By Sara Robinson 2012 South East Northumberland Arts

South East Northumberland Arts Development Study

By Sara Robinson2012

Contents01. Introduction

03. Key, funded cultural organisations in SEN

07. Mapping the current arts offer

09. Visual Arts

11. Performing Arts, Literature, Film and Festivals

16. Children and Young People

21. Gallery spaces and venues

26. Financial investment

27. Providing the right support and approach to arts development

30. Recommendations

37. Appendix

South East Northumberland Arts Development Study

This study was commissioned by Queens Hall Arts with support from Arts Council England and Northumberland County Council.

The briefWith the support of Arts Council England (ACE) managed funds, Queen’s Hall Arts - who will oversee arts development for the county from April 2012 - commissioned this study into the development of a clear arts strategy for the southeast of the county.

South East Northumberland (SEN) is home to c141,500 people: 45% of the county’s total population. It is not a unified area with an identifiable heart, but rather a series of towns and villages once based around the former fishing, shipping and mining industries. According to the recently commissioned Audiences North East Research ‘Northumberland Mapping: Cultural Engagement in Northumberland’, fewer people are engaged in arts activity in SEN than all other parts of the county, and considerably more are economically disadvantaged. In comparison to the average statistics for Great Britain, SEN comprises fewer students, more residents who are unable to work due to disability/illness and fewer people with higher educational/vocational qualifications.

Unlike other populated parts of Northumberland, there is no professionally run cultural ‘hub’ in SEN, from which a varied programme of arts events and participatory activity can flow. There are no dedicated contemporary art gallery spaces, and the two performing arts focussed venues in the area (The Phoenix in Blyth and Seaton Delaval Arts Centre), are run by volunteers on a part-time basis without the resources or capacity to instigate the breadth of cultural activity that a population of this size may want. This issue, together with the semi-urban demographic and economically disadvantaged communities, means that the area needs a different approach to arts development, rather than an ill-fitting application of rural models.

There has been a paucity of arts focussed investment from Northumberland County Council (NCC) and Arts Council England (ACE) into the area in recent years, but both organisations, together with Queens Hall Arts, now view SEN as a strategic priority for arts activity.

The purpose of this study has been to a) audit and analyse current patterns of delivery and activity and b) make recommendations which will build a stronger arts offer in the area, in order to inform strategies and decisions of funding bodies, arts development agencies and individual artists and arts organisations.

MethodologyWe interviewed seventy-two people involved in some form of arts delivery. These included locally based voluntary and private sector venues and organisations, and others based in and beyond the region, involved in education, youth and community development, health, policy makers, and regional arts organisations. The full list of interviewees can be found at the end of this report. We also ran a consultation workshop with twenty young people from YPIN (Young People in Northumberland), and another consultation event at Newbiggin Maritime Centre attended by forty-four people involved or interested in the arts in SEN.

This is a condensed version of a fuller report. For the full report and appendices please go to www.queenshall.co.uk.

Introduction

By Sara Robinson 2012Page 01

Introduction

– Cramlington (population 40,000), on the edge of Tyneside which was classed as a ‘new town’ when development started in the 1960’s and has grown steadily since. It is home to the Concordia leisure centre.

– Blyth (population 35,000), which has seen some of its major industries decline in recent times but also some superb regeneration along the beach, port and quayside (around the theme of renewable energy), the Blyth Community College who are actively involved in the arts, the new Bede Academy school and is home to the Phoenix Theatre, Headway Arts and Blyth Valley Arts and Leisure.

– Ashington (population 27,000), a former a coal mining community, with the recently developed Woodhorn Museum and Archive, a new leisure centre being planned by NCC, and Ashington Development Trust are looking at the feasibility of developing the redundant art deco Old Co-Op as an arts and social space.

– Bedlington (population of 15,300).

– Seaton Valley (several villages totalling a population of 15,000 comprising Seaton Delaval: p 5000, Seaton Sluice: p. 3000, New Hartley: p. 2000, Old Hartley, Holywell and Seghill). The Seaton Valley area has a beautiful coastal area, a new music festival, voluntarily run visual arts development, and is home to the newly re-opened Seaton Delaval Hall (run by the National Trust) and the voluntarily run Seaton Delaval Arts Centre.

– Newbiggin-by-the-Sea (population 7,000). Newbiggin is also based around a stunning coastal area, with the renowned public art installation ‘Couple’, the brand new Maritime Centre. Newbiggin Arts Forum, Keap Creative and a strong community arts scene.

– Choppington, Stakeford, Guide Post – Ellington, Lynemouth, Linton and Cambois

Picture Captions look like this

South East Northumberland comprises three main conurbations:

SEN also contains a number of smaller settlements:

South East Northumberland Arts Development StudyPage 02

Northumberland

Cumbria

Scottish Borders

Darlington

Stockton-On-Tees

Gateshead

Newcastle Upon Tyne

Middlesbrough

Redcar & Cleveland

HartlepoolCounty Durham

Sunderland

South Tyneside

North Tyneside

Ashington

BedlingtonNewbiggin

BlythCramlingtonSeaton Valley

South East Northumberland

50 100 km0

Key, funded cultural organisations in SEN

Blyth Valley Arts and Leisure (BVAL)BVAL, who have a heavy emphasis on sports, exist To make a significant contribution to the health and well being of the community, by increasing participation and providing access to a wide range of leisure facilities and activities across the borough.

As part of this mission, BVAL currently deliver the only arts development service operating in SEN. Their remit is to deliver arts development for everyone, with an emphasis on access, participation and engagement through a broad based, untargeted approach, which aims to reach all ages in all art forms. But their capacity makes this an almost impossible task. Where there was once five local authority arts development staff across the districts of Blyth and Wansbeck, there is now just one Community Arts Manager. Her programming budget - once utilised for activities solely in the Blyth district - now has to additionally cover the cost of activities in the former district of Wansbeck. So in effect, the staffing capacity has been reduced by four fifths, and the budget has halved.

BVAL’s Community Arts Manager is hugely respected by local people, delivers excellent project management and quality programming. However, her capacity, small working budget (c£40K, which she quadruples through additional fundraising and partnership support), and the size and population of SEN mean that her efforts are thinly spread. Her approach has been to deliver one-off projects, deliver the community film scheme ‘Doorstep Pictures’ (see page 14), support Highlights (see page 5), animate outdoor spaces and work in partnership with other staff in BVAL to deliver events and holiday programming for children. As a ‘one man band’, she spends considerable time delivering, which limits her ability to fundraise, build partnerships and plan. This study will recommend a more strategically focused approach to delivery, which links BVAL’s current arts resources into QHA and a larger arts development team for SEN.

Queens Hall Arts (QHA)QHA manage an arts centre in Hexham and a large outreach programme, some of which extends across the county. They instigate and draw in the funding for the Doorstep Pictures community film scheme, manage the contract with Highlights and deliver the Northumberland Youth Dance Hub, which takes place in SEN as well as in other areas. Despite being based in Hexham, their commitment to the arts in other parts of the county is already being demonstrated and they are well plugged in to county and regional cultural initiatives. When QHA formally take on arts development across the county from April 2012, they will play a key strategic role in picking up the recommendations in this study. There is some concern that people from ‘the West’ will take over and try and apply their thinking to ‘the East’. It is vital therefore that any arts development team focused on SEN is physically based and connected in the area, albeit that some of the leadership, resources and strategic partnership opportunities will come from QHA.

There are currently five organisations regularly funded to deliver arts and cultural activity in SEN:



Woodhorn MuseumWoodhorn’s key role is to connect the people of SEN (and the county) with their heritage and build relevant cultural activity from this resource. Woodhorn, on the outskirts of Ashington, is a contemporary new build based around a former mining pit, also housing the Pitman Painters collection and Northumberland Archives. In addition to their collection, they attract many people for their national touring exhibitions (approx. 42% attendees are from SEN) and run an extensive schools and family arts and crafts programme. Archive film and folk music is a burgeoning area. Notably, their award winning Cultural Olympiad funded NE Generation programme for young people, is of an exceptionally high standard, involving many young people from SEN. Given their increasing programme of arts based provision, and in the context of the ACE / MLA (Museums, Arts and Libraries) merger, Woodhorn is increasingly seen as a key player in the arts scene as well as heritage.

Woodhorn is the only venue in SEN to constantly show an exhibition programme across two gallery spaces. They don’t consider themselves a contemporary art gallery showing the kind of work available at the Baltic, but instead, as a Museum, they focus on showing work which brings their own collection and archive to life as well as the large scale national touring exhibitions like Videogame Nation and Walking with Dinosaurs. They also show occasional locally produced exhibitions such as art work by the Alnwick Camera Club, Newbiggin’s Keap Creative, Helix Arts Choices (work with young offenders), The Federation of Northern Art Societies, and a range of work produced by young people through Generation 2012 Time Travel Initiative.

Seaton Delaval Hall The recently opened National Trust run Seaton Delaval Hall is a superb setting for special outdoor, site specific and acoustic events. The manager is open to ideas but is clear that it cannot be a regular, dedicated space for live art and exhibitions at present, as much of the focus for the next few years is on making the venue usable (i.e. no ceiling; bats!). Recent arts events have included a BVAL dance and exhibition project, November Club’s large-scale community performances, and regular craft, theatre, storytelling and puppetry events for children and families. The team at Seaton Delaval Hall would appreciate support to develop a longer-term vision for the hall as a cultural space; it has huge potential but should be seen as a slow burn.

