arts provision to enrich the quality of life.

Acknowledgements This Arts Strategy has been produced with grateful thanks to: Chris Elliott, Councillor Chris White, Rose Winship, Jeff Watkin, Paul Pinkney, Louise Piper and Rosalyn Smith at Warwick District Council; Elaine Pantling of Laurielorry Theatre Company for her excellent creative consultation; Anand Chhabra; Tom Dobedoe; Motionhouse Dance Theatre; Stella Carr and Hybrid Arts; Armonico Consort; John Laidlaw of Live & Local; Peter Nicholson at the Royal Spa Centre; Dutch Van Spall at The Assembly; Kat Fishwick at Warwickshire County Council; Bryan Harrison; Stewart McGill at Playbox Theatre; Helen Meeke; Richard Phillips; Clare Mitchell; and all those who attended consultation meetings, completed questionnaires and sent in their feedback on the draft Arts Strategy. We couldn’t have done it without you!


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Introduction

Welcome to Warwick District Council’s Arts Strategy for 2009–2013.

The Arts Strategy explores current arts provision within the District and includes an Action Plan based on public consultations carried out over summer 2008. The Action Plan is intended to provide a framework for the delivery of the Council’s Arts Development service until 2013.

Warwick District Council wants to work with a wide range of partners at local, regional and national level to achieve the objectives set out in the Arts Strategy. We hope that this document will be useful to our partners and potential partners, and to local residents and artists, in understanding our priorities and how we might work together.

What is meant by ‘the arts’?The Arts Development service covers the full range of artforms including visual

arts and photography, crafts, 3D arts and sculpture, film and digital arts, dance, theatre, music and opera, street arts, and creative writing.

Public art is the responsibility of Warwick District Council’s Economic Development team. However, the Arts Strategy Action Plan looks at how the Arts Development service might feed in to public art initiatives in partnership with the relevant Warwick District Council staff.

The Strategy also considers the relationship of the arts to cultural tourism.

Our consultation processWe have tried to consult as many people as possible in producing this Strategy to make sure that it reflects local needs, interests and priorities.

We have:Carried out one-to-one interviews zwith some of the Arts Development service’s key partners and

stakeholders across the district, county and region;Held four open public consultation zmeetings;Held four targeted consultation zmeetings for organisations and individuals in priority sectors (young people; the third age; creative industries; and strategic agencies);Made contact with umbrella groups zwhere this has enabled us to consult a number of organisations and individuals at the same time;Invited people to complete an online zquestionnaire via the Council’s website.

The consultation process involved a wide range of user groups and their representatives, including hard to reach groups. The Themes, Strategic Aims and Objectives of the Arts Strategy Action Plan have been identified through the consultation process.

We asked all consultees for their comments on a draft version of the Arts Strategy before it was published.


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National context

Arts Council of EnglandThe Arts Council of England [ACE] is the national development agency for the arts and has nine regional offices. The Arts Council’s mission for 2008–2011 is Great Art for Everyone. There are four development priorities:

Digital opportunity; zVisual arts; zChildren and young people; zLondon 2012. z

The Arts Council has agreed five national objectives with the Department for Culture, Media & Sport [DCMS], against which outcomes are judged:

Excellence – high quality arts practice zand experience;Reach – more people attending and ztaking part in the arts;Engagement – more people feel that zthere are opportunities to enjoy and get actively involved in, arts activities that are personally relevant to them; Diversity – arts that reflect the zdiversity of contemporary England; Innovation – artists have the freedom zand are challenged to innovate.

ACE receives central government funding which it distributes through managed funds and regular funding for

key organisations. The level of central government funding for the arts has been affected by the diversion of resources to London 2012. ACE also distributes lottery funding through the Grants for the Arts programme.

Department for Culture, Media and SportThe DCMS is the government department with responsibility for the arts and creative industries. The Department also has responsibility for the National Lottery and for London 2012, among many other areas.

The Department’s aim is:We aim to improve the quality of life for all through cultural and sporting activities, to support the pursuit of excellence and to champion the tourism, creative and leisure industries.

The Department’s specific aims for the arts are:The aim of our work is to maximise the contribution from the arts sector to our strategic priorities; Children and Young People; Communities; the Economy; and Delivery.We also aim to:

Broaden access for all to a rich and zvaried artistic and cultural life Ensure that the artistic activity we z

fund aspires to be world class Ensure that everyone has the zopportunity to develop artistic talent and to achieve excellence in the arts Develop the educational potential zof all the nation’s artistic and cultural resources Raise standards of artistic and cultural zeducation and training Ensure an adequate skills supply for zthe arts and cultural sectors Reduce the number of those who zfeel excluded from society, by using the arts

Cultural Offer (Find Your Talent)The government believes that every child should experience five hours of high quality culture each week, in and out of school.

Ten pilot programmes to test this plan are being run from 2008 to 2011. The pilot programme for the West Midlands is in Telford & Wrekin.

The National LotteryFor every £1 spent on the Lottery, 28 pence is distributed to ‘good causes’ including arts, sports, heritage, charitable and community projects. A range of national bodies distribute the money:

The Arts Councils of England, zNorthern Ireland and Wales, the


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UK Film Council, Scottish Arts and Scottish Screen;Awards for All (a small grants scheme zfunded by a number of the other distributors); Big Lottery Fund (for charitable and zcommunity projects);Heritage Lottery Fund; zMillennium Commission (not open to zgrant applications); NESTA – the National Endowment zfor Science, Technology and the Arts (investing in innovation); The Olympic Lottery Distributor for zLondon 2012 (not open to grant applications); UK Sport and Sport England, zsportscotland, the Sports Councils for Northern Ireland and Wales.

The Arts Council of England distributes its lottery funding mainly through the Grants for the Arts and Awards for All programmes.

Grants for the Arts: zOne-off (project) grants of between £1,000 and £30,000 for individuals or £1,000 to £100,000 for organisations, for arts projects lasting for up to three years.

Awards for All: zGrants of between £300 and £10,000 to organisations for projects that enable people to take part in art, sport,

heritage and community activities, and projects that promote education, the environment and health in the local community.

The Cultural OlympiadAlthough London will be the host city for the 2012 Olympic Games, the Games will benefit the whole of the UK. The Cultural Olympiad aims to create a UK-wide celebration of the UK’s diverse culture, starting in September 2008 and running through to London 2012.

The Cultural Olympiad incorporates three strands:

Mandatory ceremonies;1. Major projects (most of these have 2. already been identified);A UK-wide cultural programme. 3. UK cultural programme4.

The Cultural Olympiad values are to:Welcome the world (celebrating zthe UK’s unique internationalism and cultural diversity);Inspire and involve young people; and zLeave a lasting legacy (for example zthrough cultural and sports participation, audience development, cultural skills, capacity building, urban regeneration, tourism and social cohesion and international links).

Non-commercial cultural projects taking

place between September 2008 and September 2012 and reflecting the values of the Cultural Olympiad ( above) can apply to use the ‘Inspire mark’ on publicity materials and websites. The Inspire mark recognises that a project has been inspired by London 2012 and reflects the values of the Olympic and Paralympic Movements.

Projects must address at least 3 of the seven themes of the Cultural Olympiad:

Bring together culture and sport; zEncourage audiences to take part; zAnimate and humanise public spaces z– through street theatre, public art, circus skills, live big screen sites;Use culture and sport to raise issues zof environmental sustainability, health and well-being;Honour and share the values for the zOlympic and Paralympic Games;Ignite cutting edge collaborations and zinnovation between communities and cultural sectors; andEnhance the learning, skills and zpersonal development of young people by linking with London 2012 education programmes.

