www.comartspartner.org what does sustainability for community arts mean?

www.comartspartner.org

What does sustainability for Community

Arts mean?

www.comartspartner.org2

Long journey of community arts –

Historical perspective to future outlook• First government money 1975 Lord

Melchett (Labour) £500,000• Dr (Senator) Maurice Hayes report in

1981 – connections to Making Belfast Work etc

• 1989 First 3 point plan from ACNI


• 1992 Priestly report–urging community arts across council areas

• 1980s and 90s Establishment of core community arts orgs –

• 1995 and 1998 –Comedia Vital Signs Report, GFA and Labour Government

• Upward trajectory since then


2005 First sectorally consulted community arts policy

ACNI reckoned 25% of £26,000,000 bid in CSR would go to Community Arts - £6,500,000

Last year ACNI 14~15

ACNI REV & LOT RE-IMAGING COMBINED £2,600,569 £1,076,197 £3,676,766

12.4% 17.5%


• 2015 New Community Arts Policy sits with Minister for approval

• Sustainability Programme??


• Northern Ireland now lags significantly behind our EU colleagues and near neighbours in Scotland and ROI. On a comparative basis, according to the Cultural Policies and Trends In Europe annual research, Northern Ireland treasury spending on the arts, at around € 8.5 for every person annually, compares very poorly with say

• Latvia (55) Germany (117) never mind the highest investors in culture Norway (534) Sweden (274) Austria (286). Holland (267).

• Spending in the Republic of Ireland was € 38 per capita with over € 23 in Scotland. Only Moldova spent a similar amount per person on the arts as Northern Ireland.


• Areas of impact / necessity for the arts (e.g. education, health, civic engagement, social inclusion, wellbeing, TBUC, RES, night time & tourism economies, pan-community relations, international prestige for NI) - realistic & holistic recognition of arts involvement

• Understanding of the needs of the sector to deliver all of the above • Strategies for sustaining and allowing stability & diversification

across the arts & CI• Different economic realities for successful arts organisations (as

opposed to classic profit-making business models)• Encouraging entrepreneurship in arts• Linked-up strategy between various levels and departments of

government, clear and solid structures


• The Arts Council NI has designed this programme to help organisations take appropriate action to ensure the future sustainability of their organisations through the implementation of permanent, significant change measures intended to transform how the organisation delivers its services.

• Transformation measures could include:• Developing new business models.• Establishing artform hubs.• Exploring alternative sources of finance.• Mergers/partnerships.• Artform collaborations

Sustainability Programme


• Organisations which have previously received Capacity building grants from the Arts Council may apply but will not be a priority


Rudimentary swot analysis

PoliticalAusterityNew super councilsNew Dept for CommunitiesUncertainty - Assembly Support?

Economic factorsAusterityBlock GrantWelfare ReformClient organisations’ falling incomePension auto-enrolment/deficit


Social factorsGreater need – proving case?27% economically inactiveSocial distress – suicide, disability, Support groups – starting, others closing

Challenge for social justiceTechnical / technological factors

More diverse types of applicationCapacityE-commerce

Legal factorsGovernancePersonal liabilityCharity commission

EnvironmentalWater chargesRecycling costsRent reviews – upward at time of austerity?


Developing new business models.

In normal course of events, one would look at

1. Social economy, enterprise, charging for services 2. New Products, new services 3. Changing target areas/groupings 4. Reducing organisational capacity – perhaps ramping down activity with view to closure

Strengths Weaknesses 1. Alt revenue stream 1. Capacity, MVV, governance, admin,

trustees 2. Expertise, capacity 2. Market & marketing, time 3. Understand target groups well 3. Constitution, Mission, Vision, Values

(MVV) 4. Efficiency saving – redundancy or

TUPE to other orgs 4. Less able to respond to opportunity,

paring back work (perhaps to wind-up) Opportunities Threats

1. Varied; com groups to orgs, centres 1. Capacity: management, displacing core work, admin,

2. Ideas, indications, need, 2. Too labour intensive, too fast, too competitive

3. Deeper development, hone expertise, play to strengths

3. Mission drift, reputational impact, reduced programme so reduced funding as well?

4. Labour savings, artists costs etc 4. AS above, but also shrinking sector. Reality of ‘closing well’


Establishing artform hubs. =

1. Physically sharing premises 2. Consortium model

Two ways to look at tis – from a funders POV and from sector Sectorally

Strengths Weaknesses 1. Stabilising orgs, savings, sharing costs 1. Redirecting funding to support outputs,

MVV 2. Networks, sharing expertise,

operations and opportunities 2. Only as strong as weakest link, difficult to

manage, unwieldy, MVV

Opportunities Threats 1. Maximising assets, 1. Losing funding (along with partner),

losing id, losing mission 2. Greater intelligence around potential 2. Relative size of members, internal

competition, trust MVV


Exploring alternative sources of finance. o Trusts and Foundations o Charitable donations Local giving, o Crowdfunding o Social economy o Contract-tender

Strengths Weaknesses 1. Numerous 1. Small, niche, highly competed for,

funding led 2. Accessible, managed by others, low

cost 2. Needs marketed

3. Easy to set up 3. Lost on net, marketing, timebound Opportunities Threats

1. NI exposure may be small 1. One off, project specific, capacity to make applications

2. New income stream, match funds, unreserved

2. Opportunity costs, reliance on individuals, newness of process, nature of competition (Famine Relief, Guide Dogs etc)

3. Project driven, experimental 3. Capacity used that doesn’t support core operations


Mergers/partnerships o Merger partners, identification, development and merger o Partnership (legal definition)

Strengths Weaknesses 1. Maintaining mission & viability 1. Winners and losers, needs time, 2. Growing capacity 2. Establishing the right format/deal,

sharing liabilities, governance

Opportunities Threats 1. Funders support, re-launch of area 1. 360 process takes sensitive and

determined effort, MVV, 2. Greater expertise, playing to strengths 2. Internal competition, unequal marriage


Artform collaborations o Same areas of work, collaborative partnership o Across artform collaboration Artform consultancy - specialism

New areas might be charted here. New relationships with other sector perhaps. British Museum model

Strengths Weaknesses 1. Broader, deeper capacity 1. Not diverse enough offering 2. Expertise recognised, bigger than sum

of parts 2. Poor understanding of other, getting the

right partner, maintaining process, admin

Opportunities Threats

1. Bids and tenders, project areas 1. Labour intensive, hard to specify 2. Bids, marketability, assisting missions

of all parties 2. Losing identity, unequal resourcing, MVV


• Bear in mind, that sustainability may not be achieved with ever-diminishing budgets. Some organisations may have to take the strategic decision, to protect reputations and liability, that ‘closing well’ may be the only viable alternative of a permanent nature. Many organisations, in may publicly funded sectors, have not had the opportunity for “an orderly wind-up”.

• Conversations around closure, cy-press dissolution and transfer of assets and effective wind-up are very strategic and will of course, lead to permanent change. A last resort, but one that many may have to think about. Perhaps here is an opportunity to secure funding assistance to do that, if framed correctly and agreed with ACNI in advance through conversations with ACNI officers.

• Food for thought, if very unpalatable


• Sustainability Programme

Deadline July 23rd

• Conversations• #ArtsMatterNI – Support the campaign• Advocacy – Seize every opportunity to highlight

the great work of the arts• CSR – October/November - consultation• MAAF – 10 Year Arts Strategy – Channel positive

messages and support consultation

www.comartspartner.org what does sustainability for community arts mean?

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