This report seeks approval from Executive Board to position the Council’s future investment in the independent cultural sector to maximise opportunities and to connect its investment and impacts firmly to the Best City Ambition. Following a period of redesign, funding programmes would operate under one umbrella – Leeds’ Cultural Investment Programme – and work to common aims, priorities and principles across the programme. Approval is sought to:
• Approve the redesign of the current funds as the Leeds Cultural Investment Programme working to the shared aim, priorities and principles and implementation approach, as set out in this report.
• Approve a new three-year investment programme subject to annual Council budget setting and therefore to potential change.
• Subject to recommendation b), agree to the Director of City Development using his existing delegated powers to approve grant funding decisions for these programmes, with awards of grants made in accordance with the proposed aim, principles and priorities and in support of the Best City Ambition.
Decision type: Key Decision
Reason Key: Financial Impact>£500K;
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Notice of proposed decision first published: 21/03/2023
Decision due: 21 Jun 2023 by Executive Board
Lead director: Director of City Development
Department: City Development
Contact: Pam Johnson, Culture Officer 0113 378 7679 Email: pam.johnson@leeds.gov.uk.
Consultation process
This report has been created through extensive consultation with the Council officers in the two grants teams and benchmarked against core cities through 1:1 conversations with cultural lead officers at Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield city councils, as well as Glasgow Life and the Northeast Community Foundation.
An online sector survey targeted at 44 arts@leeds and 199 Leeds Inspired awardees.
Three focus group sessions were delivered with a sector advisory group which included individual artists as well as the leads of small, medium and large cultural organisations in the city, mixed city centre and outer area operations and included a diversity of heritages and perspectives.
As a matter of good practice, public consultation (online survey) was also carried out on the proposed aims, priorities and principles of the refreshed programmes.
Consultees
Executive Member for Economy, Culture and Education
Leeds City Council grant management officers
Core cities – Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, and Sheffield city councils, as well as Glasgow Life and the Northeast Community Foundation.
Leeds’ creative sector
Open public consultation
Portfolio Holder: Executive Member for Economy, Culture and Education