tom fleming / creative consultancy /
Analysis of the Current
Approach & Delivery of Arts
Award
July 2010
www.tfconsultancy.co.uk
Contents
1. Introduction
3
1.1. Research Tasks
3
1.2 Research Outcomes
3
2. Arts Award – Current Delivery Model
4
2.1 What is Arts Award?
4
2.2 Aims and Objectives
4
2.3 Arts Award structure
5
2.4 Arts Award Regional Development Overview
6
3. The Experience of Delivery – the RDC
Perspective
3.1 Roles, responsibilities & experiences
4. Strengths of the Current Regional Delivery
Model
5. Weaknesses of the Current Regional Delivery
Model
15
6. Opportunities for the Current Regional Delivery
Model
16
7. Delivery Options Going Forward
17
Appendix 1: List of Consultees
18
9
9
14
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
1. Introduction
This short report is based on a sharp and targeted research exercise
to assess the regional delivery mechanism for Arts Award (called the
regional development programme). It is commissioned by Arts
Council England (ACE).
The Arts Award regional development programme currently serves
several key functions within the Arts Award delivery model:
- Regional advocacy: To raise awareness of Arts Award and
encourage organisations and local authorities to consider running
the award, including working in partnership
- Communications & marketing: To promote Arts Award adviser
training and to handle regional communications with trained
advisers and other professionals
- Training co-ordination: To co-ordinate a regional network of
training agencies and maintain an ongoing training programme
- Adviser support: To offer regional support to trained advisers
between training and first moderation, including organising public
moderations
Regional development coordinators and managers work to the joint
delivery plan agreed by ACE and Trinity Guildhall - who run and
accredit Arts Award in partnership with ACE. The coordinators (or
‘agencies’) are managed by ACE and supported by Trinity. They
work towards annual regional goals for trained Arts Award advisers
and moderations of young people. They work in collaboration with
the Arts Council’s regional offices, who may also indicate regional
priorities for strategic work.
1.1. Research Tasks
Our research explored how the current model delivers against the
objectives set by ACE and introduces options for improving the
model.
Research was based upon a set of in-depth interviews with Arts
Award Regional Development Co-ordinators (RDCs) and Regional
Development Managers (RDMs). It also involved ongoing
conversations with ACE senior staff (Learning & Skills), ACE
regional staff and the Arts Award national team at Trinity
Guildhall. A full list of consultees is provided in Appendix 1.
1.2 Research Outcomes
This report is for internal use only. Its purpose is to develop
understanding of the current strengths, weaknesses and
opportunities for the current Arts Award delivery model and to
identify options for improvement.
This is not a full strategic report and it is not an evaluation of Arts
Award. Its role is as a practical tool to help give clarity on current
practice and to identify provisional options going forward. This
comes at a critical time – with RDC/Ms currently contracted to
April 2011 and the wider arts and education landscape undergoing
substantial reform. This raises the stakes, making it all the more
important that a clear and agreed path be drawn for Arts Award
that maximises its qualities and improves its practical delivery.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
2. Arts Award – Current Delivery Model
2.1 What is Arts Award?
Arts Award offers young people aged 11-25 the opportunity to extend their
engagement with the arts, build creative and leadership skills, and to achieve a
national qualification. Arts Award offers three levels of engagement: Bronze, Silver
and Gold. All three levels provide an opportunity for young people to develop a
portfolio in their chosen format and gain a nationally recognised qualification.
Bronze Arts Award: selecting an art form, basic research, hands on involvement in
activities and sharing knowledge gained. Results in Level 1 national qualification.
Silver Arts Award: approximately 60 hours to complete, two units – arts practice and arts
leadership, further understanding of chosen art form, community engagement,
demonstration of arts leadership qualities. Results in Level 2 national qualification.
Gold Arts Award: young people are expected to work as an arts practitioner, and extend
their creativity, communication, planning, teamwork and leadership skills through personal
arts development and demonstrating arts project leadership. Results in Level 3 national
qualification and is recognised by UCAS (35 points).
In January 2010 the programme entered its fifth year of operation. By 2007 it had
already delivered its first 1,000 Arts Awards nationally and by 2009 this number
had risen to 23,500.