Advice about developing Cultural Olympiad projects is available from a network of Creative Programmers across the UK’s regions. The Creative Programmer for the West Midlands is

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Paul Kaynes, based at Arts Council England, West Midlands.

ArtsmarkArtsmark is a national award scheme managed by Arts Council England that recognises schools with a high level of provision in the arts.

Five schools in Warwick District were awarded Artsmark in 2008:Artsmark gold:North Leamington Community School & Arts College, Leamington Spa

Artsmark silver:Campion School & Community College, Leamington SpaKenilworth School & Sports College, KenilworthNewburgh Primary School, Warwick

Artsmark:St. Augustine’s Catholic Primary School, Kenilworth

NALGAOThe National Association of Local Government Arts Officers champions the provision and support for local arts, artists & creative industries of all types and kinds, professional, amateur & voluntary. NALGAO works through its members, many of which are local government arts & cultural officers.

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Regional Context

Arts Council of England, West Midlands The Arts Council’s office for the West Midlands is in Birmingham. ACE West Midlands provides regular funding to two organisations within the Warwick District: Live & Local and Motionhouse Dance Theatre.

Grants for the Arts awarded to the Warwick District totalled £164,707 in 2007/08. All grants were located within the Warwick and Leamington constituencies, suggesting a need for information and support in other parts of the District about how to access funding from the Arts Council.

Advantage West MidlandsAdvantage West Midlands is the regional development agency, and exists to ‘lead the economic development of the West Midlands, working alongside a wide range of public, private and voluntary sectors partners to help our region to prosper’.


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Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire Partnership (CSWP)CSWP is the sub-regional strategic partnership for the area, which ‘unites all sectors of the area’s economy, and seeks to ensure that they are all working together, and pulling in the same direction.’

Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire Sub-regional Arts PartnershipThe CSW Arts Partnership is a grouping of local authorities that work together to collaborate on partnership initiatives, and share arts knowledge and resources, including funding agreements with ‘key clients’ working across the sub-region.

Working together has enabled the CSW Arts Partnership to develop a number of strategic arts initiatives benefiting the sub-region. NALGAO and ACE West Midlands have recently applauded the Arts Partnership as a model of good practice. The member authorities, which include Warwick District Council,

have recently signed a new Partnership Agreement for 2009–2012.

CSW 2012A number of partnerships, including a Cultural sub-group, have been set up to oversee activity in the sub-region in the lead up to London 2012. The Cultural group has issued some seed funding for arts projects in the area.

Warwickshire County CouncilThe County Arts Service provides a range of arts development resources including an online toolkit for arts projects, an arts contacts database, various Arts in Health initiatives and Social Inclusion & Arts grants, as well as advice, support and signposting to organisations and artists. There is a County Arts Policy in place.

The County Council also provides an Arts in Education team, a Youth Arts worker and the County Music Service. Local Area AgreementLocal Area Agreements are contracts

between central and local government and their partners to deliver the priorities of local people.

The Warwickshire Local Area Agreement 2008–2011 has the following key Themes or ‘blocks’:

Stronger Communities zSafer Communities zChildren & Young People zClimate Change & Environment zEconomic Development & Enterprise zHealthier Communities & Older zPeople

Arts development activity has the potential to contribute to the achievement of targets in most of the Local Area Agreement blocks listed above. It is strategically important that the Arts Strategy supports the delivery of these blocks because they will be a focus for local government activity. They have been taken into account when identifying the Key Themes, Strategic Aims and Objectives for the Arts Strategy Action Plan.


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Local Context

Warwick District Council Corporate Strategy

The Corporate Strategy 2008–2011 identifies the following objectives:

Leadership: Provide clear community zleadership and effective management of resources whilst delivering responsive public services in an open and transparent mannerHousing: Improve housing services zefficiency to meet the housing need of the districtCulture: Increase participation and zattendance in the council’s cultural offeringEnvironment: Provide high standards zof environmental services across the district delivering a sustainable and quality environmentDevelopment: Creative thriving town zcentres, keep pleasant villages and make the district an attractive place to live and workCommunities: Promote safe, vibrant zand sustainable local communitiesCustomers: Improve the efficiency zof service delivery to the council’s customers.

Whilst the Arts Development service has a clear role in achieving the

Council’s objectives under Culture, it also contributes to many of the Council’s other objectives, particularly Development and Communities. This Arts Strategy aims to support the delivery of the corporate objectives. Warwick District Council’s Chief Executive, Chris Elliott, is supportive of the Arts Development service and has helped to increase the cultural confidence of the District.

Warwick PartnershipThe Warwick Partnership is the local strategic partnership (LSP) for the District. It brings together the public, private, community and voluntary sectors to ensure that these services are working in a complementary and supportive way to improve local quality of life. The LSP includes a theme group specific to the cultural sector.The Warwick Partnership published Warwick District 2020, the Community Plan for the District from 2005 to 2020. This will be superseded by the Sustainable Community Strategy to be published at the end of 2008.

Warwick District Arts ConsortiumThe Arts Consortium includes representatives from a number of arts organisations and groups within the

district, as well as individual artists. The Consortium meets approximately quarterly, providing an opportunity for the arts community to share information and discuss key issues. Consortium members pay an annual fee for their membership. This membership fund is intended to support strategic development and training for the Consortium.

Town Centre ManagersTown Centre Managers are now in place in Warwick, Leamington Spa and Kenilworth. These posts work in partnership with other agencies to take forward initiatives and activities that benefit and promote the District’s town centres.

Business Improvement Districts (BID)Business Improvement Districts seek to deliver improved services in a defined area of a town. This is financed by an increase in business rates for the businesses in that area. The businesses then decide how best to improve their trading environment by agreeing on a range of projects and services that will take place over a specific period of time.A BID is now in place in Leamington Spa and under consideration for Warwick and Kenilworth.


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South Warwickshire Tourism (Shakespeare Country)Shakespeare Country is a not-for-profit business partnership, set up by the private and public sectors in South Warwickshire, to market and develop tourism within the area. The company provides a range of marketing and visitor services on behalf of its members and runs the Tourist Information Centre at the Royal Pump Rooms in Leamington Spa. Members include attractions, shops, accommodation providers, restaurants and transport services. The aim is to generate more tourism business for the area.

The company offers a free accommodation booking and conference venue finding service, plus a range of free information on what to see and do in South Warwickshire.

Central Warwickshire Villages LEADER programmeLEADER is an EU programme to support grassroots-led rural development, to which multi-sector partnerships can bid for initiatives to be delivered by Local Action Groups. The current LEADER programme is part of the 2007–2013 Rural Development

Programme England, managed in the West Midlands by Advantage West Midlands.

A bid was submitted to Advantage West Midlands in January 2008 from the Central Warwickshire Villages LEADER partnership, fronted by Garden Organic, working with Warwickshire County Council and covering the rural parishes of Rugby Borough and Warwick District. This proposal was invited to progress to full bid stage and a Central Warwickshire Villages bid to secure £1.5m funding is being prepared for submission in December 2008. The programme will be delivered over three to four years and will provide seed funding for local projects that fall into the following broad categories:

Events and activities that encourage zcommunities to come together to create artworks and performance;Support for communities to develop ztheir own local food production through community gardens;Developing links between zcommunities and the land based industries in and around them.

At the time of writing the Arts Strategy, innovative ideas for projects falling into the above categories were being sought for inclusion in the bid.


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About the district

The district has three main centres of population: Warwick; Royal Leamington Spa and Whitnash; and Kenilworth. The remainder of the District is largely rural, but the cities of Coventry and Birmingham are within comfortable travelling distance. The M40 and A46 run through the district, providing convenient commuting. The District is bordered by the Borough of Rugby to the east; the city of Coventry and Solihull Metropolitan Borough to the north; and the District of Stratford-upon-Avon to the south and west.