South East Northumberland Arts Development StudyPage 04


HighlightsHighlights take small scale, high quality, professional shows into thirty-five village and community halls throughout the county. Over the past few years they have worked in partnership with nine different community or educational venues in SEN (though not in Blyth or Cramlington), bringing in live music, dance, puppetry, exhibitions and theatre. In the past year, the seven shows they brought into SEN attracted audiences of between twelve and ninety-eight, with an average of fifty. Unlike other parts of the county, the number of organisations in SEN booking shows has declined in the last two years, as local venues are either feeling unable to take any financial risks due to lack of funding, or are experiencing reduced capacity due to loss of key volunteers or community development staff redundancies. It is fair to say that as a primarily rural touring scheme, Highlights have found working in SEN more challenging than other parts of the county, where close-knit village communities are more easily able to make arts events work primarily through word of mouth; audiences in rural SEN (Seaton Valley and Newbiggin) are considerably larger than those in the more urban areas. Given the sporadic nature of this kind of programming, audience development is very tricky to maintain, and voluntary run venues need help getting the message out.

A different approach is needed in SEN. Some of the more highly attended Highlights events in SEN have been family shows and the exhibitions, which have been complemented with a range of participatory workshops. Pricing is variable and needs reviewing to suit the pockets of SEN people, as does the risk involved with the cost of the shows to the venues. Discussions with other touring schemes (Arts Out West, Night Out and Black Country Touring) find that making events work in the more urban areas requires:

— working with regeneration, housing association and community development partners to help fund and project manage events

— more proactive support to promoters, building strong relationships — a focus on community groups as well as venues— a focus on family and children shows — making shows more of an ‘event’ with drinks, food, or workshops

in the run up to the show— low ticket prices— a cheaper or less risky deal for the promoter— young promoters schemes— a strong internet presence, used by promoters— commissioned work about the communities or the area, worked into

a touring production

As one of the only providers offering quality, professional touring work to the area, it would be good to continue to work with Highlights but only if a radically different approach can be taken. New funding opportunities through ACE could enable Highlights to offer some of the interventions listed above, in partnership with Queens Hall Arts, NCC, BVAL, Connect 4 Change (the community development agency) and crucially, key local venues.



And…There are also a number of other professional, funded arts organisations not based in SEN but who have successfully delivered work in the area and are interested in continuing to do so should the opportunity arise: Helix Arts, November Club, The Forge, Ludus Dance, Equal Arts to name a few.

Regional organisations The bulk of ACE NE funding goes to the regional, Newcastle/Gateshead based NPO’s and there is an expectation that they will work increasingly regionally to share their capacity and best practice in areas like SEN. We spoke to a number of the regional NPO organisations to assess current and potential involvement and partnerships: The SageGateshead (TSG), Northern Stage, Generator, New Writing North, Tyne and Wear Museums and Dance City. Their responses can be found in Appendix 5 in the full report.

There is considerable scope and interest to generate new work and projects with them in SEN, as long as genuine partnership approaches can be established. The regional organisations don’t come free of charge; partnership/matching funds will need to found by SEN based organisations, and whilst the NPO’s may have the resources and access to first class artists, they are unlikely to be engaged or able to work effectively in SEN without local partnership support.

Regional NPOs will be in demand across a huge geographical area, so SEN based organisations need to have the gumption to: knock on doors and build relationships; offer local context and contacts; provide joint fundraising and audience development; supply venues and space; and deliver on the ground project management. Likewise, regional organisations need to take time to respect and understand the arts context and approach required in SEN.

Mapping the current arts offer

Geographical spread Relative to the other areas in SEN, and in terms of population size, Newbiggin and Seaton Valley have more going on arts wise. With the coastline, Seaton Delaval Hall, Woodhorn, Newbiggin Art Forum, Newbiggin Maritime Centre, Seaton Delaval Arts Centre, the active Churches and community groups, and the new music festival in Seaton Sluice, there are many opportunities to build upon. The active organisations in these areas need supporting.

The other four, more urban areas need a more strategic intervention, which both supports delivery of activity and builds capacity. Cramlington, which is seen as the more wealthy part of the area, is very near to Tyneside should people wish to take advantage of the culture on offer there; but ideally, more needs to be available, right on the doorstep. Of the remaining areas, (Ashington, Bedlington and Blyth), Bedlington has the least amount of arts activity and events. As the art form findings indicate below, different art forms thrive in different areas, which will help determine where to place specific support and initiatives.

Locally generated Keeping schools activity out of the picture, of the spread of arts activity we are aware of, it would be fair to say that approximately 80% is self-sustaining (i.e. unfunded) and led by volunteers, voluntary sector groups or private sector organisations (dance schools). In SEN, the majority of arts activity is generated by local people, who get on with it and make it happen without external support.

Whilst the arts sector tends to focus on the subsidised and professionally run arts organisations, the vital role and importance of grassroots arts activity cannot be underestimated and needs supporting, particularly in areas like SEN. Funders and arts development agencies need to offer support to those who want help with building their capacity, provision and aspirations, through access to professional artists, training and mentoring, and crucially, support with funding opportunities. At the moment this is happening on a very ad hoc basis, partly reflected in the fact that in recent years, only 2% of ACE funding to the entire county has gone to SEN. The issue for ACE is how they can best promote their funding mechanisms in a way that engages the non-professional voluntary arts sector, without compromising their own criteria.

Best practice Through our interviewees we have collected a range of best practice examples of current arts provision in SEN. These range from Holywell Visual Arts Group to projects on estates, to Woodhorn’s Time Travel creative youth Cultural Olympic programme; from Headway’s learning disabled theatre company and international inclusion festival, to inspirational individuals setting up organisations like the Newbiggin Art Forum; from the self sustaining NE Music Factory’s provision of 35 classes a week, to Seaton Sluice’s 2011 inaugural, music festival. Further inspiring examples can be found in Appendix 4 of the full report.

By Sara Robinson 2012

Through our research we were able to paint a picture of current arts provision (and gaps) by geographical spread and by art form. Appendix 2 in the full report provides a detailed listing of regular arts activities and groups split into geographical areas.

Audiences North East research (2011) The Audiences North East research looked at levels of cultural engagement across Northumberland, and provides some useful SEN specific data which helps set the context for mapping provision:

Mapping the current arts offer

Respondents from SEN (c155) were asked which art form/s they attended annually, though it is difficult to ascertain which of these are attended in SEN itself:

They were asked to list the arts venues they currently attend. Of those listed below, Seaton Delaval Arts Centre and Newbiggin Arts are the only two venues based in SEN:

Respondents from SEN were also asked what the barriers were to engaging with the arts; perhaps a stronger local offer, with more appealing events and activities and at a reasonable price, would up engagement levels?

Visual Arts

Activities for amateur and established artists Visual arts, crafts and photography groups for adults are relatively well provided for, with over 30 regular groups operating in SEN. Almost all are unfunded and voluntarily run, with very little intervention from external agencies other than adult education. Two local professional artists lead several of them, others are self-led and many would expressly value more expertise from a wider range of artists. During this research we unearthed 130 names of professional, semi-professional and amateur artists living in SEN.

It is difficult to know the quality of visual arts opportunities provided through schools without further research, but the end of Creative Partnerships and the council funded education interventions, will mean less current input from professional artists within schools. There are two groups we know of who offer regular visual arts classes for children and young people outside of school: Pop Bottles in Seaton Sluice and the Youth Arts Forum in Newbiggin, though other organisations such as the Buffalo Centre and the Youth Service are very keen to offer more but need support to do so. Woodhorn’s recent Cultural Olympiad funded work with young people, has resulted in a number of very successful visual arts and media projects, and there have been some high profile, one off initiatives such as Inspire Northumberland’s ‘Experiments in Fashion’ for 15-25 year old fashion designers in partnership with London College of Fashion and Hemingway Design. Annual, long term summer workshops building to an event (Chinese dragon parade, Armada themed) used to be offered to children and young people in Blyth but have long since stopped. Current holiday workshops run by BVAL include arts and crafts but tend to be one-offs due to budget limitations.

Northumberland College have approximately 150 students predominantly aged 16-18 and some older, taking BTEC’s and A Levels in a range of visual arts subjects including photography, graphic design, textiles, fashion design, fine art, art history and craft. They would be interested in developing a wider curriculum which addresses gaps in provision and may be able to help draw down funding, source appropriate tutors, and could link in with Arts Awards more extensively than they do now.They struggle to find exhibition space for the work of their students beyond their own studios in SEN and would happily be part of any working group looking at developing exhibition space in SEN.


Visual Arts

Professional and touring exhibitions Aside from the large-scale exhibitions at Woodhorn, no professional contemporary visual arts touring exhibitions come to the area. Some professional sculptural and public artwork can be seen in hospitals, in a couple of market places and along the coast. There is scope for county and regional organisations like Baltic to offer partnerships in touring product to help fill this gap, but they will need an appropriate SEN based gallery to do so. There is also the opportunity to secure emerging curatorial expertise for a high quality contemporary programme in the area, through links with the MA curatorial courses at Sunderland and Newcastle Universities. This could involve a curatorial bursary scheme with course graduates, perhaps linked in to a bid to ACE’s Strategic Touring Funds.

