Ruiz’s comprehensive review of literature examining ‘the social and economic impacts of culture, the arts and sport’ (2004:7) assessed evidence in order to provide a robust basis for policy decision making in Scotland. The review acknowledged the Scottish Government’s recognition of the potential value of arts and culture for processes of social inclusion, regeneration and promoting ‘a sense of place and pride in the community’ (Ruiz, 2004:7-8). However, it is also recognised that the benefits of such interventions are difficult to identify (Ruiz, 2004:7-13) and, the evidence to demonstrate the ‘impact of participation in arts or cultural activity on the creation of jobs or finding employment’ in particular, is scarce (Ruiz, 2004:81). More recently, it is interesting to note the observation made by Grauer et al (2001:46-5) that ‘the shift from traditional manual and industrial work to jobs based on information, communication and the provision of services has placed a renewed value on the kinds of skills which are learned through arts and cultural education – creativity, flexibility, empathy, adaptability, communication and social skills’ (also see: Cultural Learning Alliance, 2019). This shift might provide a potential pathway away from material poverty based in arts, culture and craft – this could be advantageous as evidence suggests ‘that 87% of job roles in the creative economy are at no or low risk of automation’ compared to 4 in 10 jobs in other sectors (Cultural Learning Alliance, 2019). Arguably, however, it is challenging to realise this potential within the rubric of arts projects and interventions as currently conceived. It is worth acknowledging the findings of studies analysing the economic impact of flagship arts projects such as Turner Contemporary in Margate and Hepworth Museum in Wakefield. While the regional level return on investment is straightforwardly recognised,9 it is important to acknowledge that the employment opportunities generated in such circumstances are typically ‘mostly part-time, insecure or low wage, and therefore, are far from being a solution for contemporary problems of structural unemployment’ (Belfiore, 2002:95. Also: Long et al, 2002:38&85; Jermyn, 2001: Matarasso, 1997:7.2; Foley et al, 2007:51; Bakare, 2020). Campbell et al highlight the emphasis on economic indicators as a measure of success noting that, the ‘economic case for leveraging cultural and creative industries can be overstated’ which can, in turn, obscure other benefits (Campbell et al, 2015:41-2) although economic impacts are perhaps more straightforwardly measured that their psychosocial counterparts (Campbell et al, 2015:50). This pinch point also emerges in the CWLC report on Welsh government efforts to tackle poverty and social exclusion by leveraging culture. Although poverty reduction is one of the overarching aims of the programme’s flagship vehicle – the Fusion Programme – and the work undertaken within Fusion is evaluated according to indicators that foreground employability skills,10 the report narrative elides both economic and psychosocial causes/effects of poverty. Butler and Leathem (2014) state the case for using social return on investment (SROI)11 measures to discover and understand the change achieved – as opposed to outcome attained – through a project or intervention. SROI measures enable capture of value that may elude conventional financial accounting. SROI involves stakeholders in the process, providing space for them to articulate ‘how value is created for them.’ Relating the methodological steps necessary to attain SROI values, Butler and Leathem note that ‘following SROI convention, and apply[ing] appropriate financial proxies to place values on [outcomes enables] the monetisation of outcomes.’ This is a distinctive element of SROI, leading to the ‘expression of a return value resulting from the investment in a given activity’ (Butler & Leathem, 2014: 4-6).
Locating the Turner Contemporary in Margate created 49 FTE jobs and supported a further 81 FTE roles. In its first year of operation, Hepworth Wakefield attracted 500,000 visitors contributing approximately £10,000,000 to the local economy (ACE, 2014:19-20). 9
10
See section 4.1.3 for listing, also see: CWLC, (2019:35).
Defined ‘ a social accounting framework […] [providing] a set of tools for undertaking an analysis of social value that is created (or destroyed) for key stakeholders in particular activities’ (Butler & Leathem, 2014:10). 11
9