The District’s population is expected to expand over the next few years. An estimated 90 hectares of land for employment uses and land for 10,800 new homes is needed before 2026.

The wards of Brunswick, Crown and Willes (all in Leamington Spa) rank

among the 30% most deprived wards in England2. Otherwise, there is no significant urban or rural deprivation.

Population StatisticsWarwick District has a population of 134,6003. Residents are aged as follows:

63.7% of the District’s population are zof ‘working age’4; 17.1% are under 16; z19.1% are aged 60+ (females) / 65+ z(males).

The number of children under 16 is slightly lower than the national average, but the results are otherwise typical of the national age profile.

85.4% of the District’s population are White British. Other key ethnic groups include Asian/Asian British people (5.2%) and ‘Other White’ groups (3.7%)5 . The District is home

to growing Portuguese and Eastern European communities.

The 2001 Census recorded that the District has a significant Sikh population (3.37% compared to 0.67% nationally) but a significantly lower than average Muslim population (0.5% compared to 3.1% nationally)6.

92.65% of residents rated their health as ‘good’ or ‘fairly good’. This was higher than the national average7.

The number of economically active residents is higher than average and residents were statistically well educated – in 2001, the number of people qualified to degree level was 29.04% compared to 19.9% nationally. The percentage of households with their own car was also higher than the national average.

2 Source: IMD 2004

3 Source: Warwickshire Observatory, mid-2007 estimates

4 16–59 for females, 16–64 for males. Source: Warwickshire Observatory, mid-2007 estimates

5 Source: Warwickshire Observatory, mid-2007 estimates

6 Source: 2001 Census

7 Source: 2001 Census


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The local arts scene

Warwick District is culturally rich and has a vibrant and active local arts community together with a confident and high profile professional arts sector. The District is proud of its cultural heritage and boasts a high level of arts provision. It compares well to other areas. Music and visual arts are particularly strong. There are also a large number of annual cultural festivals.

The District Council’s commitment to and investment in the arts has been important in maintaining this excellent level of arts provision.

Activity that is currently less well developed includes grass roots community work with hard to reach groups, including black and minority ethnic communities; public art as a strategic area of work; innovation and risk within the arts; and monitoring and evaluation of arts activity.

Key venuesThe Royal Spa Centre in Leamington Spa was built in 1972 and seats 794 people. The Centre presents a varied programme of mainstream (middle of

the road) professional entertainment, mainly ‘one-nighters’. The Centre also acts as a community facility and is regularly hired by local organisations for exhibitions, annual shows, speech days, meetings and conferences, concerts and musicals, schools productions and so forth. The Royal Spa Centre has a database of 58,000 attenders and draws almost half (49%) of its audiences from outside the District. The Royal Spa Centre is owned and operated by Warwick District Council.

The Assembly opened in Leamington Spa in 2008. It is a contemporary music venue with a capacity of 1,000 standing (500 seated). The art deco building has undergone an exceptional £4million refurbishment with interior design by Laurence Lewellyn Bowen. The Assembly has a youth focus and intends to act as a training facility for young people wishing to work in the music industry. It is an independent, privately owned and run facility.

The Royal Pump Rooms at Leamington Spa incorporates the Leamington Spa Art Gallery & Museum as well as a library, Tourist Information Centre, public assembly rooms available for hire (used for public and private events, including arts activity), and a café. The

Art Gallery & Museum in the Royal Pump Rooms are run by Warwick District Council and present professional exhibitions and community/education programmes.

Warwick Arts Centre is situated just outside the boundaries of the District, at (and owned by) the University of Warwick, on the outskirts of Coventry. Warwick Arts Centre incorporates a concert hall, two theatres, a cinema, gallery, and conference room as well as hospitality suites, a restaurant, cafe, shops, and two bars. It is the largest Arts Centre in the Midlands and presents a varied contemporary arts programme.

Warwick Castle, a major tourist attraction, is in the District and is privately managed by Merlin Entertainments Group. Kenilworth Castle, another of the District’s key attractions, is managed by English Heritage.

During the consultation process for the Arts Strategy, many stakeholders expressed a desire for a major concert hall locally. However, the district is well situated for access to major venues in Coventry and Birmingham as well as Warwick Arts Centre. The Spa Centre is a large venue and provides a varied


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programme of mainstream arts and entertainment as well as the opportunity for community hire. The area is, in fact, well served by large-scale venues and it is extremely unlikely that funding could be justified to support a new major concert hall locally. The Arts Strategy Action Plan does, however, propose an audit of venues and facilities in the District, to increase awareness of what is available. This should include the schools, churches and community halls where much valued arts activity takes place.

Cultural QuarterA Cultural Quarter for the area is being developed in south Leamington, with its hub at Spencer Yard. Phase 1 of the works has included the creation of a large courtyard area with refurbished buildings housing a number of arts organisations including Motionhouse Dance Theatre, Hybrid Arts, Leamington Studio Artists, Sez-U and Heartbreak Productions. There is also a large hall (North Hall) available for hire for arts activities, with bookings managed by Heartbreak Productions. Although there were some issues over hire charges, these are now believed to have been resolved. However, the hall is on the upper floor and does present some access issues. The dance studio

within the Motionhouse offices is also available for hire.

Advantage West Midlands has made an offer of funding for Phase 2 of the redevelopment works, although some details were still under negotiation at the time of writing. This will include redeveloping the former church on Spencer Street (at the entrance to Spencer Yard) to house the Loft Theatre and offer space for use by other arts groups. The site currently occupied by the Loft Theatre will be redeveloped for retail, office and creative industry space.

The Cultural Quarter and the redevelopment of Spencer Yard present exciting arts opportunities and potential for the area. However, the site currently suffers from poor public access, signage and lighting, and a lack of public information/understanding about what the Cultural Quarter is and its potential benefits to the area. The Arts Strategy Action Plan suggests a number of steps that might be taken towards addressing these issues.

Phase 2 of the work on the Cultural Quarter is being led by Warwick District Council working in partnership with The Loft Theatre Company and City

Spirit Developments, with funding from Advantage West Midlands.

In nearby Court Street, Warwick District Council is renovating railway arches as part of a Creative Arches business space project, again largely funded by Advantage West Midlands. There is potential for the two projects to complement one another.

Regeneration projects in other parts of the District include the possibility of developing a Civic and Arts Centre in Kenilworth.

Theatre Playbox Theatre is a professional company providing skills development and participation in the performing arts for children and young people, including the Dream Factory, a purpose-built performance centre in Warwick exclusively for young people.

Heartbreak Productions is a professional touring theatre company based at Spencer Yard in Leamington Spa and specialising in open-air performance.

Also based at Spencer Yard, Sez-U Community Theatre is a professional participatory arts organisation creating


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new work with adults in the community.

Bridge House Theatre is located at Warwick School and presents professional and amateur music and theatre. A theatre is also being built as part of the new North Leamington School, currently under construction.

Both the Priory Theatre and the Talisman Theatre & Arts Centre in Kenilworth are run by their members and present their own amateur dramatic productions, as does the Loft Theatre in Leamington Spa. All these theatres occupy their own premises. The Loft Theatre will be moving to the former United Reform Church building as part of Phase 2 of the Cultural Quarter development in Spencer Yard, Leamington Spa.

Professional theatres are situated nearby in Stratford-upon-Avon (Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Swan Theatre) and Coventry (Belgrade Theatre).

MusicArmonico Consort is a professional choir based in Warwick. Armonico also has its own orchestra, opera company, education programme and the AC Academy (a children’s choir). The organisation presents 60 concerts a year all over the world.