Given the recently installed public art on display (notably Sean Henry’s ‘Couple’ in Newbiggin instigated by Inspire Northumberland), it is disappointing, that the county-wide Network Artists Open Studios had just one SEN based artist exhibiting this year, in a pub, and he is the first to participate from the area. Most artists in SEN feel the cost for entry to Network Artists is prohibitive. There is scope for NCC together with Network Artists and identified partners (including Woodhorn, Baltic) to take a different approach in SEN. One which could enable artists in the area to get involved and exhibit in the Open Studios, possibly with the support of a curator or professional artist/co-ordinator, which builds on the lure of Couple and the existing creative developments along the coastline.

Dance

Dance activity for young people and adults is comparably well provided for, by a number of well-established private dance schools, regular classes in community venues, schools and one-off projects run by BVAL and the Northumberland Youth Dance Hub. Dance City offer a progression route which picks up the gifted and talented through taster sessions in participating schools and offers heavily subsidised weekly Foundation workshops at Blyth Community College for ages 7 -12, followed by the chance to audition for the Dance City based Centre for Advanced Training for ages 13+.

For those on limited budgets, Blyth Valley Arts and Leisure’s (BVAL) inclusive Dance Officer Sophie Johnson (part of the Sports Development department), offers a number of dance groups across SEN in partnership with community venues and extended services, and facilitates a dance networking group. The Northumberland Youth Dance Hub - a partnership between Queens Hall and Dance City - provides further affordable (or free) options to young people attached to schools in Ashington and Cramlington and have recently provided boys’ taster sessions. Those who show a real interest can join the Dance City progression route mentioned above. Headway Arts run inclusive dance sessions for people with disabilities and BVAL run one off intensive dance projects of new work, such as a Ludus residency, the Shall We Dance project delivered by Tin Arts for the over 50s.

Very little, if any professional dance comes into the area, but the Northumberland Youth Dance Hub has arranged trips to Alnwick, Hexham and Newcastle to see work.

The Schools Sports Partnership run a countywide Dance Festival in schools in March, much of which takes place in SEN. There is therefore scope to build on the energy and level of activity for dance that exists in SEN, building on the schools Dance Festival, with an annual, celebration that joins up the varied amateur and professional activities on offer from the public, private and voluntary sectors, and showcase a greater range of dance, including professional work.

Performing Arts, Literature, Film and Festivals


Theatre

We know there are at least six amateur dramatic or musical theatre groups operating in SEN, in every area except Bedlington, several of whom offer highly attended pantomimes. And there are at least nine youth theatre groups. Of these, three are attached to the afore mentioned amateur dramatic groups, one to a school (there are likely to be more that we don’t know of), two to commercially run performing arts organisations, one to Newbiggin Art Forum and one with Headway Arts. Headway Arts (based in Blyth) also run a full time learning disabled theatre group called Seven Stars, and an annual, international festival for inclusive theatre. They are a key resource for the area – particularly in terms of inclusivity - and have just secured a lease on the United Reform Church, so that if funding is forthcoming, they can meet their aspirations for a permanent home in SEN and an expansion of their work locally and internationally. So there is a small opportunity to take part in theatre making in most towns within SEN. However, this is a thin spread, especially for young people wanting to try out new or devised work and to work with professional theatre makers. This could be an opportunity to work with the schools and youth service, and look at a long-term model based on the Dance City progression route, perhaps in conjunction with an organisation like Northern Stage.

Again, it is hard to know the quality of drama provision through the schools. If theatre with young people is to be developed, a closer audit of the schools offer will be needed.

The occasional community play has happened in the past (The People Will Pay in Blyth), and November Club led three large community productions to mark the opening of Seaton Delaval Hall.

Professional theatre touring groups can be occasionally seen at The Phoenix (Hull Truck, Red Shift). Northumberland Theatre Company tour to the area (though their recent funding cut may inhibit this in the future), as do Highlights Community Touring scheme. Once a year, BVAL bring in professional outdoor theatre such as Twelfth Night in Ridley Park. Professional Theatre shows in SEN are rare, and subsequently hard to build audiences for. Committed theatre lovers will travel to Newcastle, Hexham or Alnwick. Aside from Headway Arts, there are no professionally run theatre companies based in SEN, though November Club are very near by and would like to work more in the area.


MusicThe following is a broad-brush picture of community-based music making in SEN.

With a number of TSG musicians and a university lecturer specialising in Traditional Music living in Seaton Valley, it is no surprise that community based music making options are particularly varied and strong there. New Hartley hosts the Blyth Valley Samba band that regularly perform at events in Northumberland, and Newbiggin has a one day Music Festival of new bands at the Ship Inn, a brass band, Ukulele night and guitar lessons for all ages. Ashington has a jazz scene and folk group, and the nearby Woodhorn run a monthly ‘Thank Folk Its Friday’ event. The long-standing Cramlington Folk Group has a strong reputation. Salvation Army brass bands and songsters exist in Newbiggin and Bedlington. There are four adult choirs in Ashington, and three in Seaton Valley. Two of these for the over 50s are led by 20,000 voices as part of TSG’s Silver Singers. 20,000 voices are the only professionally run music organisation based in SEN and are interested in developing more singing delivery in the area, through early years and community provision. More contemporary live music events take place in specific pubs, and there will of course be musicians, bands and other groups we haven’t been able to unearth beyond the traditional choirs, folk and jazz.

Children and young people will access some form of music or singing through schools, though inevitably certain schools are much more proactive than others. According to the Northumberland Music Service (Creative and Performing Arts) there is a range of activity happening, but very little is long term and rarely results in individual pupils signing up for tuition, due partly to cost and lack of parental interest. There are just two pupils in SEN who take part in any of the nine different ensembles run by The Music Service, despite most of them rehearsing in the area. The whole way music is offered to children and young people in SEN needs reviewing, particularly in the light of the Government’s Henley Review and the opportunities The SageGateshead (TSG) and other music education schemes could bring. Any review should work with the Youth Service (who currently offer very few music based projects), and other private providers such as Generator, and NE Music Factory who deliver Rock School training and band development across SEN. If it can tie in with existing community music provision in the community, such as the Seaton Sluice Music Festival undertook, then we begin to see progression routes and a joined up approach forming.

In terms of professional music performances, The Phoenix and Seaton Delaval Arts Centre host occasional music nights, tribute acts and bands, but most touring musicians wouldn’t think of performing in the area because there are no known venues.



Writing/literatureLiterature based activity is very weak in SEN. There are four weekly or monthly adult writing groups that we know of, in Blyth, Newbiggin, Cramlington and Holywell, and a poetry group in Blyth, three of which grew out of lifelong learning initiatives by Blyth Resource and Information Centre (BRIC) and the University of Sunderland. A professional writer runs one, and the rest are self-led. According to New Writing North’s database, there are four published writers/poets that we know of living in the area. Libraries run no writing groups but do host two reading groups in SEN and talks by writers. The Libraries Service also has a member of staff who works across SEN with older groups using story bags. On the edge of SEN, Morpeth Library is home to the acclaimed Northern Poetry collection.

The Youth Service occasionally enable young people to create issue-based drama DVDs, which require participants to storyline, write, act, direct and edit their work. Libraries run Summer Reading Challenges, and BVAL, together with libraries and the Northumberland C of E Academy have recently instigated the Newbiggin Book Festival. The regional Northern Children’s Book Festival (a partnership with Libraries) takes place every November, involving events in SEN. Aside from this and schools provision, there is no writing development for children and young people that we know of. Tying writing development into film and drama projects is a credible way forward, and New Writing North would help support a strategic approach to writing developing in all its forms.

Film and digitalThere is no cinema in SEN so people tend to travel to the Odeon in the Silverlink Shopping Park near Newcastle. Doorstep pictures, delivered by BVAL (overseen by QHA), provides small-scale films to community venues in SEN. In the last twelve months there have been 63 screenings in SEN, bringing in a total audience of 1586. The scheme is generally valued but low numbers affect its reputation. There’s a need for more consistent programming and audience development work, and an exploitation of the event experience (buns, cabaret seating, pie and peas, showings of short films made by young people from the area etc.). Woodhorn have an impressive array of archive films about the area, which they’ve used on a number of youth arts projects recently, and have expressed interest in working more with Doorstep Pictures. There could also be role for Doorstep pictures to look at outdoor provision, such as the drive in / walk in movies requested by the young people we spoke to. Ashington Development Trust identified a group of young people wanting to develop a film festival but weren’t able to support them. There are possibilities to take this forward with organisations like Berwick Film Festival and Woodhorn, but in the absence of strategic arts development and joining up across the county, these kinds of links are currently being missed.

One of the Cultural Olympiad projects, ‘Journey’ will be co-ordinated from SEN, in partnership with a digital film-maker and Northumberland College, working with young people from the seventeen communities along the torch route. This includes six SEN based communities, and could develop an impetus for future film work with young people.


Festivals and outdoor events There is a rolling programme of outdoor events at Seaton Delaval Hall and Woodhorn, and BVAL run a number of outdoor events in SEN including The Renewables Weekend Festival on Blyth quayside (June), the Dream World Festival at Blyth’s Ridley Park (January), and live Bandstand music during August and September in Blyth and Newbiggin. Until recently they have mounted a number of large-scale free festivals with funding from regeneration sources via NCC and One North East, including the award winning ‘Blyth in a New Light’; the Quayside Festival; Be Inspired Beach Festival; Big Busk in Ashington; and Christmas festivities and market place animation across SEN. These funding streams have stopped completely now, and out-door festivities are likely to be in short supply.