2.2 Aims and Objectives
Arts Award’s mission is to help young people”enjoy the arts, develop creative &
leadership skills, gain a credible national qualification & find [their]creative future!”
Arts Award aims to support young people who want to deepen their engagement
with the arts, build creative and leadership skills, and to achieve a national
qualification. It does this through its national delivery plan designed to help
achieve target growth in participation within the year, as well as development work
which supports both medium-term growth and objectives for reach, engagement
and progression. The national development framework is supported by regional
development frameworks (developed by the regional teams).
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
2.3 Arts Award structure
ACE Head Office
NATIONAL
ACE Head of Arts
Award
Development
Trinity Guildhall
ACE Regional
Offices
EM
L
NE
NW
SE
SW
WM
YH
RDM
RDC
RDC
RDC
RDM
RDC
RDC
RDM
RDC
RDA
RDA
RDA
Freelance
The Arts Award Regional Development Teams lead on strategic development and promotion
of the award in their region, working closely with the Arts Council England, other regional
bodies and local authorities. Several regions work through consortia to achieve this.
The result is a carefully constructed team whose role is to raise the profile of the award and
drive participation across the regions, working towards agreed regional goals.
Training Agencies & Delivery Partners
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy
/
REGIONAL
E
Local Authorities
WEBSITE
Regional Development Teams
2.4 Arts Award Regional Development Overview
East
2010 Goals
2010/11 Regional Strategy
Moderations: the East has not yet met its moderation goals and based on
figures up to May 2010 it is under -delivering. Overall moderation targets for
2010 amount to 1900 (275 were achieved by the end of May).
Priorities for the year will focus primarily on SSAT and RFOs.
Training goals: currently the East is far behind its expected training goals.
Overall training goals for 2010 amount to 270 – 17 have been achieved by end
of May (which were all achieved in two months).
East Midlands
Registered centres: the East is nearly half way in terms of achieving its
regional goal with 24 centres registered by May 2010. Its goal for number of
registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
Options are being explored for contracting a Freelancer to deliver a
support package that enhances adviser support.
Moderations: the East Midlands is on track to achieving its goals - over
delivering some months and under delivering other months. Overall moderation
targets for 2010 amount to 1900 (2394 were achieved by the end of May).
Key partners: use of Arts Award consortium and LAs to support the
advocacy; plus advisers from the region. ACE East Midlands provide
advocacy support through links to RFOS; specialist arts colleges use Arts
Award as part of ongoing offer; FE/HE to explore progression routes for
young people into the Arts and Creative Industries; Welcome Centres to
offer new ways of reaching wider range of young people.
Training goals: the region is slightly underachieving in terms of its training
goals .Overall training goals for 2010 amount to 270 – 89 have been achieved
by end of May .
Registered centres: East Midlands is broadly half way to achieving its
regional goal with 30 centres registered by May 2010. Its goal for number of
registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
London
Has been working on building a relationship with local authorities
through ArtsEd East local authorities regional meetings, supplying each
region with bespoke stats and targets for Arts Award engagement. Plans
to continue this strategy and introduce visits and briefings to individual
local authorities.
Moderations: up until May 2010, London has exceeded its moderation goals
by approximately a third, with January being its most successful month. Overall
moderation targets for 2010 amount to 2200 (825 were achieved by the end of
May).
Training goals: London has not yet reached its expected training goals and
is not doing as well as in 2009, with a significant dip in May 2010 (likely to be
the result of the RDCs’ relocation). Overall training goals for 2010 amount to
500 (181 achieved by end of May).
Registered centres: London is well on its way to achieving its regional goal
with 48 centres registered by May 2010. Its goal for number of registered
centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
Priorities: ‘Buddying’ programme to offer support for centres across
the region; celebration opportunities to raise profile of Arts Award work,
demonstrating its contribution to key local agendas; continued support
to develop Arts Award Consortium Co-ordinator role; ‘Beyond Words’ to
look at ways of creative evidencing and exploring different ways of
creating portfolios; supporting advisers through research, pilots or
adviser network meetings (locally and regionally) and supporting
trainers via trainers conference; creation of a good practice guide with a
range of case studies.
