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For general release REPORT TO: Community Services and Safety Scrutiny Sub-Committee 31 January 2012 AGENDA ITEM: 6

SUBJECT: THE ART SCENE NOW AND IN THE FUTURE

LEAD OFFICER: Paul Greenhalgh, Executive Director, Children, Family & Learners

CABINET MEMBER: Councillor Sara Bashford, Cabinet Member for Customer Services, Culture and Sport

PERSON LEADING AT Aileen Cahill, Head of Libraries and Culture SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETING:

ORIGIN OF ITEM: This item is contained in the sub-committee’s agreed work programme.

BRIEF FOR THE • To examine current funding for the arts (council COMMITTEE: and external funding) • To ascertain how many people have been affected by funding changes (service providers and service users) • To identify gaps in arts provision and future opportunities

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.1 During 2010/2011 the Council was required to make significant budget savings. This involved reducing expenditure on discretionary services. A decision was taken to reduce the budget for arts and heritage services by £1.48M over the course of the next financial year, reducing it to £1.23M by April 2012. This staffing establishment reduced from 32.37 FTEs in 2010/11 to 8 FTEs by April 2012.

1.2 A decision was taken to retain the following services: • Local Studies and Archives with a value for money exercise undertaken • Museum • Arts participation programme for people with learning difficulties and young people at risk

1.3 The decision was called in on 28 January 2011 by fifteen Members of the Council. The committee noted the cabinet’s decision and made two recommendations:

CSS 20120131 Agenda Item 6 • The committee asks the cabinet to protect community access to Stanley Halls in any proposals taken forward and asks that, in considering any possible new management arrangements for Stanley Halls, the council retains overall control; • The committee urges Cabinet to continue discussion on retaining the long term operation of the via a third party operator outside of the Clocktower

1.4 On 16 May 2011, Cabinet agreed that both recommendations should be accepted and officers be given delegated responsibility to report back on progress to the Scrutiny and Overview Committee by September 2011.

1.5 Following the decision by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 8 June 2011, a progress report was received by the Community Services and Safety sub committee on 13 September 2011.

2. BACKGROUND

2.1 The following services are no longer provided: • Croydon Summer Festival and Mela • temporary exhibition gallery • Use of space C and café galleries in the Clocktower • Clocktower arts (, music, events) • David Lean cinema (within Clocktower complex)

2.2 Other services have been reduced. These are: • Museum education programme • Clocktower arts participation programme for young people, people with learning difficulties, refugees and schools. • Borough-wide arts events and activities (e.g. Black History Month) • Braithwaite, Stanley, Canterbury, Halls community hire

2.3 An Equalities Impact Assessment was undertaken on the proposal to reduce the service and identified that Croydon has the largest population of children and young people in and will also see a greater proportion of older people in future years. Croydon also has a higher proportion of residents who are from BME groups than the overall pattern for London (40% compared to 35%). Croydon also has a larger than average proportion of people from a Muslim and Hindu faith compared to England.

2.4 The assessment identified the main groups potentially impacted were children and young people, older people, adults and younger people with disabilities, race and faith groups, and LGBT groups.

2.5 In recommending the service to be reduced, the following services remained within the new Libraries and Culture services to help mitigate against these impacts: • Local Studies and Archives with a value for money exercise undertaken • Museum function • Arts participation programme for people with learning difficulties and young people at risk • Community Halls CSS 20120131 Agenda Item 6

2.6 It was proposed that alternative cinema provision should be found at Halls with the David Lean cinema brand being moved across as part of their funding agreement.

3. THE ART SCENE IN CROYDON

3.1 In 2010 work was undertaken as part of the cultural element of the Core Strategy and to lay the ground work for future arts strategies in the borough. The work included; • Activity and spatial mapping of cultural and creative sectors in the Borough • Analysis of audiences and engagement • Barriers and future needs of the sector

3.2 The study reviewed borough strategies, regional and national creative and cultural data, audiences London data, taking part data, audience data, online surveys, interviews and workshops.

3.3 The work provided the borough with extensive mapping of the boroughs arts and culture providers and infrastructure and a useful snapshot of Croydon’s cultural scene.

3.4 Service providers in Croydon

3.4.1 Creative and cultural sector activity is spread throughout the Borough with particular concentrations in the central area and in the north of the Borough. There are also concentrations of activity along the southwest A23 corridor and around other main artery roads across the Borough.

3.4.2 The mapping work identified 1620 cultural and creative businesses, organizations and practitioners in the borough.

3.4.3 65% (1052) of organisations identified in this study are commercial businesses. 35% are not for profit organisations including funded arts organisations, schools, or purely voluntary groups such as the many amateur theatre, music, writing and arts groups.