However, The Cultural Olympiad in Northumberland is being run by NCC and will involve a number of large scale outdoor ‘signature project’ events, some based around the route of the 2012 Olympic Torch Relay, which encompasses areas of SEN. With some thoughtful creative planning, this could be a chance to instigate some thought provoking, creative activity in SEN, and put the area on the map.

There are approximately fifteen summertime outdoor events run by volunteers, pubs, churches and Town Councils in Cramlington, Seghill, Seaton Sluice, New Hartley, Ashington, Newbiggin, and Seaton Delaval. These include galas, music festivals, fayres, Lifeboat and Harbour days and Pageants. Also, BVAL provide programming support to the annual Heritage Open Days in Bedlington, Blyth, Seaton Sluice and Old Hartley in September, and recently to the Hartley Pit Memorial events.



— The school curriculum and Northumberland College— The Music Service’s tuition (Creative and Performing Arts)— Youth Service activities in school and community settings— Voluntary groups (almost all around community centres, and

Development Trusts)— Private sector arts organisations (primarily dance and music)— Arts and heritage organisations (notably Woodhorn, Headway,

BVAL, Northumberland Dance Hub, Dance City, TSG)— Arts Awards (an accreditation scheme that operates within

schools, youth and community settings to develop arts skills in children and young people)

Joined up workingThere is a limited range of youth arts focused work in SEN, which is disjointed in its approach. Whilst there are some highly skilled individuals delivering work for young people, they are operating in specific ways, with no key personnel strategically championing youth arts activity across the whole area and across arts form. SEN is not currently delivering a coherent offer to its children and young people, and funding and partnership opportunities are being missed. What is needed is a dedicated youth arts resource for SEN to oversee and network existing provision and: deliver against a strategy; draw in funding; maintain an artist register; commission activity; develop relationships and networks with key people in schools and the youth and community service; and instigate partnerships with local and regional arts organisations from the private and subsidised sectors. A co-ordinated effort not only fits with the recommendations made in the county’s 2010 Children and Young People’s Arts Strategy, but also aligns with the ambition of the new regional Bridge organisation (see below) and could help establish SEN as a priority area for this work.

Children and Young People

Currently, children and young people are offered arts activity in SEN through the following service providers:

The Bridge OrganisationFrom 2012, The Sage Gateshead (TSG) will be one of ten Regional Bridge organisations, with a remit to improve the delivery of creative opportunities for children and young people. TSG has £483,000 annually for the whole region over three years. They will focus on connecting schools and communities with cultural opportunities, and areas where provision is low and disjointed. They will conduct local audits to identify best practice, gaps and opportunities; develop a co-ordinated approach and a central point of contact; advocate Artsmark and Arts Award; facilitate local arts education networks; and help to lever funds.

The Bridge organisation is unlikely to deliver work, but they will commission activity and services which help achieve their outcomes, many of which could dovetail with the needs of SEN. i.e. networking and connecting, auditing, building databases, providing information, piloting projects etc. However, the Bridge funding is limited and cannot serve the entire region, so it is vital that NCC and QHA develop a relationship with the Bridge organisation as soon as possible.

Art form focusOur research indicates that drama, film and digital arts, the visual arts, and literature/writing are areas to prioritise because there are currently low levels of these activities for young people. Music is ripe for consolidating and dance can be celebrated more, but both these areas are better provided for than others. Trips to Tyneside to see art should be a much bigger part of the cultural offer. SchoolsIt would be useful to undertake a thorough audit of creative provision in SEN schools and extended services. The Bridge organisation may enable this research to happen in partnership with NCC and QHA. External cultural input in recent years included Creative Partnerships (who worked with 15 schools in SEN) and NCC commissioned Arts Education activity delivered by The Forge; both schemes have now ceased. In addition to the Music Service, other schemes continuing to offer artistic provision through schools include Arts Awards (currently led by NCC), Dance City (when scouting for talent), The Northumberland Dance Hub (extended provision in three SEN schools), the Youth Service and projects initiated by the schools themselves.

Provision has been increasingly limited and patchy, and there is considerable scope to work strategically with schools to plug them in to professionally run and community provision. There are some green shoots: NCC has commissioned the Culture and Creativity Ambassadors Network (based in Gateshead) to encourage communication between the cultural sector and schools, a scheme, which provides regular bulletins to a nominated teacher ‘arts ambassador’. Also, NCC, BVAL and ACE are also about to undertake some action research with eight SEN based schools, exploring their engagement with Arts Award. The initiative will involve professional writers and will inform the future focus for Arts Awards in the area.




The Music Service (Creative and Performing Arts, CPA)

The emerging opportunities brought about by the Henley Review are good news for areas like SEN, which has an exceptionally low number of pupils learning musical instruments. CPA, has identified SEN as a priority area and will be expanding their offer over the next year. However, their focus on traditional instruments and reliance on parental support and paid fees isn’t working effectively in SEN, though there are pockets of vitality in specific schools. These include Bostle Middle’s steel band; Astley High’s African choir; Hirst Park Middle’s achievement of the Gold Arts Mark Award; a musically proactive Cramlington cluster; and Bedlington High school’s new music wing, singing and family music events.

With the international exemplar of TSG on the doorstep, it would be foolish not to draw in wider partnerships so that CPA can access the support and capacity needed to develop a more effective offer. A new partnership, Cultural Olympiad mass singing project, involving CPA, TSG and Woodhorn is an excellent example of how CPA could reimagine a different approach in SEN. The status quo will be challenged shortly, when Music Services across the UK enter into a competitive bidding process to attain the ‘Music Hub’ status. This is an opportunity for The Music Service, TSG, NCC, QHA and other providers such as 20,000 Voices, to review provision (with the Henley Review as a useful benchmark), and instigate a more bespoke and long-term music making approach in SEN.

Youth ServiceThe Youth Service offer ad hoc arts activities through after school sessions in schools and community settings, and detached, mobile work. When funds allow they engage artists, but tend to do what they can themselves. Examples of recent projects include a drama about knife crime, a ‘pimp my wreck’ car project, Arts Awards and commissioned graffiti in Bedlington. The Youth Service have recently linked up with Woodhorn to deliver creative activity, and this relationship is flourishing.

Young people catch the enthusiasms of their youth workers, which in Northumberland is predominately around outdoor activities rather than arts. This issue was ratified at the YPIN event where we asked the twenty young people there to tell us what cultural activity they wanted: 95% of their ideas were sports based. Through the recent Youth Service restructure, individual youth workers were assigned specialist areas of focus, but the arts was not one of them. This could be reconsidered with the right encouragement and support and it would make strategic sense to have an arts ambassador within the service. The youth workers we spoke to would like to see more music projects; arts initiatives which give young people more say in local decision making and, as a route to break free of historical stereotypes (mining, ship building, clog dancing etc.); clearer pathways for progression for those interested in the arts; more networking with the cultural sector; partnership working and joint fundraising; and a list of artists proven to be good at working with young people. A strategic partnership between the Youth Service and the cultural sector is crucial; NCC and QHA should initially pick up key relationships in their role as the lead on countywide arts development.

Progression routesIdeally, progression routes for all art forms would be built into any future provision for children and young people, inspired by the Dance City model. Their Centre for Advanced Training (CAT) in Newcastle currently involves five young people from Blyth who have come through their progression routes, one of whom has just got a place at Rambert. This sustained model makes it possible for anyone with an interest and some talent to progress over time through, a) the opportunity to work closely with quality artists, and b) a sustained approach to deepen skills. This has to form the framework of any future youth arts strategy in the area.

It’s interesting that Creative Partnerships found that many teachers in SEN weren’t seeing the Creative Industries as a viable employment option for their pupils. Yet two million people are employed in this sector across England, with a 4% per annum growth in its workforce over the past twenty years. Schools and community based projects which focus on enterprise, led by role models from the creative industries should be a priority area to develop for young people in SEN.

Apprenticeship schemes are also being hailed as part of the answer, and these could be made proactively available to people in SEN. The Creative Apprenticeships scheme run regionally by TSG and Gateshead College is available to people aged 17+ without a first degree. BVAL have recently taken on a Creative Apprentice in Community Arts Administration through this scheme. NCC’s Employability & Skills Service is also keen to make more Apprenticeships from the cultural sector available in SEN and across the county; very few if any exist at present, but this particular service offers a subsidy to cover labour costs which makes the idea more feasible to arts organisations.



Working with young people in SENWorking with young people in SEN requires an understanding of the context. The Northumberland Youth Arts Dance Hub Co-ordinator emphasises this point: ‘Sometimes there is no parental support whatsoever. The dance tutor has to pick them up, and they’ll have no packed lunch because they say there is no food in the house. We are talking deep levels of poverty here which need working with.’

Tips from those who know (and from the young people themselves) include the need to:

— build relationships first— know that it will take longer than you think just to get people to turn

up, and plan for this— don’t impose or parachute ideas in - it’s all about getting the initial

offer right— know when to do quick and short tasters, and longer term

interventions— work in partnership with existing groups and youth workers who

know the young people— encourage youth shaped and led projects— use fresher, wider definitions of arts that speak to young people:

digital, technology etc— provide incentives (competition) and tangible results or a physical

outcome (performance, display or product) to make the offer more appealing

— consider the value of making the work prestigious, grand and of quality— get only the best artists who know how to work with young people,

and encourage them to fundraise so they can sustain work themselves.