Key partners: several umbrella agencies to promote Arts Award and
advocate for its use to accredit projects; trainers to deliver training and
develop local adviser networks; Ambassadors Theatre Group helping to
develop strategic partnerships in theatre; London HEIs to increase
recognition of Arts Award as valuable qualification; National Theatre set
to embed Arts Award in new New Connections programme; number of
Local Authorities; and host organisation New Direction providing support
in increasing schools participation in Arts Award.
Regional priorities: increasing number of participating London
schools, putting young people through moderation and developing
support networks for advisers.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
North
East
2010 Goals
2010/11 Regional Strategy
Moderations: the North East has not yet met its moderation goals and
based on figures up to May 2010 it is under delivering. Overall moderation
targets for 2010 amount to 900 (97 were achieved by the end of May).
Regional priorities: increase take up from schools , moderations and numbers of young
people involved with Arts Award in the North East; to develop support offer and networks for
advisers; further develop Arts Award Welcome offer in the region; follow up on centres
registered but not delivering; advocacy of Arts Award to FE and HE sector (due to recent UCAS
recognition); develop contacts with regional festivals and events.
Training goals: currently the North East has not reached its expected
training goals. Overall training goals for 2010 amount to 270 – 51 have
been achieved by end of May.
Registered centres: the North East is nearly half way in terms of
achieving its regional goal with 22 centres registered by May 2010. Its goal
for number of registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
North
West
Moderations: based on figures up to May 2010 the North West is under
delivering. Overall moderation targets for 2010 amount to 1900 (337 were
achieved by the end of May). The overall figures are in line with the 2009
figures.
Training goals: currently the North West is on track with its expected
training goals. Overall training goals for 2010 amount to 270 – 96 have
been achieved by end of May.
Registered centres: the North West is above its target in terms of
achieving its regional goal, with 46 centres registered by May 2010. Its
goal for number of registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
South
East
Moderations: based on figures up to May 2010 the South East is well on
track to achieving its targets for 2010. Overall moderation targets for 2010
amount to 1900 (686 were achieved by the end of May).
Key partners: local trainers to increase and deliver training and develop local adviser
networks; ACE NE to advocate; with RFOs , CCE and Regional Youth Work Unit to develop
contacts and advocacy at ADO level; FYT to advocate inclusion of Arts Award in FYT projects;
SSAT to promote adviser/schools support offer; targeted approach to develop contact and
relationship with LAs; use of existing networks (e.g. Cultural Ambassadors) to promote Arts
Award and advocate for its use in schools and projects.
Regional priorities: establishing National Museums Liverpool (NML) as additional training
provider; building networks and resources to support new advisers and groups approaching
first moderations; establishing joined-up Welcome offers in major city centre venues;
developing a strong communications structure for the region;
building a comprehensive portfolio of case studies; maintaining and building regional contact
list to expand audience for national and regional communications.
Key partners: Creative Partnerships (CP) to encourage Arts Award take up in CP schools
from Sept 2010; ACE to help build links with RFOs; FYT (supported by ACE) to diversify
existing offer; existing training providers to explore scope for post-training and moderation
support; RDCs to enhance regional networking; National Museums Liverpool to support new
training organisation and potential network lead; The Brindley, supporting new hub for
Cheshire advisers' network; Buzz Bury, Blackpool supporting potential advisers' network and
Football Arts Academy; Culture and Achievement North West improving partnership; All About
Audiences new regional audience development organisation based in Manchester, seeking
tools for helping venues build young audiences; Manchester Cultural Employers' Forum
maintaining links with wide range of cultural organisations.
[Missing latest regional development plan]
Training goals: the South East is doing very well regarding its expected
training goals. Overall training goals for 2010 amount to 270 – 133
achieved by end of May.
Registered centres: the South East has already exceeded its regional
goal, with 62 centres registered by May 2010. Its goal for number of
registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
South
West
2010 Goals
2010/11 Regional Strategy
Moderations: the South West is under delivering in terms of
achieving its targets for 2010. Overall moderation targets for
2010 amount to 1900 (186 were achieved by the end of May).
The South West has three strategic development areas: support for centres and advisers;
support structure for training delivery partners and monitoring follow ups; and their regional
priorities:
Training goals: the South West is on track concerning its
expected training goals. Overall training goals for 2010 amount to
270 – 125 achieved by end of May.
