The first of two news stories this week involving Politics and the Arts came on Tuesday with the London Assembly Regeneration Committee releasing the results of its investigation into culture and regeneration.
The Committee's report, Creative tensions: Optimising the benefits of culture through regeneration, confirms what the capital's residents and its marginalised ex–residents already knew, that rapidly rising property costs are leading to tensions between ‘old’ and ‘new’ residents and forcing out some groups leading to homogenisation of the type of residents in an area and thereby the culture on offer.
It also recognises that whilst developers may include live/work space in new developments, these are often unaffordable.
The Mayor of London is prioritising the promotion of London’s cultural offer in contrast to regeneration programmes diminishing it and the report makes a number of recommendations.
- Develop a bold programme to create and promote sustainable culture in the capital.
- Push for the new London Plan to include an affordable cultural workspace policy that ensures there is affordable cultural workspace in every large new planning development (an estimated 3,500 artists are likely to lose their places of work by 2019, 30% of the current provision).
- Carry out research to better understand ‘affordability’ for the cultural and creative sectors.
- Urgently pilot a Creative Enterprise Zone in London, which includes both affordable housing and workspace co-located together.
- Protect not just iconic venues in London, but also smaller, grassroots venues for their contribution (between 2007 and 2015, London lost 35% of its grassroots music venues—from 136 to 88).
Whilst the London Assembly Regeneration Committee is looking at all the arts in the capital, The House of Lords Communications Committee is looking more broadly at the whole of the UK, and specifically at the theatre industry as a case study to examine how the UK can nurture and develop talent for the creative industries.
On Friday of this week, the Committee launched a short inquiry into the skills needed to sustain the UK theatre industry that will start taking evidence on 14 March.
Amongst those answering questions will be the Equity general secretary, CEO of UK Theatre and Society of London Theatre, the chair of the Standing Conference of University Drama Departments and vice-chair of National College of Creative and Cultural Industries.
The Government's Industrial Strategy has identified the creative industries, which are worth £87.4 billion a year to the economy, as a priority for “cultivating world-leading sectors”.
However, the increasing mis–match between the skills needed by the industry and those provided through education and training, and local authority funding cuts are growing threats to the industry.
Further, it is feared that only people who can afford to do so join the industry because of poorly paid entry level jobs and unclear paths for career progression.
The House of Lords Communications Committee evidence session is open to the public, it may be watched online and followed via Twitter @UKHouseofLords.