Exhibition and studio spacesOther than Woodhorn, there is no dedicated exhibition space to show locally produced or touring work; groups tend to make creative use of community centres, hospital walls, churches and pubs, more recently Seaton Delaval Hall. The NHS Foundation Trust, together with BVAL employs a part-time curator to bring artwork by local people, schools and professional artists into hospitals. Keap Creative run regular guided walks round the Newbiggin Arts Trail, which they installed, and Newbiggin Arts Forum has a small exhibition space, which has hosted initiatives like the Highlights Craft Tour. The newly opened Maritime Centre in Newbiggin has a multi-functional space over-looking the sea, which will host exhibitions. The Bottleworks, located in an operational church, stunningly located on the seafront in Seaton Sluice, is developing a voluntarily run gallery and cafe, currently offering two selling exhibitions a year. The Phoenix, Woodhorn Church and Blyth Town Fair Marquee once provided exhibition space but are no longer able to do so.

Some artist studio spaces have been provided in the past but don’t now exist, so artists make do with their own garages and kitchen tables. Given the proximity to Newcastle, the beauty of the coastline and the potential availability of empty buildings, there is an opportunity to provide studio space for locally based artists and arts graduates from Newcastle at affordable rates. This is an untested idea put forward by a number of interviewees, and evidence of demand for space would need to be looked at first, alongside spaces and local partners identified to oversee any development.

Given the plethora of visual arts groups in SEN, the visual arts focus at Northumberland College, and the number of identified amateur and professional artists making work, there is a need to provide a decent, dedicated exhibition space. More work could be done to ascertain if local artists would contribute to the running of a space, but given the lack of take up of the Open Studios, and the fact that not many of those creating art earn a living wage from their work, it is unlikely. A new space run commercially is therefore probably not a viable option. In Alnwick and Hexham, the subsidised, professionally run arts venues provide dedicated exhibitions facilities, and in Berwick, the newly opened and funded Granary Gallery is a dedicated contemporary arts space for the town and beyond.

In the absence of funding, there is no easy answer here. The cost effective approach needed now, is to work with existing and willing organisations already exhibiting visual arts, to extend their offer. Woodhorn could consider augmenting the number of slots it makes available to exhibiting locally produced work, say from 1-2 to 5-6 a year (but with a quicker turn-around), which will go somewhere nearer to meeting demand. A steering group of interested people including Northumberland College should be convened, to look at physical and resource options for improved gallery space/s and studios.

Gallery spaces and venues


‘Every time someone fits some footings to a foundation, a rumour shoots round that a cinema is being built in Cramlington. But it never is. It’s usually a MacDonald’s.’

Performing Arts and Film spacesDance, theatre and music groups perform in a variety of spaces in SEN: theatres (The Phoenix), leisure centres (Newbiggin Sports Centre and Concordia in Cramlington), community and village halls (Seaton Delaval Arts Centre, Isabella Centre in Blyth, Cramlington Community Centre, Seaton Delaval Community Centre, Maritime Centre) schools (mainly Blyth Community College), and venues outside the area. There is no cinema in SEN so film is shown through Doorstep Pictures in approximately 20 different community and village halls across the area.

Almost all the SEN venues utilised are relatively ill equipped to cope with live productions and have no paid staff with the expertise and time to provide essential marketing and technical support. The Phoenix Theatre in Blyth is the only venue that is purpose built (1997) and used specifically as a performance space. They sell 16,000 tickets a year, for an average of three shows a month, including a) their own productions and highly attended Pantomime, b) local groups who hire the space, and c) around twelve professional music, variety and tribute shows a year. Like Seaton Delaval Arts Centre (an ex Salvation Army Building) the Phoenix is unfunded and voluntarily run by a Trust, with limited capacity to present a wholly diverse programme of events.

A dedicated performing arts space or arts centreThere have been no less than eight exploratory plans for a purpose built or specially refurbished venue / arts centre in SEN over the last decade, but lack of finance, tenacity or council support has resulted in any of these schemes coming to fruition. These have include the now demolished Drill Hall on Blyth quayside; NE Music and Dance Factory had architects plans drawn up to refurbish the United Reformed Church in Blyth; the Wallaw Cinema (closed since 2004) was deemed too expensive to restore and is now to become a Weatherspoons; in 2000, Wansbeck District Council Arts Development undertook a capital needs study and decided that instead of considering a new build they would improve the facilities of existing leisure centres; Ashington Development Trust are currently looking at the first floor ballroom in the old Co-op building as an arts and social space; and Headway Arts recently commissioned a feasibility study by Artreach looking at the potential for developing an office, rehearsal and performance space for their work. Headway has just taken a lease on the United Reform Church in Blyth, which is a decent size and will require substantial funding for considerable refurbishment. Plans for this building are at an embryonic stage, and whilst in the longer term there may be scope for others to use the building, Headway’s primary focus is to create a base for their own work.




Does SEN need another dedicated arts venue?Views are mixed. Those unsure, raise concerns that a venue would be inadequately supported given the demographic, and lack of spare cash for leisure activities. They also feel that people have the option of accessing Alnwick, Hexham or Tyneside’s strong cultural offers. However, the bad transport links make travel to Tyneside tricky for those without cars, and public transport within SEN itself is currently poor.

Others feel that without a beacon ‘space’/venue for all art forms (as exist in other parts of the county), people are missing out on developing a culture for seeing and appreciating the arts, espeically live events. Whether it’s a concert, a youth dance showcase, a mid-scale drama, well-known bands and speakers, a regional scout show, it will almost certainly pass SEN by. High profile and homegrown participatory shows are rarely seen in the area (unless at the Phoenix or non traditional spaces), and participants are bussed out to perform in or watch shows in Newcastle, Hexham or Alnwick. It is the profile, focus and ambition associated with a dedicated, resourced venue which people feel would make a significant difference to arts development in the area. The model many suggest is a 300 seater venue with smaller studio and workshop spaces, a gallery, resident artists and arts organisations and coffee shop, with a heavy focus on participatory activity as well as a base for touring productions. It would ideally be located in Blyth, as the second largest town in SEN (Cramlington is very near Tyneside) and the recent physical regeneration initiatives make the area a destination, with easy access to other attractions like the recently opened Seaton Delaval Hall.

Is the Phoenix the answer?It would be remiss to assume that the Phoenix could become such a hub for several reasons. We met with the Phoenix Board, and discussed the possibilities of extended use of their facilities by other organisations. Lack of staffing capacity, physical space and storage, and the patterns of use from their own productions and rehearsals make it difficult to programme much additional activity. A substantial shift away from the current operating and governing model could address this issue to some extent, but the building is not large or flexible enough to be the beacon cultural hub people want, and it is hard to see how such a shift would be an attractive proposition to the people currently running the venue.

However, The Phoenix is a huge asset to Blyth and beyond, and should be valued as such. There is scope for key funders to contribute specifically towards development activities, which will expand its programme, audiences and participants, and improve its physical facilities. To take advantage of this opportunity, the Trustees will need to disseminate a vision and business plan and make use of Geof from Queens Hall Art’s offer to help them in this process. There is also potential for the Trustees to work further in partnership with Queens Hall by looking at hosting subsidised shows which are touring the county, as well as from Highlights and films through Doorsteps Pictures.

Further researchReceived wisdom tells us that a potential hub will most successfully present a diverse and inclusive programme if it is funded, professionally led and agenda-free. That is, run independently with arts development at its heart. Whether a new build or refurbishment of an existing building, the right business and operational model for an SEN arts-centre needs further feasibility research. Despite some potential of rents paid by resident and hiring organisations, it would undoubtedly require initial capital costs and on-going revenue funding. The current funding environment makes such an initiative a huge challenge and therefore not an immediate priority, but this long-term aspiration should be investigated further, driven through by a strong steering committee of interested parties with council support.

Upgrading a current performing arts spaceA more cost effective option in the short term, would be to focus on an existing larger space (possibly at a school) and develop it as a part-time/occasional venue. With some TLC and vision, it could have its own brand, improved facilities and atmosphere, and an internal arts champion able to programme and welcome larger professional touring, and locally grown product. Venues suggested include Blyth Community College, St Bedes, Cramlington Learning village, the proposed new Leisure Centre in Ashington or Newbiggin Sports Centre. The latter was developed with good acoustics and retractable seating and used to play host to the RSC. Now, with aging equipment and no arts aware staff, it is a challenge for hirers to make shows work to the desired standard. Concordia, a leisure centre in Cramlington also has venue facilities but lacks atmosphere and ‘feels like a sports centre’. The proposed new Ashington Sports Centre (into which NCC are investing £20million) could incorporate a venue and share resources that way, however, the council should consider lessons learned from Concordia and Newbiggin Sports Centre; that without dedicated arts personnel and the appropriate atmosphere and design built in, it won’t work as a multi-use space.


Smaller venuesThe predominantly voluntarily run village and community halls play a significant role in hosting arts events, workshops and films. However, they do so on an ad hoc basis and with limited capacity to give them the profile they need, which makes building momentum and audiences tricky. Doorstep Pictures achieve an average audience of 28 and Highlights has just one event programmed into SEN for Autumn/Winter 2011. The spread is very patchy; it is striking that Doorstep only tour to one venue in Blyth (they have tried others) and Highlights don’t currently tour to Blyth or Cramlington.