The regional priorities revolve around developing “hot spot” geographic areas and sectorspecific strategic Arts Award programmes and increasing Arts Award Welcome take up.
Registered centres: the South West is half way to reaching its
regional goal, with 26 centres registered by May 2010. Its goal for
number of registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500 nationally).
West
Midlands
Moderations: the West Midlands is on track to achieving its
targets for 2010. Overall moderation targets for 2010 amount to
2200 (588 were achieved by the end of May).
Training goals: the West Midlands is also on track concerning
its expected training goals. Overall training goals for 2010 amount
to 270 – 127 achieved by end of May.
Yorkshire
and
Humber
Partnerships: Learning South West Regional Youth Work Unit to raise Arts Award’s profile;
Youth Music, Music Leader, 3 x YMAZs package offer to focus on embedding Arts Award within
existing work, and training freelance advisers; Youth Dance South West in house training and
Welcome induction; working with MLA to identify suitable clusters/services for in-house training
and Welcome induction; Cultural Olympiad offer for QUEST to provide Arts Award Welcome and
provide work placements for Gold students; Get Set to present Football Arts Academy at Get Set
schools conference; The Eden Project to hopefully act as a flagship Welcome organisation;
Swindon to become ‘Arts Award Welcome town’ through Arts Award clusters; CP Schools to
build awareness / advocacy training/support for Creative Agents; RIO & Business Units to offer
Arts Award Welcome.
The West Midlands regional strategy is to: build on last year’s success indicators; maintain
continuity in staffing through RDA freelance team and associate freelance trainers; maximise
reach through developing and identifying new contacts and partners (with a special focus on
national targets such as MLA/CP/SSAT); and develop specialisms and target groups .
Regional priorities: specialist training (resources for SEN / Special Schools); developing
digital resource of adviser case studies (adviser event/use in training)
Registered centres: the West Midlands is more than half way
to reaching its regional goal, with 38 centres registered by May
2010. Its goal for number of registered centres in 2010 is 56 (500
nationally).
Key partners: BCC Card Holders Scheme linked to Arts Award Welcome; ACE working to
develop Arts Award through new officers.
[Cannot open pdf file]
Regional priorities: target schools and those professionals, who work with them, (e.g. SSAT,
CP, School Improvement and Local Authorities) , especially schools that have the potential to
deliver the award, rather than schools who are struggling; develop the Welcome Scheme;
concentrate on schools who are delivering the award to increase their numbers; offer schools
which are not doing the award a package of support to get started; approach Local Authorities
with which no direct link exists, to try and embed it into their programmes of work.
Key partnerships: the outlined regional priorities will be supported by Artsforms in Leeds, FYT,
CYC in North Yorkshire, Hull Youth Service, via training licence holders, trainers and building on
the Leeds Strategic group.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
3. The Experience of Delivery – the RDC
Perspective
Job progression & development
When Arts Award first started, the RDC/M’s job focused more on
building the profile and creating awareness of Arts Award. With
Below we summarise the perspectives of Arts Award RDCs, with a
focus on practical delivery and management issues. These are based time, the profile of Arts award has increased, which has in turn
shifted the priority of RDC/Ms toward targeted advocacy and
on interviews with RDCs.
brokerage. Here the focus is often on specific
people/organisations/local authorities/etc to increase take up. Thus
3.1 Roles, responsibilities & experiences
the narrative has progressed from developing broad awareness of
As indicated in Section 2 above, regional organisational structures
Arts Award to nurturing a strong affinity with the programme for
vary. Generally, the Regional Development Coordinators (RDCs) work core partners and those who are under-engaging but have the
alone, and the Regional Development Managers (RDM) have an
potential to become core partners.
assistant. The RDMs are more experienced and have been there from
the start of the programme. All work part time, and this ranges
A key concern to RDC/Ms is balancing a drive for increased take-up
between 2.5-4 days a week.
with building deeper and stronger relationships in areas where Arts
The RDC/M usually works at a comparable levbel to an Arts Council
officer (i.e. starting salary c £25k), although ACE officers have
enjoyed better remuneration in recent years. Their main role is to
develop and oversee a regional infrastructure for Arts Award delivery.
