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ARTS COUNCIL CONTENTS C hairina;,'~ Introduction 4 The Arts Council of Great Britain, as a 5 publicly accountable body, publishes an Sui kA• 1r. -C;eneral's Preface 8 Annual Report to provide Parliament and Departmental Report s 14 the general public with an overview of th e Scotland year's work and to record ail grants an d Wales 15 guarantees offered in support of the arts . Council 16 Membership of Council and Staff 17 A description of the highlights of th e Advisory Panels and Committee s 18 Council's work and discussion of its policie s Staff 23 appear in the newspaper Arts in Action Annual Accounts 25 which is published in conjunction with thi s Funds, Exhibitions, SchewsandAuvrd~ Report and can be obtained, free of charge , from the Arts Council Shop, 8 Long Acre , London WC2 and arts outlets throughou t the country . The objects for which the Arts Council of Great Britain is established are : I To develop and improve the knowledge , understanding and practice of the arts ; 2 To increase the accessibility of the arts to the public throughout Great Britain ; 3 To co-operate with governmen t departments, local authorities and othe r bodies to achieve these objects. CHAIRMAN'S INTRODUCTION and performing artists and of helping t o wherever possible both Mth local build up the audiences which must be th e authorities and with private sponsors. real support for the arts . It is the actua l event, the coming together of artist an d The Arts Council is very conscious that th e audience, which matters . The machinery o f quality of the arts in London is a grea t administration is of secondary account . national and international asset and that nothing should be done to harm thi s Nevertheless, this has been a year in whic h achievement . At the same time the very the machinery of administration has been large populations which live outside changed by two important reports . The London deserve to have the opportunity t o first, which appeared in October 1983 was enjoy art on something closer to th e %Ir Clive Priestley's report on the financial metropolitan level . This cannot be ~c rutiny of the Royal Opera House and the achieved quickly. It took about 25 years to Royal Shakespeare Company . Mr bring London to its present position as Priestley, after an exhaustive enquiry into probably the greatest arts capital in the the work of the ROH and the RSC, found world, and it will almost certainly tak e 1 hat in both cases they needed a substantia l another generation to complete an increase of funding to corny out their adequate programme for the rest of Britain , neces au}• work at its right level. Although and particularly the rest of England . 11 r Priestley was only asked to examin e Nevertheless, the adoption of The Glary of t wo clients of the Arts Council - two very the Garden marks a determined start on 1983/84 was a year of great activity in all important ones - his particular case such a programme . the art forms supported by the Arts studies confirmed the general view that Council. These activities and their artistic had been put forward strongly by the Arts During the next year the Arts Council will success are the justification for all the Arts Council that the great majority of arts undertake a thorough review, in Council's work, and indeed for the principl e institutions needed more money than we consultation with its own staff, of it s of public funding. Not every concert or were currently able to give them if the y internal organisation and practices . We are exhibition or opera or play can expect t o were to do their job properly . The Priestley also deeply involved in the consequences of attract the maximum audience or to b e Report provides solid evidence of the the proposed reorganisation of local praised by the critics, but the artistic health general underfunding of the arts in Britain . government which will in 1986 give us new of the performing arts - dance, theatre, responsibilities . 1983/84 was a year of music, opera - was undoubtedly good, and The second major report - Tim Glopyofthe great importance for arts administration . many companies achieved work o f Garden - was published by the Art s The next two years will be no less outstanding quality. Council itself on 30 March 1984 . This important. All this will undoubtedly assist represented a complete review of the Art s arts achievement . The work of the Arts Council is often Council's grants to clients and the written about in terms of artistic development of a new strategy which the administration rather than in terms of Council is now pursuing. The strategy is artistic performance . That is not how based on two principles . The f irst is a k i~4' fZ4v 4a . k members of the Arts Council see it. We principle of bringing the regions nearer t o regard our own administration as simpl y the London level of support . The second is IT. being a necessary way of helping creative the principle of partnership, partnership William Rees-Mogg SECRETARY-GENERASS PREF gratitude to the staff needs to be recorde d go a long way towards securing art s before all else . Why a particularly difficul t funding, but that will be for future annual time? It was not only because of a lack of reports. finance (heaven knows the Arts Council should be used to that by now), but also tha t As if all these events were not enough, the a whole range of fundamental issue s Council decided at its meeting in Ilkley in seemed to be called into question by events October that it would embark on a majo r and demanded our time and attention . The review of all its activities, both external and (;rnt-ral Election of June 1983 heralded a internal. The decision was the Council' s nrw %I inister for the Arts, and so ne w response to two situations . The first was :vlat i; mships had to be forged . The 117o cut the awareness that despite a decrease in its iii the budget imposed immediately after real level of funding over the last six o r the nice l ion, left clients reeling when many seven years the Council was still reactin g were already facing desperately difficult and responding as it had done when fund s problem. The Priestley Report, published were increasing annually . This meant in October 1983, confirmed our belief tha t spreading the jam for margarine as one the Royal Shakespeare Company and the client put it) even more thinly. Almost Royal Opera House were underfunded, bu t without exception, every client was i n the solutions suggested once more opene d difficulty. Furthermore it was increasingl y the debate about direct governmen t difficult to respond to new initiatives, le t subsidy . In the event Lord Govtirie stuck t o alone create them. I an annual report provides the Arts Council channel but earmarke d t i;1ritsi'ontrnt With a the funds, and that in its turn create d And so from November to March every ial[1III C ;rl 1, ;, opportunity of further problems for the Arts Council . member of staff, every Panel, every from the dail y Committee and every Regional Art s r<<ui~rii, : (." I takiTigsttx* . Ten Following closely on Priestley came th e Association was caught up in the revie w \nt , Council I find government's White Paper Stmamlining which resulted in the publication of a majo r ~ ., on~ to pause and theCities. This followed an election pledg e policy document The Glory ofthe Garden . , t hat there are to abolish the Greater London Council and document has extended the arts tl .ri. c l;r,ul .. ~ . ~ : r : .1~ c ~ti report . The the other Metropolitan Counties. These That h, the Panels Metropolitan Counties have a track recor d debate beyond the confines of of support of the arts that is second to none , 105 Piccadilly, beyond the boardrooms of constituencyth31 1 I- ~ltlt toaddressm y and the Council was deeply concerned at our clients and into the much larger arena opening remarks. the affect of abolition on the arts . The of national and even international debate . Council's response to the White Paper was That the subject of the arts should receive An annual report is a record of events, carefully considered, and well researche d such attention must be a good thing, even developments and achievements. It looks and, l believe, realistic, and th e though not all the debate is as informed a s back but in doing so hopefully leads Government has subsequently announced we would wish. forward. A record of achievements is the measures it will take to ensure a result of endeavour and the endeavour o f continuation of funding for the art s So at the end of all this what do we have? the staff of the Arts Council at a following the demise of the metropolita n We have a new policy for the Council, a particularly difficult time, together with my authorities . We believe these measures will framework within which we can work to Semtrtry-Geneml s Preface develop the artistic fife of the nation . We the Crush Bar at the Royal Opera House to it has to make decisions, it has to develop have the prospect of much adde d mark his retirement was a tangible policy, it has to say yes and it has to say no .