Y Pwyllgor Diwylliant, y Gymraeg a Chwaraeon

Adolygiad Polisi: Cyfraniad y Celfyddydau a Chwaraeon at Adfywio Cymunedol

Wales Association of Community Artists

Dear Rosemary Butler I’m writing to you in response to your invitation to submit contributions to teh above Policy Review., as both a freeelance community arts consultant and practitioner, and also as Chair of the Wales Association of Community Artists (WACA) I have not followed exactly the structure and terms of reference as contained in your invitation letter. Nontheless I hope that the sentiments expressed below, and in the attached documents make clear the extent to which the arts already make a notable and effective contribution to regeneration in some of the poorest communities in Wales, and have the potential to do much more if adequate resources can be made available to support this work. WACA is a member led organisation set up to provide advocacy, advice, networking and support for practitioners in Wales whose work is primarily involved with the delivery of community arts projects and activities. Currently we have more than eighty members across Wales, and recently organised a highly successful two-day conference in Swansea, in partnership with the Arts Council of Wales and with support from University of Wales, Swansea, the City and County of Swansea and the University of Glamorgan. This event was attended by close to one hundred people - a larger conference to take place next year in North Wales in partnership with the Arts Council of Wales and the University of Glamorgan is currently in the planning stages. Community arts in Wales is recognised on a U.K. and a European level as being at the forefront of a cultural movement which insists that highly artistic work can be created by everyone irrespective of their age, gender, background or place of residence, and that wide opportunities for participation in the arts can result in clear social and economic benefits for the individuals and communities who are involved. The contribution that community arts in Wales makes to community regeneration and the personal empowerment of disadvantaged people has been recognised by the Rowntree Foundation who held their Culture Creates Communities conference in Swansea in 1999, and subsequently published the book Creative Regeneration featuring ten case studies of projects and organisations in Wales whose work had been effective in delivering social, as well as creative results. This book makes an excellent resource for members of the Culture Committee who are seeking clear evidence that community arts activity can indeed lead directly to the development and regeneration of disadvantaged communities. In 2001 The British Council commissioned 'The Art of Change’, an exhibit that illustrated the huge range and effectiveness of community arts in Wales. This exhibit was subsequently displayed in British Council offices worldwide, further enhancing the profile and reputation of Welsh community arts internationally. Earlier this year, the British Council chose to make Cardiff the base for a three day Arts and Culture for Development seminar for staff from around the world, primarily because of the plethora of community arts organisations and activities in the locality which could be visited to provide case studies of effective delivery and good practice. The recently created Chair in Community Arts at the University of Glamorgan will ensure that the skill levels of community arts practitioners will continue to be raised, and the associated research programme will also result in an expanded evidence base reflecting the impact and effectiveness of community arts in balancing creative and broader policy objectives. Community arts is putting also Wales on the map internationally. Between them, Welsh community arts organisations engage in activities and collaborations involving a large number of countries worldwide, sharing their skills, making new friends and partners, and also bringing into Wales a wide and diverse range of cultural forms and skills. The contribution that community arts makes to cultural life and broader development objectives for some of the most disadvantaged communities in Wales is also recognised in Creative Future, the Cultural Strategy for Wales published by the Welsh Assembly. Throughout this document there is an acknowledgement that quality and access in the arts are not mutually exclusive, and a commitment to making sure that opportunities for participation in the arts are available to everyone in Wales, regardless of their age, gender, ethnicity or place of residence. Community arts organisations in Wales have delivered these aims to a remarkable extent considering considering the limited resources which have been available to them. The Arts Council of Wales has increasingly recognised the importance of community arts to the cultural landscape of Wales and has prioritised support for participatory activities in their arts development strategy and corporate plan. However, in spite of their achievements and recognition, the future of many of community artists is under threat because of the current reductions in funding available from the National Lottery to support participatory activity. For historical reasons, community arts organisations have depended on Lottery-sourced funding to support the bulk of their work. In most cases the revenue funding they receive from the Arts Council has been sufficient only to maintain a very basic level of service. As a result they are the first to feel the pinch as lottery ticket sales and income contracts. With the current drastic fall in available funding, the risk is that some of them will be dealt a fatal blow, with a subsequent severe and probably permanent loss to the strength and diversity of a community arts sector whose value has been recognised in all the ways indicated above. The opportunity for nearly 350,000 people to take part in the arts in Wales and between 75%-90% of provision in 22 local authorities in Wales would be lost. Yours Sincerely Steve Garrett
(Chair: W.A.C.A.)