This is to focus on raising the profile of Arts Award and driving
participation across the region, embedding the Award within a
broader arts education offer, establishing a sustainable support
structure for the programme, lead/coordinate training provision, and
lead development work for the Award (including supporting access
and inclusion objectives).
Award can have greater ‘transformational impact’. For example, by
focusing on schools, opportunities to drive growth in take-up are
most pronounced – particularly at Arts Award Bronze level.
However, it might be argued that Arts Award offers greater impact
for harder to reach young people and in contexts outside the
classroom / school environment – such as via community
organisations. Building relationships in this context is more labour
intensive and thus demanding of the capacity and expertise of the
RDC/M.
Performance indicators include participation and Award statistics,
sector range and geographical coverage, successful interventions in
access and inclusion, the embedding of Arts Award as part of a
joined up arts education offer, and sound financial management /
value for money.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
This can introduce a strategic dilemma for RDC/Ms: charged with
driving take-up, opportunities to extend reach and develop deep
relationships with harder to reach young people can be compromised.
Given that the most rewarding part of the job is often described as
where impact on young people is most tangible, there is a danger that
some of the qualities of Arts Award are lost in the charge for take-up.
This can mean reach and depth are achieved more easily / efficiently.
However, there is also a danger here that the core message / focus of
Arts Award is lost because it is not a ‘core business’ of the organisation.
Management & Co-ordination
Anticipated tensions between delivery and strategic development were
not expressed to any degree by consultees. While RDC/Ms did describe
the considerable pressure they are under to deliver growth in Arts
Award take-up and to provide adequate monitoring to Trinity, they all
described their relationships with ACE and Trinity as positive. For
example:
Indeed, with school take-up increasing in most regions, capacity is
scarce to undertake more targeted development work. Here Arts
Award is, to an extent, a victim of its own success – the greater the
take up of Arts Award, the bigger the partnership and monitoring load,
with reduced capacity to undertake development work a direct result. - All the RDC/Ms were very positive about their relationship with Arts
Award Head of Development (Diana Walton), explaining that she is
always available when needed and very supportive. Her role is
This is the major productive tension at the heart of Arts Award: for it
particularly key for providing clear information on the overall direction
to have a sustainable business model, it will require growth and
and impact of Arts Award, connecting RDC/Ms to one another, and
increased demand – e.g. through the development of Junior Arts
giving a bigger picture perspective of the role of Arts Award as part of a
Award. But growth reduces capacity and flexibility to target specific
children / communities and to explore new delivery mechanisms. Also, wider landscape of arts and education.
arguably, growth can compromise depth and quality for children –
- RDC/Ms were enthusiastic about their relationship with Trinity - who
especially beyond Bronze level.
are always available to help and were described as ‘efficient’. The
It is worth noting here that the West Midlands’ organisational structure consistency of the Trinity approach was complemented (e.g. clear lines
provides greater flexibility to balance reach and growth. Based as it is of communication, clarity of approach and good relationship with Trinity
staff)). The only notable qualms centred on Trinity sometimes issuing
on a team of freelancers, the RDM is able to bring in capacity and
expertise to offer a bespoke service. Here greater scope is available to tight deadlines on reporting, and that the reporting sometimes feels
‘one sided’ with scope for more feedback. Indeed, better use of
focus on ‘growth’ when necessary alongside deeper relationships
outside schools. It also provides greater scope for developing targeted monitoring materials for research and advocacy use would be
welcomed.
research and intelligence on the impact and presentation of Arts
Award. (The success of this model can be partly attributed to the
However, RDC/Ms were not as positive about their relationship with the
RDM’s experience and in depth knowledge of the sector.)
regional ACE offices - although there were no major complaints. Issues
include the sense that not all regional ACE officers are as aware/up to
By contrast, but also of merit, where Arts Award is delivered through
date with Arts Award as they could be. The relationship with regional
an existing arts organisation (such as CCE, ADO) – e.g. CAPE opportunities to embed it within a wider set of arts development tools ACE officers has also been described as ‘fragile’, with consistent contact
difficult to achieve. This is in part due to recent ACE restructuring and
are increased.
the uncertainty surrounding that.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
The lack of capacity is cited by RDC/Ms as the major impediment
to undertaking management and coordination tasks as effectively as
desired. This varies by region – for example, relatively urban areas
do make promotion and then recruitment rather more efficient, but
at the same time demand may be higher which requires capacity to
respond.
