Culture, Community Planning and SOAs
Our research into the place of culture in the 32 local authorities’ community plans and SOAs found a very patchy picture, with the level of references to culture ranging all the way from significant to none. You can read a summary of our research at the right hand side of this page.
This tied into the evaluation report on the Cultural Pathfinders Programme, which included an aim to explore planning methods for cultural provision and develop partnerships and links to community planning processes.
We held an event on 20th November to bring together senior local authority museums service staff with representatives from the Scottish Government and an independent researcher. Discussion followed five short and stimulating presentations and the points made included
· needs to be two way communication between CP thematic partnerships and cultural services to increase awareness of shared responsibility for contribution to range of local outcomes
· needs gathering and reporting outcome-based evidence in shared language
· needs to be high level advocacy for cultural services and not only by the cultural ‘folk’ to make connections across services/directorates
· need to develop a strategic cultural portfolio embracing all forms
· importance of leadership – at officer level, elected members, Creative Scotland
· needs representation of cultural services at the right level
What next?
We are working with the Scottish Government to develop the draft community planning toolkit on culture which should encourage and support community planning partners to make the links between cultural activities and the wider socio-economic agenda. We are also working with COSLA and the Scottish Government to develop an event for local authority elected members for the same reason. Watch this space for more information!