National News

The Department of Health has published a White Paper, ‘Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS’, which sets out the new coalition government’s approach to the NHS. Among the key elements is the decision to phase out Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities and change the way that patients’ care is planned and provided.

Arts Council England has compiled a toolkit for arts organisations looking to influence policy-makers and the public about the benefits of the arts. The Toolkit which includes a range of links and contacts is available on the ACE website and is free to download.

w: www.artscouncil.org.uk/about-us/why-arts-matter/

The National Campaign for the Arts and Arts & Business have together established a Culture Forum made up of representatives from the arts which will meet over the summer to attempt to formulate an approach to government about arts spending and future funding for the arts.

The Department for Culture Media and Sport has closed down the Museums Libraries and Archives Council and is reviewing the role of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. As widely covered in the media last week, these closures pre-empt the autumn Comprehensive Spending Review in which the allocations to government departments will be announced.

George Osborne’s first round of cuts have added a further £19m to the already announced £4m cut to ACE’s budget for this year. Including the £6.5m administrative savings, ACE are taking an overall 5% cut from the DCMS, compared to 3% across the rest of the department.

An online petition to encourage support for arts in mental health is nearing its deadline. The petition on the Downing Street website makes a call for greater resources available within the NHS and Local Authorities for the use of arts as an aid to recovery, wellbeing and social inclusion for people with mental health problems. The deadline for signing the petition is 10th July 2010.

Following the new Government’s implementation of £6bn of cuts across Whitehall, Arts Council has announced that it will be required to make cuts to its budget of £19m in this financial year. The Arts Council has said it will be impossible to make these savings solely from running costs so some cuts are likely to funded organisations and grants.

The Scottish Development Centre for Mental health has carried out  a large scale quantitative research project amongst the Scottish population to explore the link between arts attendance and participation, and levels of mental health and wellbeing.  The research found that “attendance of and participation in the arts is an activity that is perceived to have multiple life-en

In reaction to the fast approaching general election Arts Quarter have set up an online survey to gauge views from across the cultural and wider not-for-profit communities throughout the UK. The results of the survey will seek to influence policy decisions that will need to be made by whichever party is elected to government on 6th May.