By contrast, rural areas require greater capacity to drive up and
then sustain demand. Of course, most regions do have a mix of
urban and rural areas, with access issues varying across large
geographic areas. In this sense, a lot is required of a part-time post
if reach, growth and a depth of relationship are to be achieved and
if Arts Award is to be effectively embedded within a wider arts and
education landscape.
Overall though, there are some basic tools that would free-up
capacity to deliver the RDC/M role. For example, all the RDC/Ms
have to send out welcome emails and standard electronic
communications. Simple provisions such as a basic template
which they could download from their online sharing system
(through Trinity) which each region could then personalise
would prove to be a time saver.
In addition, a refreshed Artsmark programme that positioned
Arts Award as a key ingredient for successful arts education
provision, would provide a motivating factor for the take-up of
Arts Award – independent of the direct efforts of the RDC/M.
Broader options are explored in the final section of this Paper.
Indeed, given that the successful delivery of Arts Award depends on
arts organisations and individual practitioners playing an active role
in delivery and development; and given the substantial partnership
working this requires; it is clear that the capacity of RDC/Ms to
undertake the required broad range of tasks with the intensity and
continuity required, is in most cases simply not available.
However, capacity also varies by experience and length of tenure.
Broadly, RDC/Ms in post the longest have the strongest and deepest
partnerships, a clearer understanding of the context for their work,
and greater appreciation of the wider arts and education landscape.
In turn, this reduces the day-by-day need to develop new
partnerships and understand the complexity of the context in which
they are working. Thus capacity seems to increase over time.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
Communications & Marketing
Overall, the national ACE approach to promotion and advocacy was
recognised as delivering significant value ‘on the ground’, as
RDC/Ms work to drive up demand for Arts Award and build deeper
partnerships with arts organisations, schools etc. The
Communications & Marketing manual was cited as a key tool, as
were the four annual bulletins and the website – which play a vital
role in establishing the narrative for the programme, although some
comment was made on the need for a ‘louder’ and more persuasive
campaign. There was also concern that although the website is
regularly updated, some partners only look at it once and are
therefore unaware of how Arts Award is constantly changing.
In addition, all RDC/Ms go to regional and national conferences,
networking events and individual meetings to promote Arts Award.
This is to mix straightforward promotion – where the aim is to raise
awareness of Arts Award and signpost potential partners to the set
of outcomes it can deliver; with targeted advocacy, where specific
local authorities, officers, and organisations are engaged. Here
some frustration was expressed – where, for example, RDC/Ms
would welcome more support from regional ACE officers to broker
relationships with arts organisations and to impress upon them the
value of delivering Arts Award as part of a continuum of arts
education.
At a local level, limited impact can be made. The West Midlands
has taken the lead here. As a flexible team, investments have
been made in expertise to undertake monitoring and impacts
research. This has, for example, shown that greatest impact is
made through a targeted approach where Arts Award focuses
on harder to reach children who are not as active as others in
the mainstream school environment.
In turn, as growth in Arts Award has taken place, capacity to
deliver such targeted work diminishes. Had this type of
research been developed at a national level, knowledge on how
to balance agendas through Arts Award, and how best to
embed it within a wider arts and education offer, might have
been more forthcoming.
A key part of building the profile and narrative of Arts Award is to
translate monitoring information into a description of the value and
impact of the programme. This really needs to be delivered at a
national level – providing top level outcomes and delivering a
description of the programme with a required level of authority and
range.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
Collaboration & Knowledge Exchange
Most RDC/Ms are well connected in their regions and have regular access
to key partners in arts and education. However, capacity issues mean
opportunities for dedicated learning and professional development are
scarce. However, at a national level, they are starting to benefit from the
new mentoring scheme where the more experienced Arts Award RDMs
are mentoring the newer ones. This also encourages more knowledge
exchange between the regions.
