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The Black Arts Funding Trap Why a New Model Is Needed for Funding BAME Arts Projects MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 2

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The Black Arts Funding Trap Why a New Model Is Needed for Funding BAME Arts Projects MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 2 MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 The Black Arts Funding Trap Why a new model is needed for funding BAME arts projects MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 2 Foreword Introduction MeWe360 (or ‘MeWe’) has spent the past five years running an action Funding is the focus of this paper, specifically how different kinds of research project to find and test new and more effective approaches to funding models can either hinder or support an increase in BAME driving diversity in the arts 1. The project was built on 20 years’ previous participation in the sector. (When we use the term ‘diversity’ it is in the experience and 10 years’ research in this field see( Appendix 1a). context of ‘race/ethnicity’ and when we use the term ‘participation’ we are referring to people who are active producers, creators and entrepreneurs, We are now at the point where we feel that it is imperative to share our key whether they be musicians, film-makers, writers, agents or producers.) findings regarding the specific challenges for BAME (Black and Minority Our expectation is that this participation then spills over into generating Ethnic) talent, to have conversations about possible solutions and to help a more diverse audience for the arts and creative industries. create action plans for change. This paper is our first attempt to begin such a process and is one of a series of interactive thought pieces inviting anyone Firstly, we reflect on how BAME-focused and BAME-led organisations interested to ask questions and share experiences. have been funded in the last 30 years. Our contention is that a large amount of money has been invested in BAME organisations but little has The subject of the paper is ‘Funding’. It looks at how current and historic fundamentally changed as a result of these investments. We then propose funding models can hinder the increase of BAME participation in the sector. an alternative model that we believe can deliver sustainable funding to We also constructively attempt to offer an alternative solution. This is our improve BAME participation for the long-term in the arts and creative attempt to bring a new perspective on an old topic - arts policy 2. industries. In this paper we set out our own position. It is one that we believe is a strong and credible path forward for BAME funding which explicitly includes support for MeWe itself. This is because, to our knowledge, we are the only We have kept the paper short to maximise engagement, BAME hub working in our particular way. recognising that this necessarily means some complex issues are given fairly cursory treatment. Our expectation is that we This paper is an invitation to the beginnings of a conversation and we can address this in subsequent dialogue and in our follow-up are keen to hear voices that question, support, or help us deepen our provocations. Let us know what you think. thinking and, most importantly, move the sector towards real change in improving diversity. @MeWe360 (#MeWeLetsTalk) Kevin Osborne, CEO MeWe360 MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 3 How Funding is Designed to Support Increased Diversity Whether through the Creative Case for Diversity or any predecessor To what extent can we be confident that new schemes like Elevate, Change strategy, the Arts Council and other funders have stated (and restated many Makers and Sustained Theatre are not a continuation of these approaches times) their commitment to fostering diverse arts and creative industries: that have made little or no overall impact? diverse audiences, diverse talent and a diverse workforce. The Creative Despite many individual success stories, the numbers tell a depressing Case marks a radical and complex departure from previous approaches ,3 and familiar story. There has been no significant increase in audiences 7, yet funding is still the main lever that is used to affect change in the sector. leadership 8 or artistic talent 9 in the sector. Most of the organisations and We estimate that in the past 30 years more than £100 million has been programmes that have received any significant part of this multi-million spent in an attempt to make the arts culture sector more racially diverse .4 spend have either closed, are under threat of closure, or are no longer In essence, funding has been used to support schemes in pursuit of the under BAME leadership.10 We now have a legacy of institutions that are following objectives: developing BAME audiences, encouraging BAME either permanently dependent on grants or perpetually on the brink of enrolment in arts education, increasing the numbers of BAME trainees, failure due to their vulnerability as a result of any potential changes in apprentices and workers, supporting BAME non-profit organisations, funding or political regimes. 