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Warwick Music Live organises the Warwick International Festival.

Leamington Music organises performances of international chamber music and early music in Warwick District, North Warwickshire, Rugby and Stratford. It aims to ‘maintain Leamington and district as a musical centre dedicated to promoting excellent music.’

The District boasts a significant number of amateur, semi-professional and professional music societies. The Warwick District Music Promoters’ Forum has over 80 member groups, and produces the ‘Music to Your Ears’ events guide three times a year, and an ‘anti-clash’ diary for promoters.

DanceThe District is home to Motionhouse Dance Theatre, a nationally acclaimed contemporary dance company based in Spencer Yard, Leamington Spa. Motionhouse creates innovative work for middle scale touring and for performance in public places and spaces, including street festivals, large-scale dance spectacles and site-specific events. Motionhouse also delivers an extensive education and participation programme for all ages and abilities.


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There are a number of dance schools and studios within the District.

Dancescape is the sub-regional dance development programme and has proved extremely successful. It is currently project funded through Grants for the Arts and by the County and District Councils, but is expected to become self-sustaining by 2009, when it may apply for Key Client status through the CSW Arts Partnership.

Visual arts, crafts, & photographyThe biennial Warwickshire Artsweek, an open studios event, provides an opportunity for artists, makers and art groups within the district to promote their work. The District is well represented within this countywide event, with 67 exhibitors (out of a total 147) in Artsweek 2008.

Professional exhibitions are shown at the Art Gallery & Museum in the Royal Pump Rooms, Leamington Spa and just outside the district at Rugby Art Gallery & Museum, as well as in private (commercial) galleries. Warwick District Council’s former Art Gallery on Avenue Road, Leamington Spa, is still in use as a local exhibition space, managed by Community Arts Workshop, although this is a

temporary arrangement. There are a number of community venues available for hire by groups wishing to exhibit; the District Council can advise on suitable venues.

There are a number of art societies operating in the District, including Leamington Studio Artists and the Leamington Spa Photographic Society.The Elephant Wash photography project in Leamington Spa has been initiated by the Spencer Yard artist in residence (see below) and is ongoing until 2009.

Film, media and digital artsMainstream cinema is available at the Apollo in Leamington Spa. Some arthouse film is screened in the Royal Spa Centre’s 200-seat Royal Cinema, and arthouse cinema is also screened at the Warwick Arts Centre just outside the District.

Leamington Spa Art Gallery & Museum in the Royal Pump Rooms currently hosts a weekly ‘Thursday Flickers’ event for local film and video makers to showcase their work.

The area is home to a significant number of digital media and gaming companies with national and

international profile, such as Blitz Games Studios.

Hybrid Arts offers vocational education and training programmes for young people (particularly those ‘outside the system’ or not in education, employment or training) in music technology, filmmaking, digital arts, graphic and web design and animation. Touch Radio 107.3fm, a new local radio station, was launched in 2008.The wealth of historic buildings in the area (approximately 1,500 listed buildings) makes it a desirable film location, and TV series including Pride and Prejudice and Moll Flanders have been filmed in the District.

Artist in residenceThe artist in residence at Spencer Yard for 2007-2009 is Anand Chhabra. Anand is a photographer and visual artist and has been working with the local community, and particularly minority ethnic groups, to increase engagement with the arts and between Spencer Yard residents and the local community. At the time of writing, no resources had been identified to extend the artist in residence role after 2009.

LiteratureThe District is home to an annual


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festival of literature and the spoken word, Warwick Words, each October. Speakers in 2008 included Louis de Bernières, Gerald Scarfe, Brian Patten and Jo Shapcott. A Warwick Poet Laureate is appointed each year. The festival has recently received an Arts Council grant to develop its education programme.

There are a small number of writing groups in the District. Libraries in the main population centres have responsibility for reader development and run various programmes to encourage enjoyment of reading, such as reading groups for adults and story time for children.

FestivalsWarwick District, and especially the town of Warwick, has a particularly rich festival culture with a number of high profile arts festivals taking place each year. These include the Warwick International Festival, Warwick Words literature festival and Warwick Folk Festival. Leamington Music presents an annual Festival Weekend, including a Czech Music Festival in 2008 and plans to celebrate the Haydn Bicentenary in 2009.

There are also non arts-specific festivals

such as the Peace Festival (Leamington Spa) and the Kenilworth Festival, as well as cultural festivals such as the Leamington & Warwick Mela Festival and Diwali celebrations in Leamington Spa and across the District.

Rural touringWarwick District has been a member of Live & Local, the rural touring scheme for Warwickshire, since 1996. The scheme allows rural and community venues (e.g. village halls) to buy in professional performers at a highly subsidised rate, enabling the local community to experience high quality theatre, dance, music, comedy, live literature and children’s entertainment without having to travel to larger centres of population.

In 2007/08 2,024 people in Warwick District enjoyed 23 shows through the Live & Local scheme. The scheme is performing excellently within the District and provides significant benefits for a relatively small investment.

Arts education and participationMany of the organisations listed above provide education and participatory programmes. This work is important since it builds both audiences and creators for the future.

Community Arts Workshop (CAW) based in Leamington Spa is a participatory arts organisation working particularly with disadvantaged and marginalized people and groups. Warwickshire College offers a range of further education opportunities in the arts.

Artists in Warwickshire Education and the Warwickshire Youth Arts Network are Warwickshire County Council partnership initiatives working with schools and youth services respectively. The County Council also operates the County Music Service.

Creative industriesThe significant number of individual artists, creative practitioners and creative businesses based within the District are a vital part of the thriving local arts scene. The creative industries are increasingly being recognised nationally as key contributors to the economy as a whole. The Arts Strategy Action Plan looks at how these creative industries in Warwick District can best be nurtured.


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Warwick District Council’s Arts Development service

BackgroundWarwick District Council established its arts development service in 1993 following the Warwick District Arts Audit and Development Strategy (T. Glover & A. Pollard, 1993). A further report Extending Access: A Strategy for Arts, Entertainment and Heritage in the Warwick District (D.G. Best & J.R. Watkin) was produced in 1995. A part-time Outreach Officer with responsibility for arts development was employed in 1999.

Further to the recommendations of the Warwick District Arts Review (J. Kumiega, 2000), the post was changed to full-time Cultural Development Officer [CDO]. Following the subsequent secondment of the CDO to Warwick District Council’s Policy Services in 2002, a temporary part-time Arts Development Officer [ADO] role was created to enable the continuing delivery of the Arts Review 2000


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action plan. The post was based in the Heritage & Arts team and reported to the Heritage & Arts Manager.

The 2003 Update of the Arts Review (N. Ripley) recommended that a full-time CDO post was relocated to the South Warwickshire Economic Development team, whilst the part-time ADO role was retained within the Heritage & Arts team and became permanent.

The Update of the Arts Review recommended that the two roles remain distinct, with the CDO supporting cultural and creative industries, with a focus around economic development and regeneration through culture. The role included responsibility for public art.

The CDO left Warwick District Council in 2006 and there are no plans to re-recruit to this post, although elements of the role have been included in the new Economic Development & Regeneration Unit. The part-time post of ADO in the Heritage & Arts team remains. Since 2008 the Heritage & Arts team

has been part of the Cultural Services Unit. This has responsibility for Cultural Development and Strategy, Community Recreation, Sports, Parks, the Royal Pump Rooms (including Leamington Spa Art Gallery & Museum and Arts Development), and the Royal Spa Centre.

Arts Development services provided by Warwick District CouncilThe Arts Development service works in partnership with other agencies to:

Advise and support artists, creative zbusinesses, amateur and professional arts groups and organisations on the development of their work.Provide support (including grants) zfor the development of arts activity in the community, and facilitate opportunities for participation in the arts. Advocate for and raise the profile of zthe District’s arts activity.Work in partnership at a strategic zlevel to identify gaps in provision and develop arts initiatives that will help to meet local priorities.