It would make sense to consolidate the current list of approximately 20 village hall and community venues presenting film and arts events, down to between 6 - 8 venues who are serious about making cultural activity work (with at least one in each key area). This could form a small-scale network of SEN venues through which promotional and partnership efforts can be focused and strategic. A network, defined as such and with hands on support from a dedicated worker, could present an exciting opportunity to target efforts, draw in funds, improve facilities, collaborate on projects and ultimately build arts engagement at a very local level. This approach must be done in partnership with Connect 4 Change and people working on the ground who already have strong working relationships with many of the community settings. The venues will need to be identified carefully, picking those who have already demonstrated a commitment to the arts and with the will and facilities to make it work. For example, the newly opened Maritime Centre has already instigated a host of cultural activities including street performers, film nights with themed food, commissioned theatre, a Big Draw visual arts event, and a medieval day. The full report provides an initial long list of venues suggested by BVAL, Highlights and CVS Blyth.

Outdoor spacesSEN is also home to a wide variety of gorgeous and alternative spaces for cultural activity: the Quayside in Blyth, beaches, parks, bandstands and market places where many of the galas and festivals take place. Reductions in regeneration linked funding have seen a diminishing number of outdoor events, but there is scope to work with more county and regional partners to entice events into the area.



Financial investment

In the last financial year, SEN received 2% of the total ACE spend on arts in the county, and 21% of the targeted NCC spend on arts in the county. Given that the population of SEN makes up 45% of the county’s total population, these figures are worryingly low. However, both ACE and NCC are committed to reversing this trend and investing in a strategic programme of fundraising.

NCCNCC invests £55,400 into SEN annually, to cover the costs of BVAL’s arts post and budget. They also give small one off grants to a handful of organisations in SEN, though the ad hoc basis on which these are allocated needs revising.

As investment in SEN is already low, maintaining the current NCC funding will not enable a shift or strengthening of the arts offer. We recommend that NCC continue their current investment, and find an annual additional contribution of around £20K for youth arts development. This could enable a significant draw down of G4A, Bridge and other funding sources, towards a substantial youth arts programme across SEN.

We would also like to see NCC: a) commit to building county wide cultural and tourism initiatives firmly into SEN (such as the Cultural Olympiad, Arts Trail, Big Dance), b) actively encourage other partners and council departments to invest in cultural initiatives in the area, and c) draw down additional strategic funding and partnerships from beyond the county.

ACEThe last four years tell a story of diminishing ACE investment into the area, with only 2% of all ACE funding to the county in 10/11, going to SEN. Why? There are no regularly ACE-funded organisations in SEN and there has been a paucity of G4A applications, since the switch to a unitary authority, which saw a significant reduction in arts personnel. Grassroots arts organisations - who make up 80% of those delivering arts activity in SEN - don’t see ACE as relevant to them, and arguably ACE may have played a part in cultivating this perception. G4A is one of the key resources for the arts in SEN and it is vital that ACE, NCC, QHA and BVAL support people to make quality applications. 2012 to 2015 will see 2.3 million invested by ACE into six Northumberland organisations through their National Portfolio Organisations scheme. Whilst none are based in SEN, some could be encouraged to work in the area. ACE could also encourage the regional NPOs to play a more active role in the area. SEN could build strong bids for ACE’s ‘Strategic Touring Funds’, and especially the ‘Creative People and Places’ Fund. The latter focuses investment into areas where involvement in the arts is significantly below the national average. In 2012, fifteen awards will be made nationally, of between 0.5 – 2.5 million over three years. QHA and NCC should lead a consortium of SEN providers including museums and libraries in the development of a proposal, drawing on the findings of this report.

Other incomeDespite local organisations best efforts, we know that funding opportunities are being missed, both strategically and on the ground. There is a role here, for someone to draw in significant funds from beyond NCC and ACE, and actively support smaller organisations to put in bids. Investing in this capacity should be a priority, as it has the potential to lever in significant additional income. ACE’s Catalyst Arts Small Grants Scheme could help cover the costs of fundraising expertise.

1. Artist led interventions to enrich voluntary and professionally run organisations. Create opportunities for professional artists - international, national, regional and locally based - to inject ideas, projects and expertise into the area. This could include creative support to the many visual arts groups, or artists in residence based in housing estates or cultural building based organisations like Seaton Delaval and Woodhorn, or a group of musicians creating a ‘mini TSG’ offering regular activities for all ages. ‘We’d welcome a writer at Seaton Delaval Hall for two years so they uncover stories about the area and find budding writers to help develop their practice’. ‘How about an artist like Sean Henry coming back for six months to generate debate and make work in an open studio’.

The focus of this work is about inspiring quality, building skills and confidence, and driving aspirations. It’s about generating new artistic possibilities that have never been seen before, beyond what people say they want, saying ‘you can do this too!’

2. Well-equipped spaces in which artistic work can be made and presented. Make it easier for artistic events, exhibitions and activity to take place in SEN:

— A dedicated arts centre as a beacon for the arts in SEN. — Better use of existing venues (schools, village and community halls): a

consolidated network of venues comprising those who are committed to the arts and do it well, with improved equipment, and hands on support to help make it work.

— A dedicated, ‘white cube’ gallery space with studios to show work by local, regional, national international artists: emerging and established.

— Street level arts spaces in empty shops in Blyth, Cramlington, Ashington and Bedlington, with some gallery wall space, a space to drink coffee and chat, to find out more about the arts and to take part in arts and crafts activities.

— Maximise the use of outdoor and iconic spaces/assets: beaches, bandstands, parks, market squares, Seaton Delaval Hall, Woodhorn.

Providing the right support and approach to arts development


The 70+ interviewees and 55 attendees at the two consultation events were asked a) what kind of support they needed to help them deliver arts activity (aside from money), and b) what kind of approach to arts development they felt would have the best chance of sustainable success in SEN. This is a summary of what they said:

3. Leadership, co-ordination and profile for a stronger arts infrastructure. Develop a bold 20-year vision and incremental strategy, which communicates exciting aspirations for the iconography of whole area as a place to grow up in. SEN can look and feel different as already proven with developments like Woodhorn, Seaton Delaval Hall, the beach and town centre regeneration, the public arts etc.

Create a sustainable, arts focused organisation/structure to implement this vision and strategy for SEN, based on cross sectoral partnerships with key players; one which joins things up, fills gaps, evidences impact, prioritises and focuses effort around ages, art forms and geography. Build up a small team who can work a) strategically to harness project and funding opportunities, re-energise networks, invest in new and younger blood, support artists and arts organisations, share resources, and b) on the ground to build the capacity and output of local groups. The team would be a focal information resource offering funding and partnership information, what’s on arts listings, knowledge of and relationships with community venues, lists of tried and tested professional artists, and a database of individuals, community and voluntary groups interested in arts activities.

The team would also exponentially shift the profile of arts in SEN so that local people get to know the offer through a variety of ways: at street level - utilisation of disused shops; online and social media; e:newsletters; brochure/leaflets; negotiated use of notice boards; stronger press coverage; via libraries. They’ll work with partners to celebrate SEN as a place that values and welcomes culture and artists through PR, networks and directly to strategic partners and funders. They’ll shout about SEN’s assets such as its history, landscape, access to the city region and stunning semi-rural location, building stronger partnerships with Tourism, county and regional initiatives like the Arts Trail.


4. Build the right approaches into all projects and programmes to maximise their success.Interviewees identified three approaches that will give cultural programmes the best chance of success:

a. Firstly, avoid ‘stop start’, one offs and parachuting in; the area needs activity that is on-going, awakens appetites, builds trust and doesn’t give up after 3 months of trying - ‘this work takes years’ - it has to be long term if it stands a chance of making an impact. Progression routes are key to this, particularly for young people (like existing routes through Dance City, and the Music Service), alongside stronger links with the Creative and Cultural Industries, apprenticeships and employment routes through the arts.

b. Secondly, the work needs to be bespoke and appropriate to the needs of local people; applying rural models to urban Northumberland is unlikely to work. It should be an offer that respects where people are at, recognises what they want, listens and draws them in, but builds aspirations and widens possibilities simultaneously. It should avoid distinctions between high and low culture and prohibitive costs to those involved, and respond to demand as well as supply even if that means being creative with funders demands. It needs to engage people in activity with tangible results such as exhibitions, products, showcases etc., in order to demonstrate value beyond the process itself. Past successful initiatives tell us that future ones need to connect with the history of the area (Seaton Delaval Hall, New Hartley Pit Disaster, Newbiggin Boat parade, arts traditions like brass-bands, singing, clog dancing etc. all entice people more readily), but with an understanding that young people need to visualise a future that doesn’t cling to the past.

c. Thirdly, it needs to take account of the fact that SEN is not one coherent place, but a series of small towns each with their own identity with a poor transport infrastructure. Any approach needs to be delivered at local levels, or with roving projects, facilities and people, with occasional events which bring the whole area together. The people developing the work will need to operate on the ground ‘wherever there is a group or a centre with a will and a pulse’ and alongside those who know their communities, such as youth and community development agencies and others working directly in communities and schools.