3.4.4 The sector is not a large scale employer with 70% of the organisations employing five people or fewer. Just 10% employ over 40 people. Only 26 organisations are identified as employing 100 people or more and these are mainly schools.

3.4.5 In terms of numbers of businesses and activity, music and performing arts show particular strengths with not for profit organisations making an important contribution. Some of the this activity is amateur and not revenue generating, but none the less important for the quality of life, sense of place and opportunities for participation in cultural activity.

3.4.6 A snap shot of the sector can be broken down as follows: • 74 arts and antiques dealers, from organizations based outside the borough working with Croydon residents to amateur groups such as , and Purley arts groups. • 20 Crafts businesses which tend to be based in the north of the borough. CSS 20120131 Agenda Item 6 • 55 fashion businesses, predominantly in the north and west of the borough. • 241 music businesses and groups including music teachers, music schools and community music groups. • 187 performing arts organizations, including Fairfield Halls and Warehouse, two of the boroughs main cultural assets and nearly 40 theatre and drama groups, both within the borough and based outside but working in the borough e.g. TARA Arts. • 25 Heritage, Museums, Libraries and Archives organizations including the Council’s libraries and museum and heritage sites such as , Croydon Museum and . • 360 Community organizations including schools.

3.5 Cultural infrastructure in the borough

3.5.1 The north and central part of the Borough are particularly well served by cultural infrastructure, mainly through schools and community organisations.

3.5.2 There is a particularly strong infrastructure and support for developing and engaging young people with culture and creativity, particularly at a primary school level. Croydon also has a number of secondary schools specialising in the arts as well as the BRIT school and .

3.5.3 The BRIT School, Britain’s only free performing arts and technology school, is a national success story for Croydon. As a flagship facility it attracts students from across London and the South East, does significant outreach work in the with community organisations in the borough and has the high profile achievements of some of its students to help inspire others in the future.

3.5.4 Croydon’s Music and Arts Service is very well respected and proactive in delivering a range of services to children and young people. It also brings partners together and provides a co-ordination role for schools. Croydon College offers a wide range of art and design courses.

3.5.5 Performance spaces for music, theatre and dance are predominantly in the north and centre of the Borough and include: • The live music pubs and clubs – the Green Dragon, Black Sheep Bar, Loop Lounge, Lord Napier, Ship of Fools, and White Hart. • The main performance venues – the at Fairfield Hall and . • Other performance spaces – Shoestring Theatre in home of the Croydon Youth Theatre and the many open space and community spaces that host dance, theatre and music performances throughout the year.

3.5.6 The Borough lacks exhibition space with the Bigger Picture Gallery providing one of the only dedicated exhibition spaces in the Borough. There are small exhibition spaces in the Clocktower and Fairfield Hall.

3.5.7 Croydon is well served with green spaces, with 127 parks and greenspaces and 51 historic parks and gardens. These form an integral part of the cultural heritage infrastructure of the Borough providing spaces for structured cultural activity such as festivals and performances as well as places for the residents

CSS 20120131 Agenda Item 6 to take part in active pursuits contributing to healthier lifestyles as well as being places to relax.

3.5.8 The heritage assets are also a strength, but the lack of access by the public and the short opening times due to the voluntary nature of the operation of many, limits the benefits of these assets both in terms of local enjoyment but also as visitor attractions. For example Shirley Windmill.

3.5.9 The council has a number of community halls including Braithwaite Hall within the Clocktower complex and Stanley, Canterbury and Selsdon Halls.

3.5.10 In response to the decision by cabinet to accept the recommendations of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, plans for community management and community asset transfer are being progressed in 2012 to help retain access to these community Halls.

3.6 Citizen engagement in arts and culture

3.6.1 The Active People Survey (2008) and the audiences data snapshot shows Croydon as having average levels of engagement in arts activity when compared with other London boroughs. In 2008 44.3% of residents in Croydon had participated in three arts activities in the previous 12 months.

3.6.2 The audiences snapshot data shows that some areas of Croydon have a greater propensity to be culture attendees than others. , Central and East Croydon, and Purley show the highest levels of attendance, with the area showing the lowest.

3.6.3 In terms of the community in Croydon engaging in the arts, 24% of Croydon residents are unlikely to be engaging with the arts as either a participant or attender. This compares to the national average of 22%.

3.6.4 Those with some engagement (some engagement with one or more art form) make up 66% of the population, compared to the national average of 69.4% and 10% show high engagement (frequent attendance at a typically broad range of arts events), higher than the national average of 8.3% but lower than the London average of 13%.