Support the development of the local zcreative economy.

The role of the Arts Development OfficerThe role of ADO is a broad one, encompassing all the artforms listed in the Introduction to this Arts Strategy. It is important that the ADO responsibilities should be specific to arts development, recognising that the arts are only one aspect of culture, which also includes, for example, sports, heritage and tourism, libraries, parks and open spaces. In order for the role to function in a strategic way, within the limitations of the time and resources available, the direct organisation of events is not the best use of this role. Instead, the role should exist to support and facilitate arts providers in the ways listed above and below. This also helps to ensure the sustainability of arts development work, by ‘skilling up’ local providers.

It is also important that the ADO ensures a good spread of arts development initiatives throughout the District. There is currently a tendency


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for activity to be focused around Leamington Spa.

During the consultation process for the Arts Strategy, stakeholders were asked what the role of the ADO should be.

The following reflects a consensus of opinion:

Springboarding: funding advice, and zpartnership funding, to generate inward investment for the arts.Support, advice and encouragement zto organisations, groups and individuals wishing to develop their work in the arts.Profile raising and advocacy for zlocal arts/creative businesses, both internally (other WDC departments and District Councillors) and externally (locally, regionally, nationally), making the arts more visible and acting as a link between the arts community and the wider public.Networking: to broker relationships, zprovide contacts, bring people together and provide opportunities for information and skill sharing and collaborative working.Communication: to inform the arts zcommunity and the wider community about developments and to report key information in a transparent way.

Strategic direction: to identify gaps zand facilitate the development of arts provision accordingly.Partnership working: to maximise the zresources available.Infrastructure support: to enhance zthe ability of creative businesses to contribute to the local economy. Engagement: to enable as many zpeople as possible to access the arts, and ensure inclusivity.Monitoring and evaluation: to zmeasure the impact of the District’s arts activity on wider social and economic agendas.

Monitoring and evaluation for performance measurement and improvement will become increasingly important over the next few years, and skills development/support for the ADO should be accessed (e.g. via Arts Council England, West Midlands) where required.

ResourcesThis Arts Strategy is written in the context of a difficult financial climate for local authorities, in which it is unlikely that any additional resources will be made available for arts development.The consultation process for this Arts Strategy showed that people greatly valued the arts development services

provided by Warwick District Council and the one-to-one support provided by the ADO. However, stakeholders felt that the part-time role limited the capacity of what the Officer could achieve and was insufficient to fulfil the demands of the role. Also, nearly half of questionnaire respondents (47%) had not had contact with the ADO, suggesting that the capacity of the role (i.e. 20.5 hours per week) at present has limited reach.

The Warwick District Council Arts Development budget is currently allocated through three funding strands:

Financial support to Key Clients zproviding services at a sub-regional level, as part of the Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire Arts Partnership;Administering a Cultural Grants zscheme offering grants of up to £500;A Heritage & Arts ‘other expenses’ zbudget which is used to support a range of organisations and initiatives.

An external review of the CSW Arts Partnership’s Key Client arrangements has taken place during 2008 and will be implemented for 2009/10. As a result, a wider range of organisations may be able to apply for funding through the Arts Partnership. Each District/Borough Council will be able to decide on the


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level of funding it wishes to commit to each organisation applying to the Key Clients scheme.

RecommendationsThis Arts Strategy recommends that all organisations should access funding either through the Key Clients arrangements or through an Arts Development Grants scheme based on the existing Cultural Grants scheme. The Strategy recommends an increase in both the Key Clients and the Arts Development Grants budgets to address this. These recommendations will help to ensure that processes for obtaining funding are equitable and there is proper monitoring of outputs and outcomes so that the impact of the Council’s financial contribution can be assessed and recorded. This, in turn, will provide concrete evidence of the contribution the arts makes to economic and social agendas, helping to advocate for the role and value of the arts, for example in delivering the Local Area Agreement. Without these demonstrable outcomes, the Arts Development service could become vulnerable.


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Consultation Process

We have tried to consult as many people as possible in producing this Strategy to make sure that it reflects local needs, interests and priorities.

The consultation process involved a wide range of user groups and their representatives, including hard to reach groups. The Themes, Strategic Aims and Objectives of the Arts Strategy Action Plan have been identified through the consultation process.

One-to-one interviews17 telephone and face-to-face interviews were conducted by a freelance arts development consultant between June and September 2008. Interviews were held with key partners or stakeholders across the district, county and region identified by Warwick District Council.

Face-to-face interviews were conducted with:

Chris Elliott, Chief Executive, zWarwick District CouncilAnand Chhabra, artist in residence, zSpencer Yard

Tom Dobedoe, Chair, Local Strategic zPartnership culture groupLouise Richards, Executive Director, zMotionhouse Dance TheatreChristopher Monks, Artistic Director, zArmonico ConsortJohn Laidlaw, Live & Local zPeter Nicholson, Entertainments zManager, Royal Spa CentreDutch van Spall, The Assembly z

Telephone interviews were conducted with:

Kat Fishwick, County Arts Team, zWarwickshire County CouncilSarah Bond, Arts Council England, zWest MidlandsStella Carr, Hybrid Arts and Chair of zCultural Group for CSW2012 Bryan Harrison, Warwick District zMusic Promoters’ ForumStewart McGill, Playbox Theatre zHelen Meeke, Festival Director, zWarwick Words and Warwick Folk FestivalRichard Phillips, Leamington Music zClare Mitchell, Warwick Youth Arts zNetworkPaul Pinkney, Warwick District zCouncil Economic Development


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In addition, the consultant attended a meeting of the Warwick District Arts Consortium, and carried out e-mail consultation with members of the Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire Arts Partnership and with Warwick District Councillors.

Targeted consultation meetingsFour targeted consultation meetings were held in September 2008 for people working in particular sectors identified as priorities by Warwick District Council:

Strategic Working zThe Third Age zCreative Industries zYoung People z

A total of 23 key partners and stakeholders attended the meetings. The targeted consultation meetings enabled organisations with common needs and agendas working in priority sectors to be consulted as a group.

Open consultation meetingsFour open public consultation meetings were held between July and September 2008 at Leamington Spa, Kenilworth and Warwick. The purpose

of the meetings was to generate feedback about the local arts scene and encourage people to have their say about the future of the arts in the District and what Warwick District Council’s arts development service should offer. The meetings were widely advertised within the local media and through arts and community networks. A total of 30 people attended the meetings.

The creative consultation approachIn order to encourage creative thinking, a ‘creative consultation’ approach was used at all the consultation meetings. Professional theatre practitioner Elaine Pantling of Laurielorry Theatre Company worked with freelance consultant Katie Daniels to facilitate the meetings. The approach involved a series of exercises that encouraged attenders to take a positive and practical approach to considering current and future arts provision within the District and identifying priorities.

Presentation to CouncillorsA short presentation was made to Warwick District Councillors at the

Council Meeting in the Town Hall on 20 August 2008. In addition, all Councillors were invited to contribute their views by email.

Online questionnaireTwo questionnaires were devised, one for individuals and another for representatives of organisations, and these were published on the Warwick District Council and Royal Pump Rooms websites between July and September 2008.

The questionnaires offered an opportunity for anyone unable to attend a consultation meeting to have their say. Local media press releases invited members of the public to complete the questionnaire, and those who attended consultation meetings were encouraged to ask their membership, staff and service users to complete the questionnaire.

Draft Arts Strategy We asked all consultees for their comments on a draft version of the Arts Strategy in October/November 2008 before producing the final Strategy.