The above lists have heavily informed the recommendations in this report, and could usefully serve as the foundations of a future ‘manifesto’ or strategy for arts development in SEN.



These recommendations place an emphasis on the core strategic organisations with development remits: ACE, NCC QHA and BVAL. The recommendations are explained below, along with specific next steps.

QHA, NCC and ACE should decide the prioritisation and timing of the recommendations and next steps below, in the form of an action plan.

Financial investment from NCC and ACE for the arts in SEN, has been exceptionally low in recent years. If a stronger cultural offer is to be achieved, this trend must be reversed. We recommend that NCC commit to continuing the current arts investment into SEN of £55,400 as a minimum, and find additional funding from across departments for youth arts development. NCC should also commit to building all county wide cultural and tourism initiatives firmly into SEN, and work strategically with colleagues across the council and beyond, to bring further resources into SEN. Immediate opportunities which NCC should aim to harness (together with QHA and Woodhorn), include ACE’s ‘Creative Places and People’ and ‘Strategic Touring’ funds, their Catalyst Fund, and a partnership with the Bridge organisation.

We hope that ACE consider their relationship with grass roots arts organisations, continue localised G4A surgeries, and encourage use of NPO funds and Strategic Funding strands into the area.

There is a need for a dedicated fundraiser to draw in significant funds from beyond NCC and ACE, disseminate and advise on funding opportunities amongst those involved in arts delivery and actively support delivery partners to put in bids. Investing in this capacity should be a priority.

Recommendations

Taking all of the findings into consideration, we conclude with three over-arching recommendations, which could make a significant step change in arts development for SEN:

1. Target resources into SEN to build quality leadership and delivery capacity.

1. Target resources into SEN to build quality leadership and delivery capacity

2. Plan and deliver/commission an on-going programme which works around three priorities:

I. invest in creative opportunities for children and young people II. encourage artists and creative producers to live and work in SEN,

and bring more artistic product in III. build the capacity of the voluntary and private arts sectors

3. Improve the existing physical facilities in SEN, so the area is capable of hosting a wider range of arts activities and events.

But implementing an effective strategy has to start with building a resource of people to make it happen. Hexham, Berwick and Alnwick have this resource in place (albeit to differing degrees) through the cultural venue hubs. SEN has no hub and where there were once five arts officers covering the area before it became a unitary authority, there is now only one. The core agencies (BVAL, NCC, QHA, ACE) need to develop an arts development structure with greater capacity and leadership than BVAL can currently provide. The full report proposes a new delivery model, which moves from the current structure (one fulltime Community Arts Manager and Apprentice, overseen by BVAL) to a larger team comprising the Community Arts Manager, the Apprentice Arts Administrator, a part-time Community Venues support Worker, a Youth Arts Development resource, and a contracted Fundraiser, all strategically led by Queens Hall Arts in partnership with BVAL. It makes sense strategically to build an SEN based team into QHA’s operating structure, because it is already well networked into county, regional and national opportunities and funding. However, an SEN team need to be hands on and based in the area, working with cross-sectoral partnerships to implement activity, support local groups and generate funding for programmes of work.

a) NCC, QHA and BVAL to develop an SEN based team under the leadership of Queens Hall Arts, which will strategically oversee and deliver arts development in SEN. Resources to cover the proposed team roles, and their administrative base need to be found and agreed.

b) ACE to prioritise SEN by a) allocating staff time to proactively working alongside local artists and organisations to develop quality G4A applications, and b) considering the investment of strategic funds to develop engagement and reach.

c) Artists and organisations involving the arts in SEN to be proactive about G4A opportunities and seek help with application development from ACE, BVAL and NCC.

d) ACE, NCC and QHA to encourage regional and county based arts organisations to work in SEN, and instigate immediate conversations with the new regional Bridge organisation (TSG) about becoming a priority location/partner for their work.

d) NCC and QHA to ensure county and regional cultural initiatives (such as the Arts Trail, Cultural Olympiad, The Big Dance and Tourism plans) actively involve SEN.

e) QHA and NCC to develop strategic relationships with key individuals in Health, Tourism, Libraries and Museums, Skills, Youth and Community Development to encourage cross-sectoral partnerships in SEN involving cultural activity.

Recommendations


Next steps:

I. Invest in creative opportunities for children and young people.

Building on the recommendations from the 2010 Children and Young People’s Arts Strategy, SEN needs to move from being a place which offers children and young people a limited set of ad hoc, un co-ordinated creative options, to a place where all young people can access a higher quality offer, enriched by professional artists, across a wider range of art forms. A place where progression routes are clearly built in, from early years through to training, apprenticeship and employment options. SEN needs to become a place where key agencies talk to one another, source and share resources and work strategically to make activity happen. Where programmes are developed in line with tried and tested tips from those who are doing it well, and where youth theatre, creative writing, the visual, film and digital arts are prioritised to fill current gaps. And where music and dance can build on current provision and really flourish. Where the world class cultural offer in Tyneside extends its tentacles into SEN, and incentivises young people from the area to travel to visit them.

To make the above happen, a dedicated resource is needed to strategically audit, champion and implement youth arts activity across the area. NCC’s Cultural, Education and Youth Services should join together to finance a three-year youth arts development resource of around £20K per annum (passed on to QHA to oversee and deliver), which could be augmented by commissioned services from the regional Bridge organisation. This relatively small investment could then lever significant additional programming resources and generate substantial outputs, enabling a step change in provision for children and young people. It is important that NCC’s Education, Youth and Culture departments collaborate strategically to identify this seed resource, so that resulting activity joins up these currently separate services.

a. NCC to invest in an additional capacity, to enable the fundraising & development of a programme for children and young people.

b. QHA and NCC, together with the Bridge and other interested art-form based regional organisations, to undertake a thorough audit of creative provision in SEN schools and extended services.

c. QHA to manage a new, dedicated Youth Arts role/resource (funded by NCC), which will fundraise for and develop programmes for children and young people. The focus will be on building in progression routes so that all projects are linked to wider, on-going opportunities. This work will develop an integrated cultural offer to children and young people by developing stronger relationships with the Youth Service, education, Arts Awards, Cultural Ambassadors Scheme, The Music Service, Libraries and Museums, and the Bridge organisation (TSG).

d. Youth arts providers should consider filling gaps by prioritising youth theatre, creative writing, the visual, film and digital arts.

e. NCC to instigate a stronger partnership between the Music Service and TSG in order to develop a stronger music education offer in SEN.

Recommendations

Next steps:

2. Plan and deliver/commission an on-going programme, which works around three priorities:


II. Encourage artists and creative producers to live and work in SEN, and bring more artistic product in.

Our research shows that people want access to experienced, exciting artists but often don’t know how to pay for them or where to find them. Consequently, the majority of artistic activity in the area is led by amateur artists, and a very small pool of professionals, leading to a danger of insularity. Yet some of most prestigious and well-received SEN projects in recent years have involved professional artists (Sean Henry’s Couple; The November Club’s participatory theatre events at Seaton Delaval Hall; BVAL’s Barefoot Dance Project). This has been particularly impactful where the work builds momentum over a significant period of time.

The goal here is to nurture a bigger community of artists and creative producers living or working in SEN, who can lead and contribute to its artistic activity. Those already living here, be they amateur, emerging or established professionals, need supporting and utilising, and more external artists need to be brought in to inspire and increase the diversity of work created. This means developing relationships with artists; instigating short and long-term residencies; initiating creative projects from the tiny to the large-scale; cheap office or studio space; training and support. In short, it’s about making it easy for artists and creative producers to choose SEN as a place to make and show their work.

There is also a paucity of professional arts exhibited and performed in the area, and ACE’s new Strategic Touring Funds could help provide the resource required to address this issue. A regular and wider range of artistic product needs to come into SEN, building on the existing offer from Highlights, NTC, Doorstep Pictures, linked in with county wide tours booked by QHA, The Maltings and Alnwick Playhouse. An expanded programme should hook into other county and regional resources, developing partnerships with the Bridge and NPOs, capitalising not only on the creative work they offer, but also their branding and desire to extend their reach. Imagine ‘Seven Stories Sundays’ in conjunction with libraries or museums, or a Northern Stage and SEN youth theatre network, or a Baltic tour of community centres and schools. But the key to success here is for locally based organisations to work on the ground, to make regional partnerships feasible and relevant, building their own capacity in the process.

To focus this goal, the geographical areas where there is currently very little artistic presence and activity are Bedlington, followed by Ashington, Blyth and Cramlington (though the latter might be more about inspiring people to access the nearby Tyneside offer). To address gaps in art form provision, activity in creative writing, film and theatre should be given priority, but this needs to be balanced with the need to support and enhance those arts forms better provided for: visual arts, music and dance. Initiatives should focus on participation and engagement through artist enriched programmes and projects, rather than iconic, costly large-scale events. 2012 will see a range of exciting Cultural Olympiad opportunities, and it would be short-sighted to divert limited NCC funds to support celebratory events unless they are related to long term arts development strategies and priorities.

