This much we know ...

Arts Council England has decided to conclude its funding of the Creative Partnerships programme at the end of the current academic year to create space for a new generation of creative and cultural activity for children and young people.

Today, The Guardian writes about the economic impact of Creative Partnerships, showing how it earns £15.30 of economic and social benefit for every government pound spent (PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2010): a phenomenal return.

There will be much more to say, but the key fact to stress is that Creative Partnerships continues as a vibrant source of innovation and excellence in the East Midlands for 2010-11. CCE – the national managers of the programme – have invited The Mighty Creatives to deliver the very best year yet, and we want to surpass that expectation.

250 East Midlands schools will join the programme this year – that will give rise to employment for several hundred more creative practitioners who will co-produce creative learning with several thousand children and young people (last year we estimate the programme involved 25,000 children across the region). I’m already inspired by the passionate responses we have received for the year ahead. There should be lots of amazing work to see.

For more detail, we have issued a press release and written to each of our schools, creative agents and local authority partners. Please check your in-tray or visit our website for the latest.

So, where do we go from here?

Firstly, I think Arts Council England’s decision creates a unique opportunity to confirm the value of arts, creativity and culture at the heart of young lives. If we are able to win arguments for funding in the future, will have done so based on what we have learnt together, what we can demonstrate we can deliver and the quality of our vision: real change, real opportunities, real outcomes. I like and welcome that challenge. It takes everything we have learned and asks us to put it into practice. Surely that’s what a change programme like Creative Partnerships is for?

Of course, we must be careful we don’t lose what we have learnt through the Creative Partnerships experience. Yes, in any national programme, certainly one as long-running as Creative Partnerships, there are things we don’t like, things that might feel awkward when set against spontaneous ambition. But, we have also seen and achieved so much through a structured, systemic approach to creativity. Many schools have found a revitalising energy that has helped them excel against the odds; many skilled practitioners have learnt new ways of using their own creativity to inspire others; many exceptional projects have shown how heart-poundingly exciting - and effective - teaching and learning can be; many young people have been given the opportunity to excel in new ways and in new directions. Young people have started to love school. Parents have joined them. Could we have asked for more?

In finding a way forward, we must be proud of our achievements but able to innovate to meet new challenges and create new opportunities. Certainly the ground has changed massively in this new economic and political era. I want to thank Arts Council for helping us get to this point. I also want to thank them for inviting us to unleash our creativity once again.

So, where next?We won’t be sitting quietly and waiting for opportunity. It’s time to be bold and confident. Over the next few weeks and months, The Mighty Creatives will do 2 things:

1. launch a new campaign to celebrate the way young people have used creativity to transform lives. The Be Mighty/Be Creative campaign champions the unique role creativity plays in helping all young people thrive. It also recognises the skilled adults that have used their own creativity to inspire young people to build a brighter future. The campaign will set out some big ideas for young people in the Big Society and, perhaps most importantly of all, we will have fun.

2. launch our new business Planets to continue to bring the very best opportunities to children and young people in the region. Our Planets create space for unique and ambitious work, each focused on a separate theme:
· Learning
· Leadership
· Innovation & skills
· Sector development

We will be inviting our partners to help build the Planets around shared ambitions and interests. We will work together to win arguments and secure new funds for new and inspiring work.

To be true to our mission, we will also be recruiting Mighty Teams of children and young people to collaborate with each other and with adults to drive this work and make a real difference to young lives across the region.

Those of you who know me, recognise that I occasionally giggle with excitement.... I’m giggling now ;-).

I look forward to seeing you on Planet TMC!

Creative Partnerships Update

Earlier in the summer, I promised you further news about the national review of our CCE funded programme, Creative Partnerships. I hoped to be able to tell you about: -

• how the network of area delivery organisations responsible for Creative Partnerships would be assessed to ensure its fitness for purpose.

• the sort of programmes the network would be expected to deliver after March 2011.

Unfortunately, we don’t yet have this information to share. What we do know is that CCE have had many discussions with Arts Council England (their primary funder) about the future of their work and the implications for organisations like TMC. This is what we understand so far: -

• That CCE (and TMC) should prepare for a cut to our current funding, although how big a cut will not be known until after the Government announces the outcome of the spending review on October 20th. The amount is likely to be greater than the 10% being planned for by Arts Council England’s regularly funded organisations.

• That there is a commitment to support the Creative Partnerships programme to the end of the current academic year in July 2011. As the area delivery organisation for the East Midlands, TMC is planning to have staff in place to ensure that the programme is completed.

• Arts Council England has said it is committed to maintaining a network of area delivery organisations. They have also started planning for a review of how all cultural programmes are delivered to young people this Autumn. The timing and extent of this review is still not certain, but it is intended to have been completed by March 2011 to inform future funding decisions.

This is what I know for now...

I am working closely with TMC’s Board and staff to manage our response to these various developments and remain committed to sharing as much information as I can get.

Look out for my next update after September 9th when we will be meeting with CCE to get an update on national plans and priorities.

Of course, Creative Partnerships is only one part of our funding jigsaw. We are developing new business ideas and already deliver a whole host of other exciting initiatives with our partners across the region.