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Questionnaire results

The Arts Strategy consultation process included an online questionnaire, which was available on the Warwick District Council website. The questionnaire aimed to provide a forum for those unable to attend consultation meetings to contribute to the process, and also for ‘non-users’ of the Arts Development service to express their views.

The questionnaire also provided baseline information for Warwick District Council in understanding current arts activity and planning for the future. Full questionnaire results are available from the Council. This section is a summary highlighting key conclusions from the questionnaire responses.

Current activitiesThe questionnaire asked respondents about the arts activity they were currently involved in, both as audience members and as participants. This helped the Council to map current levels of activity.

The responses revealed a broad range of activity, but the District’s strengths in music and visual arts were evident. 31% of respondents described the District’s art scene as ‘vibrant’, but 46% said ‘there are events and activities on offer, but I would like to see more’.

What would you like to see more of?Responses revealed a demand for even more orchestral and choral events, expanding to all areas of the district; exhibition opportunities (studio and gallery space) for local artists; and a greater range of events for children and young people. There was also a call for greater innovation and risk-taking in the arts.

Levels of activityActivity levels were high, with 58% of respondents attending arts events as an audience member ‘frequently’ (more than 6 times a year), and a magnificent 85% taking part as an arts participant or creator more than six times a year.

Most people found out about these activities through word of mouth, the

arts groups they were involved with, the internet, local press, and posters/flyers.

The most common obstacles to participation in the arts were ‘time’ (42%) and ‘money’ (46%). 23% of respondents cited ‘transport’ as an obstacle. For organisations, the main obstacle to achieving the organisation’s potential was ‘funding’ (83%).

Just over half of respondents classified themselves as amateur artists, performers or arts groups (53%) with 28% classified as professional/semi-professional artists or arts organisations. There were a good range of types of respondent; from individual young people to amateur art groups and organisations with a turnover of over £100,000.

Contact with the Warwick District Council Arts Development service47% of respondents had never had contact with the Arts Development Officer, and a further 34% had only ‘occasional’ contact. This indicates that


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the questionnaire had succeeded in attracting responses from non-users, but also that the service is at present not reaching a significant proportion of the arts community.

Should the Council provide an Arts Development service?A resounding 87.5% of respondents said ‘Yes’. The remainder did not respond to the question; no one said ‘No’.

What does the Arts Development service do?Understanding of the function of the service varied; 34% had ‘no idea’ what services were being provided. Popular responses included:

Promote local arts and artists. zEncouragement, advice and support. zFunding/funding advice. z

What should the Arts Development service do?‘Funding’ was the most common response (28%). There was also a demand for access to cheap/free venues for rehearsal, performance, exhibition and participation – with parking!

What would improve the Arts Development service?‘More resources’ was the most common response (34%) – a bigger budget, more ADO hours and easier access to funding. Beyond this, there was no real consensus of opinion, although responses indicated a desire for the service to be more visible and proactive, and to engage with a wider range of groups and individuals.

Cultural Quarter59% were aware of the Cultural Quarter developing in Leamington Spa with its hub at Spencer Yard. When asked what they would like to see happen there, respondents asked for more events/a wider range of events, better parking and access (including lighting and signposting), exhibition/performance/ rehearsal space, and a more inclusive and welcoming image for the Cultural Quarter.

Age groups42% of individual respondents were in the 26-59 age group, with 27% aged 60+.


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A note about the scope of the Arts StrategyThere are some issues which arose frequently during the consultation process for the Arts Strategy, but which are outside the scope of the Strategy itself.

What’s On guideIn particular, there was considerable demand for a central ‘What’s On’ reference resource. To co-ordinate such a resource would present huge challenges and is beyond the capacity of a part-time Arts Development Officer role.

There is clearly a need for a cultural ‘What’s On’ resource locally, and this could encompass more than the arts, extending to tourism and heritage, sports and outdoor events, for example. Such a resource could play an extremely

valuable role in cultural tourism. With regard to sustainability and environmental awareness, this should be a virtual, rather than paper-based resource.

Warwick District Council may wish, in partnership with tourism and promotion agencies (such as Shakespeare Country) and Town Centre Managers, to explore the feasibility for creating such a resource. This should include looking at models in other areas, for example where touch screen ‘pods’ in town centres allow instant access to information. It is believed that some initial investigations of this nature have already begun within the District’s Marketing Network.

Commercial sponsorship (advertising) could help with ongoing (maintenance) costs. Ideally, organisations would input their own information virtually, to reduce the administrative requirement,

although there would need to be a webmaster ‘presence’ to avoid misuse of the resource.

The ADO could make a contribution to any discussion about the development of such a resource, but is not in a position to take the lead on this.

Council-run venuesWarwick District Council owns and operates a number of venues within the District, including the Royal Spa Centre and the Leamington Spa Art Gallery & Museum in the Royal Pump Rooms. The consultation process for this Arts Strategy has included these venues and has considered their long established relationship to the Arts Development service and the arts community. However, the operation of the venues themselves is beyond the scope of the Arts Development service, and therefore of this Strategy.


35the action plan


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Abbreviations

ACE-WM Arts Council England, West MidlandsADO Arts Development OfficerAWM Advantage West MidlandsBID Business Improvement DistrictBME Black and Minority EthnicCSWP Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire PartnershipCSWAP Coventry, Solihull & Warwickshire Arts PartnershipL&L Live & LocalLAA Local Area AgreementLSC Learning & Skills CouncilPCT Primary Care TrustTIC Tourist Information CentreWCC Warwickshire County CouncilWDAC Warwick District Arts ConsortiumWDC Warwick District CouncilWDFF Warwick District Faiths ForumWYAN Warwickshire Youth Arts Network

At the time of creating this Action Plan, Warwick District Council employs a part-time Arts Development Officer 20.5 hours per week. If the number of Arts Development Officer hours remains the same, this will limit the ability of the Arts Development Service to achieve all of the proposed actions in this Action Plan. Some of the proposed actions require either additional Arts Development Officer hours or external funding in order to be achievable. These actions are indicated by italic text.

Where applicable, possible sources of external funding have been identified.

How will we know if we are achieving our aims?It is recommended that the Arts Strategy be subject to an Interim Review at the end of 2010 or in early 2011 (half way through the period covered by the Strategy). This will enable Warwick District Council to identify and respond to changes in national or local government frameworks, new developments and initiatives and

changing local priorities, and to amend or adjust the Action Plan as necessary.It is important that the Arts Development service monitors and evaluates all its activity so that it can report to funders, partners and stakeholders, national bodies and District Councillors about what has been achieved and the impact of the activity. This will be important in order to demonstrate the relevance of activity to the Local Area Agreement, for example. The Action Plan includes indicators to help the Arts Development service monitor its work.Monitoring and evaluation can help to identify and address gaps in provision, assess what makes projects successful and what challenges and obstacles arise, and make changes to future project planning as appropriate. Monitoring and evaluation can include quantitative data (collecting numbers and facts about the people who are involved in an activity), documenting and recording activity, and qualitative evaluation to find out how people felt during and after the activity and what difference it made.Any financial support given by Warwick District Council to arts organisations or projects should include a requirement for the grant recipient to report back about the activity that was supported by the grant.