Currently, RDC/Ms meet twice a year, and rarely communicate at other
times. All regions were very keen to have some kind of system in place to
facilitate knowledge exchange (possibly a forum on the online shared
database operated by Trinity). Currently access to Diana Walton provides
much-needed knowledge and awareness on broader arts and education
issues; but a more structured and intensive approach to RDC/M peer
learning would be welcomed.
In almost all the regions, the most important and productive relationship
is with one or more organisations which work very closely with the RDC/M
for effective delivery. In some cases, where the RDC/M is hosted by an
arts organisation (such as a CCE ADO), collaboration opportunities across
the arts are much more accessible and Arts Award is presented as one of
a set of important tools. In other cases, the RDC/M has to work hard to
nurture strong partnerships with primary delivery organisations, which in
turn provides the collaboration and knowledge exchange the host
organisation was an important partnership. E.g. links to CCE, ACE or other
creative education organisation.
Links to local authorities are seen as the most problematic mainly due to
the churn of arts officers, inconsistent approaches to arts and culture
across local government, and the often inflexible and inaccessible culture
of large local authorities. Again, a stronger working relationship with ACE
officers, plus a national promotional push for Arts Award, would be
conducive to a better working relationship with local authorities.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
4. Strengths of the Current Regional Delivery Model
A community of very committed and focused individuals who deliver a high value service for a relatively small
investment and with correspondingly little capacity.
A dedicated profile / presence for Arts Award in each region – ensuring a continual push for increased takeup and strengthening relationships with delivery / strategic partners.
A management structure that enables a coordinated offer, with Trinity undertaking a clear ‘delivery
management’ approach and ACE embedding Arts Award within a wider arts and education landscape.
A robust communication structure – with sharp and updated descriptions of Arts Award, plus clear roles and
responsibilities for RDC/Ms.
Flexibility of model: with scope for Arts Award to be driven at regional level by an organisation(s) or
individual(s), with strengths and weaknesses for both approaches.
Increased take-up, range and reach; plus greater buy-in from strategic and delivery partners (e.g. arts
Award recognised by UCAS). Arts Award has benefited here from the overall growth in profile of arts and
creative education.
Improved monitoring – e.g. regional intelligence maps – which enable ongoing review and assessment.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
5. Weaknesses of the Current Regional Delivery Model
Capacity: RDC/Ms are not able to balance an approach that focuses on rapid growth with one that focuses on
extending reach and providing transformational impact for harder to reach young people.
Clarity: The role of Arts Award and the benefits it can provide are not consistently and accurately described.
While up to date information is readily available (e.g. on-line), RDC/Ms at times struggle to keep pace. It also
seems that where Arts Award is delivered by an organisation, its discrete role and impact is not as sharply
presented as by ‘stand alone’ delivery partners. That said, in organisational contexts, Arts Award tends to be
better connected to other arts and education programmes / platforms.
Collaboration & Partnership: Perceptions of the Arts Award’s ‘place’ in ACE’s agenda are at odds – ACE officers
consider Arts Awards features quite prominently in their priorities/agenda but RDC/Ms generally feel ACE
officers could be better versed on Arts Award and its continual development. Relationships with local authority
officers are under-developed and often subject to shifts in capacity and strategic focus of different local
authority departments. Collaboration and knowledge exchange between RDC/Ms could be improved – building
on the annual residentials and the mentoring programme – although insufficient capacity is the greatest
impediment to collaboration.
Monitoring and knowledge development: While Trinity runs an effective monitoring programme, a large
proportion of the information and data on impact is not presented to RDC/Ms. Indeed, RDC/Ms would
welcome more regular updates that provide evidence on impact and ‘value’. This in turn would help to ‘sell’
Arts Award to potential delivery partners.
Take-up: Although Arts Award has shown year on year growth, it has still proved challenging to increase the
delivery role of arts organisations – not least RFOs. The cost and strategic benefit for delivery is not as widely
accepted as desirable. This is a serious concern if a sustainable business model is to be developed.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
6. Opportunities for the Current Regional Delivery Model
Position Arts Award to the heart of core arts and education delivery programmes for young people – e.g. as
part of an SLA with an RFO. Also position Arts Award as a core ‘must have’ for Artsmark status. This is to
accelerate take-up and make Arts Award a ‘core business concern’ for funded arts organisations.