11 supporting BAME enterprises, supporting BAME leaders. Funders and organisations have blamed each other for the lack of progress The recommendations from contemporary reports (in particular the but the truth lies between them; it is a systemic failure, exacerbated by a excellent report by Consilium in 2014,5 which is currently being updated) culture of silence. Neither funders nor organisations have talked publicly about echo those made years and even decades ago: greater visibility of BAME what has been happening, nor has any robust longitudinal research been done workforce, more showcasing of talent, more spent on education and to look at the results of investment in BAME organisations and programmes.12 audience development, a need for a more equitable distribution of funding, The inevitable and uncomfortable conclusion of any such research would have tailored leadership development. The fact that these challenges persist, been that in relation to BAME projects, the funding system is not fit for purpose despite the injection of millions of pounds over many years, suggests and is perhaps one of the biggest causes for the failure of major BAME a different approach is needed. organisations and programmes. Some extinct (and possibly now forgotten) endeavours that have been bankrolled by funders in the past 15 years include: Decibel, Inspire, Roots, Whose Theatre, Inscribe, Positive Action Trainee Programmes, Black Regional Theatre Initiative, Arts Capital Programme and Making the Map.6 MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 4 The Problem with Grant Funding In a speech in December 2014 Arts Council Chair Sir Peter Bazalgette The BAME community is largely creative and entrepreneurial (i.e. more said, “the plain fact is that despite many valuable, well-intentioned policies likely to gravitate towards the creative industries such as TV, film, fashion, over the past decade, when it comes to diversity, we have not achieved design and commercial music) and does not naturally fit with the grants- what we intended. We are not doing well enough.” 13 funded ‘classic’ or ‘traditional’ arts sector. This has been an undercurrent in discussions about culture and the creative industries since the beginning We have been reflecting on why that is the case. of these debates in the 1980s. 16 It is our contention that grant funding is inherently problematic when it Public funding for most BAME organisations is often only in the form comes to supporting BAME artists and entrepreneurs for the following of short term project funding (two to three years) and not an investment in reasons: funding decisions have not been grounded in the needs/ the long term (seven to ten years) of the organisations themselves. These demands of the BAME community; funding has tended to be used organisations therefore become unable to plan long-term and invest in their for short term project activity rather than investment in the long term own growth, which would build the self-sufficiency and resilience they need. sustainability of the organisations; and grant funding can quash Instead, the funding system reinforces a cycle of ‘apply and spend’ rather entrepreneurialism. than ‘build and consolidate’. A high percentage of arts funding in the UK comes from public sources: government grant in aid and money from the National Lottery Good Causes scheme supplement local government funding and a patchwork of other smaller pots of money. 14 Historically in the UK, public funding decisions have tended to be politically driven and concentrated on supply- side interventions (more art in more places for as low a cost as possible) rather than being demand-led and responsive to market needs (a rare exception is Creative People and Places) .15 “ the plain fact is that In many instances BAME-led organisations struggle to sustain themselves despite many valuable, through trading activity because, though there may have been genuine social/political drivers for these projects (e.g. regeneration of deprived well-intentioned policies areas) there has been insufficient demand (such as paying audiences or over the past decade, clients) to sustain them without grants. They are short-term beneficiaries yet long-term victims of this traditional approach to the use of funding. when it comes to diversity, we have not achieved what we intended. We are not doing well enough ” MEWE PROVOCATION PAPER 1 5 There is a cultural heritage to these debates that cannot be overlooked. Money has been used to soften or counterbalance the impact of market This year is the 40th anniversary of the publication of Naseem Khan’s failure (organisations surviving due to the injection of subsidy and without landmark book The Arts Britain Ignores 17 and it feels appropriate at this a foundation of established demand or customers/subscribers/clients). juncture to recognise that BAME communities in the UK are still battling The pressure this places upon the leaders of such organisations increases inequities that result from systemic racism that has informed funding the chance of failure and mismanagement. Organisations that lack a sound and political decisions over many decades.
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