A note about the Action Plan


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Vision statement:

We will build on

Warwick District’s

culture of creativity by

stimulating accessible,

diverse and innovative

arts provision to enrich

the quality of life


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Theme 1: Arts for everyone

Strategic aim: Increase participation and attendance in the arts z

Objectives:Raise the profile of the District’s arts activity zFacilitate increased opportunities to participate in and experience the arts zAdvocate using the arts to create stronger, safer, healthier communities zFacilitate increased engagement with hard to reach groups through the arts zEngender a culture of creativity for young people zCelebrate the achievements of local arts organisations and practitioners zSupport local arts activity to celebrate the Cultural Olympiad z

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators PriorityRaise the profile Inform the local WDC Cultural Services, Internal resources A functioning database Short term of the District’s community about IT staff and Printroom, No. of people on 2009 and arts activity opportunities and local arts organisations, database ongoing support available District Councillors, No. of Bulletins/ through WDC’s arts venues, community Newsletters produced development service, centres, arts retailers No. of recipients for example by: (monitored through •Creatinga ArtsDatabase) comprehensive arts Feedback about database Councillor presence •IssuingaregularArts atevents Bulletin or Newsletter No. of venues •Issuingregularinternal displayingmaterials bulletin and/or newsletter to District Councillors to inform of arts activity and invite involvement •Maximiseuseofvenues for display and distribution of arts information Facilitate increased Offer grant aid scheme Grant applicants Reallocate existing No. of grant applications Shortopportunities to for arts development and recipients resources to increase No. of grants awarded termparticipate in and projects that meet grants budget No. of beneficiaries 2009/10experience the arts the objectives of the from each grant Arts Strategy Evaluated outcomes Scheme of each grant ongoing

Encourage and support Arts organisations, Existing resources No. of organisations Short term arts organisations to web designers through grant assisted and ongoing develop web-based schemes plus advice services, e-marketing about other funders and e-booking facilities

Explore potential to use The Assembly, ACE-WM, No. of events Long term new technology (e.g. Touch Radio, commercial broadcast using new streaming, podcasts) to interactive media sponsorship digital technology enable more people to companies, Hybrid Arts experience arts events

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators PriorityAdvocate using the Arrange presentations for WDC staff & councillors, Internal resources No. of presentations Short toarts to create WDC cross-departmental local professional arts No. of attenders mediumstronger, safer, staff and councillors about organisations termhealthier the work of local professional communities organisations, to advocate benefits of the arts to social and community agendas

Work with LAA theme blocks LAA theme blocks, partner Existing resources Initiatives developed Short term to identify and develop organisations in the (strategic development Evaluated outcomes 2009–10 strategic initiatives to contribute community for delivery of budget), charitable Outputs recorded within and ongoing to LAA targets identified initiatives trusts and foundations LAA framework

Facilitate increased Continue to support the L&L, WCC, CSWAP, Internal/existing No. of events presented Short termengagement with provision of high quality WDC other departments resources through the touring scheme 2009–10hard to reach touring arts programmes and councillors No. of attenders and ongoinggroups through to rural and community Audience feedbackthe arts venues, ensuring a close Records of contact with L&L working relationship with the touring agency to inform continued investment and maximise community benefits

Facilitate creative CSWAP; charities e.g. WCC, direct No. of users accessing Short to opportunities for older Age Concern, Mind; payments scheme, arts offer medium term people and those in social or residential homes/ charitable trusts residential care e.g.through independent living facilities/ and foundations the direct payments scheme sheltered housing schemes; South Warwickshire NHS Trust; Warwickshire PCT; WCC Social Care; County Arts Team; arts organisations working with specific groups e.g. CAW; Armonico Consort; L&L; Bath Place Community Venture; transport schemes

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators Priority

Facilitate intercultural arts WDFF, Faiths Trail, temples/ ACE-WM, charitable Evaluated project outcomes Medium work and arts outreach work mosques/ churches, trusts and foundations No. of participants term based within minority ethnic community centres, Bath communities Place, Asian Community Artist in residence to develop When Equality Centre, Sikh own monitoring and current Continued investment in Heritage Association, evaluation procedures to artist in Spencer Yard artist in residence Leamington Peace Festival record number of service residence with specific remit to increase and Baba Ke Peace Festival, users, ethnicity and faith post ends: engagement with BME translation services, Black information and to 2009 communities and between History Month, Spencer evaluate outcomes BME communities and the Yard artist in residence Ongoing wider community Formal review 2011 to 2011, then review

Engender a culture Work alongside other WCC, WYAN cultural Internal resources Cultural Offer operational Mediumof creativity for agencies to facilitate arts offer group, District youth Levels of take up – long termyoung people element of the cultural office, schools, Creative (post 2011, offer for young people Partnerships once Telford & Wrekin pilot complete & national rollout takes place)

Participate in relevant Extended Services Cluster Internal resources Records of meetings Short term networks e.g. Extended Co-ordinators, schools, and ongoing Schools, Warwickshire libraries, Youth Service, Youth Arts Network WYAN, MYP Panel, County Music Service

Encourage school visits Schools, Spencer Yard Internal resources No. of school visits Long term to Cultural Quarter residents, artist in No. of students residence, The Assembly

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators Priority Facilitate positive routes of Hybrid Arts, The Assembly, ACE-WM, charitable Initiatives developed, Medium progression for disenfranchised detached youth workers, trusts and foundations, outcomes recorded term young people through the arts Family Information Service, in kind support, existing No. of young people WYAN, Young leaders resources (strategic benefiting scheme, Warwickshire Police development/grants Participant feedback/ budget) impact study

Celebrate the Work with the Spa Centre Spa Centre, local Work with Spa No. of events held Mediumachievements of to plan arts events presented professional arts Centre marketing No. of attenders term 2010local arts by professional organisations organisations, e.g. team to seek Media coverageorganisations within the District, including Motionhouse, Armonico commercial Audience feedbackand practitioners use of exhibition space Consort, Playbox sponsorship

Consider establishing an The Assembly, District In kind support, Event held, media coverage Medium annual ‘Arts Awards’ ceremony Councillors, arts commercial sponsorship Awards given term organisations, local media No. of attenders 2010–11 Repeat if successful

Support local arts Increase small grants budget Grant applicants and Grants budget from Application materials in place Short termactivity to celebrate to provide partnership recipients existing resources No. of grant applications 2009/10the Cultural funding for projects that No. of grants awardedOlympiad meet the aims of the No. of beneficiaries from Time limited Cultural Olympiad each grant scheme to Evaluated outcomes of each 2012 grant

Work in partnership to CSWP, CSW 2012 cultural Use council-owned No. of sessions delivered Short term present Cultural Olympiad sub-group, Creative facilities for sessions. No. of attenders 2009 information sessions in the Programmer/Culture WM, Staff time and No. of groups submitting District to increase other funders e.g. Awards information materials application to WDC understanding and for All, ACE-WM from CSW 2012 Cultural Olympiad Grants participation cultural sub group, as a result of attending

Creative Programmer/ Culture WM, Awards for All, ACE-WM

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Theme 2: A thriving creative economy

Strategic aim: Develop the role of the arts in economic development and enterprise z

Objectives:Strengthen the District’s arts infrastructure so that the arts can thrive zEnhance the ability of creative businesses to contribute to the local economy zFacilitate communication and collaboration between organisations and sectors z

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators PriorityStrengthen the Participate in the Warwick WDAC Internal resources Attendance at WDAC Short termDistrict’s arts District Arts Consortium meetings 2009–10infrastructure so in an advisory capacity and ongoingthat the arts can thrive

Audit training needs of arts Arts & Media Training WDAC membership Continuing professional Short to organisations and practitioners (Coventry), Arts & Business, fund, Arts & Business, development programmes/ medium (for example through WDAC) Business Link, Creative LSC, CSWP, fee income, training opportunities offered term and develop opportunities for Launchpad, Warwickshire in kind support and take up 2009 for continuing professional College, University of audit development to address Warwick, WCC adult 2010–11 common gaps education service, LSC. for training Buy in external support programme training needs analysis if necessary