3.7 Opportunities in the arts

3.7.1 Whilst a number of services are no longer provided directly by the council activity has been and continues to be supported by other departments within the council including: • Youth Services – The new and innovative Journeys programme including a creative arts element with taster sessions in music, songwriting, film making, street art and theatre. • Community Relations – LGBT history month, Queen’s Jubilee, Black History Month • Croydon Music and Arts Education service for young people which provides training and tuition for children and young people and also is an arts service supporting schools and teachers to develop the arts curriculum and access arts projects and organisations to expand out of school arts activities. CSS 20120131 Agenda Item 6

• Library service: Croydon online – information website providing up to date information on local cultural organisations and activity • Development and Regeneration team – public art schemes e.g, New Addington

3.7.2 There are opportunities linked to Croydon’s Local Development Framework and the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). • The draft core strategy outlines a number of potential areas within the borough that could have creative hubs including Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Purley and central Croydon and the potential for creative and cultural organizations to use suitable empty buildings and sites for their activity. • The CIL allows the local authority to raise funds from new local development to pay for the infrastructure needed to assist in the sustainable development of the area to help achieve the Croydon Vision reflected through the Core Strategy.

3.7.3 The Fairfield Halls have served Croydon well as a cultural venue and community meeting place of the town for almost 50 years and is a vital facility for the community in the borough.

3.7.4 Fairfield Halls currently receives a grant from the Council which has provided the opportunity to review their programming and provision of facilities to a variety of groups in the borough. Specifically, these would include the provision of community hires to specific groups, the engagement of categories of groups, and the opportunity to open the Halls to all sections of the local community.

3.7.5 In 2011-12 the council provided grant funding for the London Mozart Players and the Warehouse theatre. This funding is to build their capacity to extend their reach and develop financially sustainable models for the future.

3.7.6 The BRIT School, as well as supporting the development of creativity and talent among young people in the borough, already contributes to the skills base in the community by working with the community, in local schools and with other groups and organisations during the summer term. There are further opportunities to build on this work in partnership with the BRIT school to bring its high quality and cutting edge work into a co-ordinated arts offer for the borough.

3.7.7 The council is supporting a programme of activity in the build up to the London Olympic and Paralympic games. “20 for 2012” is a programme of activity which will see 20 events in Croydon over the course of 2012, including the celebration of: • Lord Mayors Parade on 1 January 2012 • Queen’s Diamond Jubilee • 100th Anniversary of the death of Samuel Taylor Coleridge • 50 years of Fairfield Halls • Olympic and Paralympic Games • Chinese New Year

CSS 20120131 Agenda Item 6 4. LOOKING AHEAD - THE ROLE OF THE COUNCIL

4.1 Due to the changes in the service over the last year, the role of the council in developing the arts scene in the borough has changed from being a deliverer of services to mainly becoming a supporter and facilitator of other organisations.

4.2 In looking ahead to 2012 and beyond, the council has the following key objectives to ensure that the art scene in Croydon can thrive: • Provide a strategic overview for culture and the art scene in the borough • Ensure a co-ordinated approach to the arts scene in the borough in line with the Community Strategy, the Local Development Framework and the Council’s vision, for example through programmes such as “20 for 2012” • To have a co-ordinated and strategic approach to attracting and bidding for funding for culture and the arts within the council for example to Arts Council England, Heritage Lottery. • Support and encourage cultural and community organisations in the borough to develop and build capacity. For example through support for funding bids to organisations to develop funding bids to funding bodies as Arts Council England, Heritage Lottery etc. • Promote and signpost what is available so that people across the borough know what’s on at a glance • Ensure that opportunities for the arts are considered and included within council and partner plans e.g. Journeys programme, regeneration projects, public art programmes etc.

5. FINANCE

5.1 The following table outlines the current funding for the arts within libraries and culture service:

Current year Medium Term Financial Strategy – 3 year forecast 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 Revenue budget available Expenditure 1,829 1,272 1,272 * 1,272 Income -47 -41 -41 -41 Total revenue 1,782 1,231 1,231 1,231 budget

External funding

Grant funding - - - - Other - - - - Total budget 1,782 1,231 1,231 1,231

5.2 The reduction from 2011/12 to 2012/13 of £0.551M is the second tranche of the total reduction of £1.48M planned over the 2 year period 2010/11 – 2012/13

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5.3 The funding is split between the following services within the culture service: • Local Studies and Archives • The Museum • Arts participation programme • Community Halls

5.4 Grant funding from the council has also been to the following organisations: • Fairfield Halls - £1.5m over 2 years (£750k in 2011/12 and £750k in 2012/13) • London Mozart Players - £90k in 2011/12 • Warehouse Theatre - £35k to October 2012

Appendices: None

CONTACT OFFICER: Aileen Cahill, Head of Libraries & Culture

Background documents: none

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