Arts Sponsorship Investment Falls For Fourth Year Running

Business sponsorship of the arts has fallen for the fourth year in a row to £134.2 million according to just-released figures from Arts & Business however the figures show a slight overall growth in private sector investment in culture to £686 million thanks to individual giving which has grown to £382.2m and income from Trusts and Foundations  which has increased to £170.3m

Interestingly, the north of England's share of investment in the arts has risen over the last three years whilst the South’s (excluding London) has declined.  Unsurprisingly, London captures 81% of all individual giving while heritage and museums bring in just over half of all private sector support.

Jonathan Moulds, Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s Europe president and Chair of the new Arts & Business Leadership Campaign said: “What is clear from these figures is that we need to increase awareness across the wider business community, and to show how our support of the arts can bring many benefits to both communities and to our own organisations. The new Arts & Business Leadership Team has been established to promote support from businesses in order to build stronger economies, and to demonstrate the value that ahealthy arts sector can bring to us all. Bank of America Merrill Lynch‟s long-standing involvement with this sector has shown us that there is a strong business case for supporting creative individuals and innovative institutions. The arts are not an optional extra – they provide insight, creativity and opportunities to build self-esteem, all of which are necessary to make our communities healthier and more vibrant.”

Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport Jeremy Hunt said: “This confounds the critics who said it was a waste of time trying to boost philanthropic giving when times are tough. It is also a real tribute to the determination of the cultural sector to boost its fundraising and strengthen the financial resilience of arts organisations. We now just need to keep going - particularly exploring the opportunity of legacy giving for which a new tax break comes into force this April.”

Dan Jarvis MP, Shadow Culture Minister, added: “Arts & Business has provided us with yet another thought-provoking report that demonstrates their valuable work and contribution to the sector. Their announcement is welcome news for the arts and I hope that this indicates that arts organisations are growing their fundraising bases.

However, Jeremy Hunt and Ed Vaizey cannot be complacent. We are 22 months into a five-year programme of government austerity. The government promised that cuts in public funding for the arts would be replaced by philanthropists‟ generous donations, across the country. We can see that this simply hasn‟t happened. Whilst private giving has increased by £28.5million in 2011, the public funding to Arts Council England was cut by £71million. This is deeply worrying for the long-term sustainability of the arts sector. I am particularly concerned about the decreases in private funding for Community Arts Projects and Theatres, as well as the 7% (almost £10 million) fall in contributions from businesses. I am producing a report entitled „Arts in the Regions,‟ because I think it is imperative that we ensure all arts organisations have the business acumen they need. By investing time in the procurement of the relationship between the arts and business sectors, we can ensure that the arts survive the CSR-period, and that they continue to grow and expand their footprint in communities across all English regions.”

Philip Spedding, Campaign Director at Arts & Business, comments: “There are distinct variations across the country, but overall the arts world has continued to respond to the cold economic climate in a positive and successful manner. The downward trend on business support for the arts remains our prime concern. However, we are beginning to see some in the arts discovering other productive ways to work alongside business, and our role remains to develop, sustain and celebrate these new ideas and models.It remains to be seen whether private investment is set to become the dominant funding force of UK culture. What we are seeing is through the adoption of new fundraising and digital channels, arts bodies and individual artists across the UK are capitalising on the unquestionable opportunities that exist for the arts in communities, in the pursuit of creativity and in the delivery of enterprising sponsorships.”