Conduct an audit of venues External help to conduct Additional resources Audit complete Short to and facilities available to hire audit needed to buy in Information publicly available medium for arts activity in the District Arts organisations and external capacity term venues, churches and community venues

Enhance the ability Provide advice and Arts organisations and Internal resources Organisations and individuals Ongoingof creative signposting to the District’s practitioners receiving advicebusinesses to professional arts organisationscontribute to the and practitioners to helplocal economy develop their work Work in partnership to develop Employers in the creative In kind support No. of individuals and Long term graduate retention programmes sector, Hybrid Arts, organisations benefiting from in the creative industries FE institutions, University of the programme (e.g. shadowing, mentoring, Warwick, The Assembly, LSC apprenticeships)

Creative Industries careers No. of attenders fair for young people No. of exhibitors

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators PriorityFacilitate Host a working lunch or WDC Economic Commercial sponsorship, No. and variety of attenders Medium tocommunication business breakfast at Spencer Development, AWM, in kind support, existing long termand collaboration Yard for professional arts Chambers of Trade/ resources (strategic between organisations, economic Commerce, Spencer Yard development) organisations and development agencies and residents and other sectors the private sector professional arts organisations in the District Produce directory of local CSWAP, WDC Economic Advertising income Directory published Medium creative industries, launched at Development, AWM, No. of creative businesses term 2010 a creative fair/conference/ Professional artists/creative included Update and showcase practitioners re-publish if Refer to models in other successful areas e.g. Creative LeicesterShire Co-ordinate series of Arts organisations, groups Use council-owned No. of events Short to networking events with key and artists, key speakers venues No. of attenders medium speakers at the major centres from e.g. ACE-WM, Arts No. of speakers term of population for arts Marketing Association organisations, groups and individual artists to share information and encourage cross-artform working Work closely with County WCC Arts Team Internal resources Records of meetings Short term Arts Service, ensuring that Use Arts Newsletter Items in Arts Newsletter and ongoing relevant information is to communicate key communicated to the items of public District’s arts community information


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Theme 3: Unique spaces and places

Strategic aim: Use the arts to help make the zDistrict an attractive place to live, work and visit

Objectives:Use the arts to revitalise and enhance zthe District’s public spacesDevelop a vibrant, well-used Cultural zQuarterCelebrate Warwick as a festival town zDevelop international links zIncrease and enhance cultural tourism zin the lead up to 2012

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators PriorityUse the arts to Foster a strategic approach CSWP, WDC Economic Internal resources, Records of meetings held/ Short termrevitalise and to public art developments, Development, Planning WDC Economic, advice provided for cross- enhance the for example by: Policy, Development Development, % for Art policy in place departmentalDistrict’spublic •WorkingwithotherWDC Control,TownCentre Section106 working,shortspaces departments to develop a Managers, builders and Art interventions created to medium strategic framework for developers, external External funds drawn down term for public art public art consultancy Public art presentation held presentation •Workingtowardsthe inputforpresentation No.ofattenders andmedium creation of a % for Art policy to long term •Increasingunderstandingof for%for public art through external Art policy presentation to WDC staff/councillors Maximise the District’s parks WDC Parks Development BIDs, commercial No. of events Medium to and open spaces for outdoor Officers and Parks & Events sponsorship, in kind long term arts activity Officer, Town Centre support, existing Managers, Heartbreak resources (grants Productions and other budgets for organisations professional arts wishing to present organisations producing work events) suitable for outdoor space, music societies/Warwick District Music Promoters’ Forum, shopping centres

Develop a vibrant, Act as a voice/conduit for the Spencer Yard residents, AWM Channels of communication Before andwell-used Cultural local arts community during Artist in Residence, AWM, open and functioning whilst PhaseQuarter for the the Phase 2 development WDC Economic Improved signage, lighting 2 worksDistrict with its hub to ensure that the facilities Development, Regenesis, and access take placeat Spencer Yard, being developed meet developers, other Leamington Spa local need WDC departments, The Assembly, arts organisations and groups

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Objective Action Partners Resources Indicators Priority Facilitate series of high quality Professional arts organisations Commercial sponsorship, No. of events Long term public arts events at Spencer and artists, artist in residence, in kind support No. of venues used Yard and in the wider Cultural local media, The Assembly, No. of attenders Quarter to raise profile Spa Centre, Royal Pump Audience feedback Rooms, Spencer Yard Explore potential to use residents Spencer Yard and the wider Cultural Quarter for craft markets, summer schools, open weekends

Explore ways of reducing the Artist in residence, Spencer Public, private and Projects developed Long term ‘divide’ between Old Town and Yard residents, Spa Centre, charitable sources for Outcomes recorded New Town in Leamington Spa Royal Pump Rooms, identified projects, The Assembly Existing resources (Strategic development)

Celebrate Warwick Audit economic impact of WCC, ACE-WM, CSWP, WCC, ACE-WM, Audit carried out, Short toas a festival town cultural festivals Town Centre Manager, CSWP, Town Centre report produced medium term external consultancy, Manager, existing 2009 or festivals resources 2010

Use outcomes of economic Festivals, private sector, Internal resources Inward investment Medium to impact study (above) to broker CSWP, AWM long term relationships between festivals, traders and economic development agencies

Develop Explore the potential for cultural Twinning Association, L&L, European funding, Cultural exchange Long terminternational links exchange Motionhouse, Warwick ACE-WM, charitable Outcomes recorded International Festival, trusts and foundations, Armonico Consort, Playbox commercial sponsorship Theatre

Increase and Investigate potential to use Digital/interactive media ACE-WM Virtual Festival Long termenhance cultural digital/interactive media companies, Hybrid Arts, tourism in the expertise that exists locally The Assembly lead up to 2012 to create a ‘virtual festival’

Support the production of The Assembly, Big Help Existing resources No. of participants Short term the ‘Leamington Musical’ Management, arts and (grants budget), Outcomes evaluated 2009 community venues, Touch commercial sponsorship, Repeat if Radio and local media, in kind support, successful local traders charitable trusts and foundations


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Cover: Motionhouse Dance Theatre Image: The Lift Creative Services

Inside cover: Fire Eater - Warwick Victorian Evening Image: Helen Ashbourne

Pages 2&3: Armonico Consort performance in Tel Aviv

Page 4: Motionhouse Dance Theatre Dancers performing Underground at Spencer Yard, Leamington Spa

Page 7: Warwick Folk Festival Image: Chris Young


Page 11 Dancers Image: Helen Ashbourne

Page 12 Armonico Consort – performance of Figaro


Page 17: Jephson Gardens Image: Helen Ashbourne

Page 18: Armonico Consort – performance of Dido

Page 21: Sambassadors Image: Helen Ashbourne

Page 22: Motionhouse Dance Theatre Street dance class, Spencer Yard, Leamington Spa

Page 25: Canal Festival 08 Image: Helen Ashbourne

Page 26: Warwick Folk Festival Image: Chris John

Page 29: Storytelling - Warwick Victorian Evening Image: Helen Ashbourne

Page 30: The Consultation Process Image: Katie Daniels

Page 33: The Royal Pump Rooms Image: Katie Daniels

Page 35 Leamington Music – Cropper Piano Trio Image: Jane Williams

Page 37: Grand Vizier Jafar Image: Helen Ashbourne

Page 38: Warwick Folk Festival Image: Jacqueline Daniel

Page 43: Being Frank – performance of Waste N Space Image: David McKenna

Page 46: Brass at Abbey Fields Image: Helen Ashbourne

Image Credits

www.warwickdc.gov.uk

Designed and printed by WDC: The Printroom. Tel: 01926 456108, www.wdcprintroom.co.uk

Documents

Arts Strategy 2009