Harnessing the Power of Poetry
February 7, 2025
Cultural education investment welcomed and needed
Wigan-based cultural education charity Curious Minds welcomes continued support but calls for greater ambition in the Arts Everywhere Fund
Responding to yesterday’s announcement by Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, cultural education charity Curious Minds welcomes the continuation of £3.2m funding for four vital cultural education programmes—the Museums and Schools Programme, the Heritage Schools Programme, the Art & Design National Saturday Club, and the BFI Film Academy. This investment will help preserve access to visual arts and heritage for children and young people, which is a step in the right direction.
However, we are deeply concerned that just 1.2% of the total £270m Arts Everywhere Fund is dedicated to cultural education, and that no new funding has been allocated to expand opportunities for children and young people. At a time when access to arts education is declining, this represents a significant missed opportunity.
As a Wigan-based charity, we are keen to meet with our constituency MP, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy, to discuss how cultural education can be meaningfully embedded within the government’s ambitions for the arts. Our expertise—gained from over two decades of supporting, developing, and championing cultural education programmes and creative educators in some of the country’s most culturally disadvantaged areas—has shown us what works. We would welcome the opportunity to share evidence-based ideas on how to create a genuine cultural entitlement for every child.
If Lisa takes us up on our invitation, we will also share our serious concern that, for the first time in over 40 years, there is no funded infrastructure support for cultural education in England. This gap has been repeatedly raised in national cultural education consultations and roundtables since 2022, following the discontinuation of funding for regional Bridge organisations—yet remains unaddressed.
Without dedicated investment in developing and diversifying the cultural education workforce, and in providing expert brokerage between schools, youth settings, and cultural organisations, the Arts Everywhere Fund risks reinforcing existing inequalities. Past experience tells us that funding more culture in better venues, without also tackling barriers to participation, will only mean more of the same children and families engaging—rather than truly opening up the arts to "everyone, everywhere."
For the Fund to deliver on its promise, it must go beyond bricks and mortar to ensure there is a skilled, diverse, and well-supported workforce that can connect children and young people—particularly those facing disadvantage—to high-quality cultural experiences.