I look forward to keeping you informed of progress on Planet TMC. It’s an old cliché, but please do watch this space!

Inspired by ...

Even though the Find Your Talent programme has been cancelled, I continue to be inspired by the many thousands of young people that benefitted from the scheme. A good case in point is 14-year-old visual artist Zac Cummings.

If you haven’t heard Zac’s story, follow the links:
Zac's story in the news
http://www.zaccummings.co.uk/

You can see Zac’s work at the Hinckley Library, Lancaster Road, Hinckley, Leicestershire until 13th August. It’s well worth a visit.

Inspired by...
It’s always exciting to see good work celebrated in the local press... so congratulations to two Lincolnshire schools working with TMC on the Creative Partnerships programme.

Fosseway School in North Hykeham has been celebrated by Ofsted for its outstanding provision. The school’s commitment to pupil voice and creativity shines through their Ofsted report.
I visited the school last year with Paul Collard (Chief Executive of CCE, the funders of Creative Partnerships). The school’s commitment to collaborative learning – seen everywhere, from young people editing their films in the IT suite, to groups of children sat working with laptops preparing presentations for their next class – was sensational.
This spirit of collaboration, where children and adults work together to make magical learning happen, is absolutely central to our passion at TMC. Congratulations to everyone at Fosseway.

Pupils at Birchwood Junior School in Lincoln have used their Creative Partnerships project to make an outdoor classroom, turning a previously unused area into a vibrant place for story-telling.
The project brought a community of learners together, with children designing the space and parents helping to make the plans a reality. I love this project because it addresses a fundamental issue: how can we use our imaginations to inspire all children to learn? At a time when educational policy is in rapid redevelopment, I hope we can remain focused on that one simple but defining challenge.

Join the Cultural Learning Alliance
As the world continues to change around us, I would encourage everyone to subscribe to the Cultural Learning Alliance. They offer valuable insights into the national debate about cultural learning activities for children and young people. Like the National Lottery, “you’ve got to be in it to win it”: http://www.culturallearningalliance.org.uk/

Watch this space...
I’m away on holiday next week, but when I get back (w/c/ 9th August) I will share news of our business planets.... now that’s exciting!

Where are we now?

The last few weeks have seen a considerable shift in the way the government is looking to support change and deliver services. Some of these shifts are about cost-savings. Others are about a very different way of doing business.

Throughout this period, many partners have asked how these changes have affected TMC. This reflects the huge and wonderful web of professionals that drives the programmes we run. It also hints at the considerable commitment in the regions to enhancing children and young people’s lives through creative and cultural activities: a commitment we must all work together to extend. Here goes...

• CCE were asked by Arts Council England to make a £1.6million in-year cut. They have accommodated this within their own budgets (with considerable difficulty). But this means they have not passed the cuts onto TMC and the other organisations delivering Creative Partnerships across the country. This gives TMC a stable Creative Partnerships programme budget for the East Midlands for the current year. We are incredibly grateful to CCE for this.
• MLA asked TMC to make a 10% in-year saving on the Strategic Commissioning Programme we deliver for them in the East Midlands and East of England. We have managed to deliver this saving from programme and administration budgets.
• The closure of Find Your Talent has resulted in the cancellation of some of our projects and the early termination of others. We are still working with the FYT Leicester Shire team to agree a suitable end to this ambitious programme and will be making further announcements with them in due course.

And that’s that... a challenging period for us, but perhaps more so for the many people we work with. TMC’s challenges lie ahead as we prepare for the comprehensive spending review, working closely with CCE, ACE, MLA and other partners to put the best possible case forward. We will also continue working with our Board, staff, partners and young people to explore what happens next on Planet TMC... but that will be the topic of my next post.

Welcome to my new blog: Planet TMC

My aim is to share news and inspire conversation about the future development of The Mighty Creatives. I hope this will be interesting and valuable to the many adults, children and young people we work with across the East Midlands.

Before I go further, a big thank you for all of your support in helping to establish TMC. Our name was chosen to reflect the creative energy of everyone we work with: the first 15 months of business have really demonstrated the power and imagination of our many partnerships.

As we move forward, it is important that we share and develop support for a vibrant vision for TMC and the programmes and partnerships we champion. We started this work last year with the publication of Lift Off! – our open discussion document about the future. If you haven’t read this, please do and share your thoughts back with me. I would love to hear your thoughts.

In 2010, we have been working on our new business model and have started to populate this with ideas from our many partnerships. We hope this will create a platform for a stable and strong future. I will keep you updated here about progress with its development and the new ideas and opportunities that are created along the way.

Finally for this first post, I will also use this blog to keep you informed of progress with our funded programmes: Creative Partnerships; Ignition; MLA Strategic Commissioning; 2009-12 Journals Project. Many of you will be aware that the Find Your Talent project has been curtailed. We remain a passionate advocate for the project’s many achievements and its important role in changing the way young people access culture by putting them in the driving seat. We are working with the Find Your Talent Leicester Shire team and our partners in Leicester City and Leicestershire County Councils to make sure there is a strong legacy for this amazing project. Watch this space...

Best wishes,

Richard Clark
Chief Executive
The Mighty Creatives


Click here to view Lift Off

Check out The Mighty Creatives websites here.