Recommendations

a. QHA to support anyone wishing to involve artists, by signposting them to information and resources, and providing advice regarding how best to engage them.

b. QHA, NCC and arts providers to encourage more artists and creative producers, to live and work in SEN through long and short-term residencies, creative projects, mentoring and training, and if resources are forthcoming, to offer an affordable studio scheme.

c. QHA to instigate artistically led initiatives in specific geographical areas where there is very little artistic presence and activity, and specifically in creative writing/literature, film and theatre to plug gaps in provision.

d. Arts providers should focus on arts participation in SEN (rather than resource heavy large-scale events), and engage artists with this in mind. Where specific, additional funding is available for larger events and festivals they should take place, but not at the cost of participatory activity.

e. QHA to increase the number of professional performances that take place, and initiate a way for professional touring exhibitions to come into the area. This includes programming partnerships with regional and county arts organisations, Highlights, Doorstep Pictures and NTC to improve the service and populate a small-scale venue network with professional artistic product.

f. QHA and the regional organisations to consider developing a pilot, G4A funded scheme that could enable interested individuals and groups to access the rich cultural offer beyond SEN. This would involve trips out to cultural venues across Northumberland and into Tyneside. County and regional cultural organisations will need to play a proactive part in making this recommendation happen.

III. Build the capacity of the voluntary and private sectors

We have established that approximately 80% of SEN arts activity is run by volunteers and the private sector: that’s circa 30 visual arts groups, 130 adults who exhibit their own art, 15 private dance schools, 6 amateur dramatic and musical theatre groups, 8 youth theatres, 40 music groups (bands, choirs, associations etc.), 4 writing groups, 17 small festivals and galas, 18 small scale voluntarily run venues who present occasional film and arts events, plus The Phoenix, Seaton Delaval Arts Centre, Newbiggin Arts Forum, KEAP Creative and Bottleworks. The majority of these organisations receive no public subsidy, yet form the core of the cultural offer. Clearly, supporting and strengthening these groups in order to develop their capacity and output has to be a priority. These groups want support to access funding and other opportunities, advice and information about artists and artistic product, engaging people, marketing and facilities. They want the relevant public services in health,

Recommendations

Next steps:


youth, education, probation, and community development to be aware of and work alongside them. It would make sense to consolidate the many small scale community venues and village halls who sporadically show films, exhibitions and live arts performances, to a smaller core network and give them hands on support to build a cohesive, regular programme. The overall vision here is to build a better resourced, more informed and plugged in, collaborative and dynamic voluntary and private sector, and therefore a stronger offer to the communities they exist for.

A strategic alliance should be formed with Connect 4 Change, the new contract holder for community development, who is aware that cultural organisations have been relatively neglected by the community development sector. The stark reality is that there will be a scarcity of grass roots community development workers in the future, but where Connect 4 Change can help is by strategically supporting an arts network to approach key funders, Trusts and Foundations, and enabling it to have a louder voice and increased profile.

a. QHA to develop a strategic partnership with Connect 4 Change.

b. QHA/BVAL to instigate an SEN culture network (e:info and face to face) building on the 13th July consultation event. The role of the network would be to disseminate and share funding information, training opportunities, access to databases of artists, encourage partnerships and keep people up to date with cultural developments.

c. QHA to provide regular hands on support and advice through a Community Arts Venues Support worker, in programming and audience development to identified small-scale community hubs and village halls in SEN.

d. QHA to co-ordinate and market all arts activity in SEN: What’s On listings, online and social media, e:newsletters, brochure/leaflets, posters and negotiated use of notice boards, stronger press coverage, libraries etc. Also consider a profile raising initiative (G4A) utilising empty shops in Bedlington, Blyth and Ashington to promote and run arts activities.

e. QHA and identified partners to provide skills development initiatives such as mentoring, training and apprenticeships to build capacity, aspirations and expertise.

f. QHA to support The Phoenix Theatre with their business planning.

Recommendations

Next steps:

Next steps:

Recommendations

3. Improve the existing physical facilities in SEN, so the area is capable of hosting a wider range of activities and events.Spaces for hosting artistic work need developing so that activity can be more easily shown in SEN. A dedicated gallery space in an identified existing building is a clear need, and whilst this is a challenge in the current funding environment, a group of interested parties including Woodhorn and Northumberland College should be formed to look at resource options. Linked to this, if studio spaces could be made available - perhaps in return for workshops with local visual arts groups – more emerging and established artists would base themselves in the area. The proximity to the sea and Tyneside makes this an attractive proposition.

To make it easier for amateur and professional performing arts groups to present in SEN, a number of developments need to take place. Firstly, the facilities of a consolidated network of small-scale community and village halls need improving. Secondly, the Phoenix Theatre needs to develop their business planning and plug into funding and artistic opportunities. Thirdly, as the Phoenix can’t meet demand in terms of programming slots for local groups, another venue of around 300 seats (potentially in a secondary school), could be upgraded,and piloted as a part-time venue. Fourthly, whilst not a priority given the funding environment, the long-term aspiration for a multi-purpose arts centre for SEN, should be kept on the agenda by a steering group of interested people. Finally, SEN’s iconic buildings and natural assets provide interesting spaces for creative work, and should be marketed as such with regional arts organisations.

a. QHA and BVAL to work with interested community hubs, venues and village halls to consolidate and equip a small-scale venues network.

b. QHA to identify, equip and occasionally programme an existing larger venue (i.e. Blyth Community College), which can be cheaply ‘upgraded’ and profiled as a part-time venue for local groups and incoming professional events. Additionally, whilst not a priority at this stage, QHA & NCC (together with Regeneration) to facilitate a steering group of interested parties (i.e. Headway) to further assess the potential for an independently run arts centre in Blyth, and keep this long-term objective on the agenda. This could be a refurbishment of an existing venue or new build.

c. QHA and NCC, together with Regeneration, and interested parties (i.e. Northumberland College, Woodhorn) to identify potential existing settings able to host a dedicated gallery space in SEN, and explore resource opportunities. This longer-term recommendation would enable the exhibiting of locally produced and touring visual arts, and potentially, an associated, affordable artist’s studios scheme.

d. Woodhorn to consider increasing the number of exhibition slots available to show locally produced and professional, work.


Appendix: People interviewed for this report

Professional / Semi-Professional ArtistsElaine Pope Independent artist / BRICTed Taylor Artist (Blyth)Tony Murray Artist (Cramlington)Peter Seddon Artist (Newbiggin)Jason Thompson Sound Ideas (Newbiggin)Barry Stone Writer (Seaton Delaval)

Regional arts organisationsEsther Hingle HighlightsRosie Cross HighlightsClaire Smith Creative PartnershipsDanielle Neighbour Dance City Jo Thornton GeneratorErica Whyman Northern StageKatherine Zeserson SAGE (TSG)Helen Green The Bridge org. (TSG)Anna Didley New Writing NorthMary Lowe Voluntary Arts NEBill Griffiths Tyne and Wear MuseumsTony Harrington The Forge Juliana Mensah Helix ArtsVictoria Smyth Taking Part Workshops

Funders / strategic organisationsRay Browning NCC, RegenerationLynn Turner NCC, Customer andWendy Scott Cultural ServicesNigel WalshSam TaylorLisa Nevens NCC, Public Health ServicesDebra Lowe NCC, Skills Linda Fakir NCC, Transformation ServicesAnn Blakely NCC LibrariesNicolas Baumfield ACEBrendan Murphy ACEMaurice Bransfield Hd of N’land Youth ServiceSharon Stirling Youth ServiceLuke Bramall YPIN (Youth Service)Mike Hensley Youth ServiceBrenda NHS FoundationCaroline Pearce Creative AmbassadorsCharles Tremeer Wansbeck CVSFiona Wardlaw CVS Blyth Kirsten Francis Connect 4 Change Paddy McMaster Northumberland College

Northumberland based arts and heritage organisations (regularly funded)Geof Keys QHAHelen Moore BVALBruce Ledger BVALSusan Dungworth Chair of BVALKeith Merrin, CEO WoodhornJuliet Hardy WoodhornJasmin Earnshaw-Brown Creative & Performing Arts& Lesley Scott June Drage Artists NetworkJudith Cashman, CEO Seaton Delaval HallMileva Donachie N’land Youth Dance HubCinzia Hardy November club

Northumberland based arts and heritage organisations (unfunded)Eddie Galvin Newbiggin Arts ForumEva Hartley KEAP CreativeKeith Naylor Cramlington Folk ClubMark Pringle Seaton Delaval Arts CentreVIcar Peter Bryars Bottleworks Seaton SluiceGary Melling NE Music FactoryJo Gooding Newbiggin Maritime Cen. Ann Hogarth Holywell St Mary’s Art ClubMary Hunter Simon Side Dance A’demyDoreen Gilespee Pop Bottles in New Hartley Alison Robson Headway Arts & Paul DentonAnita Romer Seaton Sluice Music Fes.Anne Suggate, CEO 20,000 Voices

Independent consultants living or working in the areaSarah Hudson Independent consultantDeclan Baharini Independent consultantColin Mitchel Transforming CultureDave Hill ArtsReach

Community organisations who deliver arts sessionsJean Bell Briardale CentreEileen Carty Buffalo Community CentreKath George BRICAileen Barrass Resident Invol Officer Homes for N’landJanet Cresswell Ashington D’ment TrustAndrew Gooding Lynemouth D’ment Trust

And 20 young people from YPIN (Young People in Northumberland)

Queens Hall ArtsGeof KeysArtistic Director01434 652 [email protected]

Northumberland County CouncilWendy ScottDesign and Arts Development Manager01670 [email protected]

Sara [email protected] 253 089

Contact information

Documents

By Sara Robinson 2012 South East Northumberland Arts