Archived decisions

ARTS STRATEGY

1. The Executive Member has approved the Arts Strategy for Hampshire County Council covering the period 2006-11. The strategy stems from the 2004 review of the role and functions of the arts office; one of the recommendations emerging from that review was that a comprehensive Arts Strategy should be prepared.

2. The Arts Strategy fits in with the County Council's adopted corporate and cultural strategies, and also reflects the wider policy context, including the Government Green and White Papers on youth and older people; local area agreements; and wider cultural policy as represented by organisations like Arts Council England, South East. Preparation of the document included consultation with partners such as the Hampshire District Councils; Portsmouth and Southampton City Councils; and a wide range of arts and cultural organisations, many of whom made helpful suggestions. The Arts Strategy has also been endorsed by the Recreation and Heritage Policy Review Committee.

3. The strategy contains 6 key objectives:

· To deliver the County Council's corporate and cultural strategy objectives through the actions of the Arts Strategy by the Arts Service and other directorates as appropriate.


· To support the development of a sustainable and thriving arts and creative industries infrastructure in Hampshire.


· To prioritise those areas of activity where the County Council can make a real difference.


· To work in partnership with stakeholders at parish, town, borough, district and regional levels to ensure that joint investments are maximised.


· To lead by example by developing strategic approaches to cross-departmental working.


· To ensure that excellence permeates all activity whether supported or directly delivered.

4. The Arts Strategy sets out a range of options and seeks to direct in the most effective way the County Council's financial investment, human resources and capital resources to the range of arts provision, use and support across the spectrum of the County Council's activities. To that end the strategy seeks to develop still further the development of links between arts and other areas within recreation and heritage, for example museums and the transformation of libraries into discovery centres. The strategy also ranges more widely to enable the arts and other County Council priorities to enhance each other, for example youth arts; targeted arts provision in rural areas; wellbeing of elderly people; and economic strategy.

5. The Arts Strategy supports aims 1, 3, 4 and 5 of the corporate strategy by providing a framework within which Arts Services and support can be provided for the benefit of the County's population. A copy of the full strategy document has been placed in the Members' rooms.