Welcome to Lead On – the quarterly newsletter from Clore Leadership, which seeks to explore, stimulate and share perspectives on the issues currently impacting the leadership of culture.
What does a cultural education look like in 2019? It’s an issue never far from our thoughts and two recent reports focus attention on both the opportunities and challenges in the current environment. October saw the launch of the Durham Commission on Creativity and Education (Arts Council England and Durham University) whilst the Cultural Learning Alliance and Paul Hamlyn Foundation briefing paper The Arts for Every Child outlined the evidence on why access to an arts education is ‘a social justice issue’. We know that access to a cultural education can influence choices and shape lives, way beyond an individual's profession or career – it determines the profile and skillset of our sector for years to come. So the decline in arts and cultural learning within formal education raises understandable alarm about cultural perspectives, cultural appreciation and indeed, about who is accessing the rich cultural heritage of the UK. And who then is, or will be, generating the creativity that will refresh and renew cultural practice? We only need to read Man Booker Prize-winning author Bernadine Evaristo's reflections on her teenage engagement with youth theatre to remind us that a broad cultural education allows individuals to learn, flourish and make more astute choices for the long term. In this issue of Lead On we share the above reports and an array of articles and perspectives on cultural learning, with a spotlight on the Cultural Learning Alliance, a collective of passionate and engaged individuals and organisations working right across the arts, cultural, creative, education, youth and learning sectors. Their focus is to promote and campaign – see below for ways you can engage and animate in this key area of cultural engagement and future leadership. Check out our Training, Programmes and Events for leadership and governance opportunities in early 2020 - Influence and Advocacy for Change in partnership with Happy Museum; and Achieving and Retaining a Diverse Board, taking place in Leeds. Talking of Boards, if you missed this year's Governance Now conference, described by one participant as “sensitive and inclusive in the approach to complex and sometimes tricky governance issues”, then do sign up to the mailing list to get a full round up of the discussions and debates in the next month. And finally, Clore Leadership is recruiting! Two dynamic new roles Head of Programmes and Head of Strategic Partnerships and Impact provide timely opportunities to help shape the future of leadership development. Do share widely with your networks. The deadline is Wednesday 27 November. We wish you a wonderful end to 2019 (yes already…!) and look forward to connecting with you in the new year. Join the conversation by emailing us or reaching us on Twitter @CloreLeadership and stay #CloreConnected! Hilary and the Clore Leadership Team |
