GB-London: International activity of arts and cultural organisations

Tender description

A key ambition of the Arts Council's new strategy for 2020-30, Let's Create, is to help develop a cultural sector which is world-leading, outward-looking and globally connected. This was already an important part of the Arts Council's work - between 2015 and 2018 £18 million was invested in this area through programmes such as Artists' International Development Fund (AIDF) and the International Showcasing fund - and it will continue to play a prominent role over the next ten years. In particular, it is crucial to demonstrate England's status as a world centre for cultural excellence, ensuring that more artists, arts organisations and museums based in England are exporting work internationally and that visitors cite the arts and culture as the reason they visited England. The Arts Council also aims to support cultural exchange, so that the best of international arts and culture is being enjoyed regularly by the public in this country and the best of our arts and culture finds new audiences overseas. The role that arts, culture and the creative industries can have in facilitating investment, creating new markets and providing influence is already well-documented, while it will also be important to understand what impact the Future Relationship to the EU will have on international working. In 2015 Trends Business Research (TBR) were commissioned to conduct a piece of research to help the Arts Council understand the scale and impact of the international activity of its National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs). Bigger, more established NPOs have major programmes of international activity, often focused on particular markets or geographies, but it is also crucial to understand if small- and medium-sized NPOs are working internationally. The research found that 65% of NPOs surveyed had undertaken international work in the previous three years and that experience, placing their work in a global context and showcasing opportunities were the strongest motivators for undertaking this work. Conversely, the generation of additional income was not considered as important a motivating factor but was frequently cited; suggesting that, while it is rarely the main reason for undertaking international work, it can be an important pre-condition or consideration. The intention of this new piece of research is to develop this same level of understanding among the most recent cohort of NPOs, receiving funding between 2018 and 2022, and establish a study which can be repeated over the course of the lifecycle of Let's Create.