Explore opportunities to commit RFOs or CCE ADOs to deliver Arts Award across each region. This would
require each delivery organisation to have a properly trained, up-to-date and credible Arts Award
representative who also has a rich appreciation of the wider arts and education landscape. It would also
require a stronger working relationship with regional ACE officers and a clear SLA relationship with Trinity.
Set targets for ‘reach’ as well as growth. Here Arts Award can be positioned as a provider of major value for
harder to reach young people and should be embedded within arts education programmes that target such
individuals.
Improve collaboration and knowledge exchange between the regions – and build in capacity for this to be
possible. Centralised knowledge development will play an important role here: generating data and
intelligence that can be used at a regional level.
Improve the salary level of RDC/Ms to the equivalent of a middle-ranking ACE officer – to incentivise posts
and attract more established and connected individuals to any new posts.
Undertake a full summative and formative evaluation of Arts Award to provide robust and rich data and
intelligence (to be used as an advocacy tool) and develop a full options analysis for Arts Award post April
2011.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
7. Delivery Options Going Forward
With existing contracts with Arts Award RDC/Ms set to expire in April
2011, consideration of future options for delivery is required urgently.
This research has shown that the current regional delivery structure
for Arts Award is broadly effective, albeit with major limitations on
capacity, and the drive for growth challenging even the most flexible
and skilful officers to maximise the impact and value of the
programme.
- Developing a direct management structure between Trinity and
delivery partner arts organisations.
- Improving knowledge exchange and collaboration between
delivery partners – on Arts Award but also across key areas of the
arts education landscape.
A regional delivery model does in theory cost more than a national
approach, yet, Arts Award still does not have the reach and clarity of
profile for a purely national approach to succeed: the personalised,
flexible approach of regional officers gives the programme roots and
‘on the ground visibility’ that would be lost via a national approach.
That said, some elements would benefit from a bigger national push –
e.g. for evaluation and the promotion / dissemination of data and
intelligence.
Therefore, assuming a regional approach can be preserved,
opportunities need to be explored to more effectively integrate and
embed Arts Award into a ‘continuum’ of arts education provision.
Options here include:
- Building capacity of RDC/Ms to better perform a strategic and
delivery role. For example, by outsourcing monitoring (as in the West
Midlands), increasing the frequency of national bulletins, building a
more ‘Arts Award savvy’ role for ACE officers.
- Positioning dedicated Arts Award staff in an ADO/RFO with a direct
remit to increase organisational take-up of the programme and better
connect it to a wider arts and education landscape.
- Establishing SLAs with arts organisations to drive growth in specific
areas – e.g. Junior Arts Award, harder to reach young people, and
potential adult learners.
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
Appendix 1: List of Consultees
Wherever possible, interviews were carried out with RDC/M and Arts Council representatives from all regions. However, some
interviews were not able to be arranged mostly due to time restrictions (e.g. RDCs working part time or out of the office) and other
factors such as being new in post or maternity leave.
Strategic Arts Council Interviews
National
National
National
National
Laura Gander-Howe
Anne Appelbaum
Diana Walton
Alice Young
Director, Learning and Skills
Senior Officer, Learning and Skills
Head of Arts Award Development
Head of Arts Award Programme
Arts Award Regional Interviews
E
L
NE
NW
SE
WM
YH
Olivia Dean
Caroline Bray
Amy Mitchell
Bryony Bell
Stephen Fenning
Janette Bushell
Ginny Scholey
Regional
Regional
Regional
Regional
Regional
Regional
Regional
Development
Development
Development
Development
Development
Development
Development
Co-ordinator
Co-ordinator
Co-ordinator
Co-ordinator
Co-ordinator
Manager
Manager
Arts Council Regional Interviews
EM
E
NE
NW
SE
WM
Rebecca Blackman
Hannah Green
Nicholas Baumfield
Claire Eddleston-Rose
Rose Kigwana
Aysha Afridi
Senior Manager, Corporate Planning
Relationship Manager, Engagement & participation
Senior Manager, Corporate Planning
Relationship Manager, Learning
Senior Manager, Regional Planning
Relationship Manager, Learning
tom fleming / creative consultancy /
tom fleming / creative consultancy /