Agenda and minutes

The Chair listed apologies received and welcomed the board.

There were no declarations of interest received.

The Chair welcomed Kevin Brennan MP, Shadow Minister for Arts, Heritage and Tourism, (KB), who spoke to the board about Labour’s position on the arts, heritage and tourism industries. Labour policy is to:

·         Seek to increase access and participation, recognising creative industries as one of fastest-growing industries in UK and their resistance to automation.

·         Recognise the importance of local councils and  the financial constraints they face when making the case for arts and culture.

·         Look to develop £1 billion Cultural Investment Fund – which councils could benefit from and would value LGA support in developing.

·         Expand culture and creative industries beyond traditional institutions.

The Board discussed:

·         whether current cultural schemes would be cancelled

·         the tourism staff shortage

·         whether Labour would divert money from NHS for the prevention agenda 

·         whether Labour will put forward a clearer set of cultural proposals.

The Shadow Minister noted that Labour are in a 5 year policy cycle, and that policies are still going through structures to be approved. However, he would argue for existing schemes to be continued due to councils having invested time and resources in developing proposals.

He also noted that a skills shortage in the tourism sector is definite issue, and needs to be considered as a Brexit issue, as well as a perception problem of the tourism industry as a career in the UK. The Shadow Minister agreed with importance of the prevention agenda but also the need to protect NHS as an institution.

Faith Graham from Redbox Research and David Howells from Rubicon Regeneration, presented on research commissioned by the Board into the potential role of councils in supporting a skills pipeline for the tourism sector, using Work Local principles.

Discussion

The Board discussed:

·         How the project would measure success

·         The lack of existing training for the wider hospitality sector

·         Recognising the different needs of micro-businesses compared to large businesses, and the need to support both

·         Creating jobs for people of ambition in rural areas.

Decision

The work will explore local provision of training and education, and consider the needs of businesses of all sizes.

Senior Advisor, Ian Leete, introduced the paper which outlined recommendations for the Board’s programme of work during 2018/19. The Board discussed the paper and the board’s capabilities in terms of its work over the following year.

Discussion

The Board discussed:

·         The recent discussion between the Chair and the Chief Exec of Arts Council England concerning development of a template cultural strategy for councils, noting this could be a useful piece of work for the Board to pursue. Members agreed, but noted that some councils had already developed their own strategies. A linkage with the work of CLOA was also noted.

·         The importance of the prevention agenda to the financial sustainability for councils and the NHS, and the opportunities this provided for sports and cultural services.

·         The lack of visible progress of the parks action group (PAG) and the resulting loss of credibility this was causing with the sector

·         Concerns about the future of the Libraries Taskforce and the need to genuinely free up Arts Council England to act as the development agency for libraries; and to avoid the development of an ‘Ambition 2’.

·         The resources available to the Board to deliver the planned work programme. It was noted that resources were limited and that opportunities to work with partners and explore ways to expand in-house capacity should be explored wherever possible.

Decisions

The Board decided that:

·         the proposed priorities and actions for 2018/19 were the right ones;

·         a guide to developing a cultural strategy should be developed;

·         a letter should be written to the Minister for Parks about the lack of progress by the PAG;

·          A letter should be written to the Minister for Libraries on the future direction and legacy of the Libraries Taskforce.

The Board discussed potential sessions at the LGA Annual Conference in July 2019, to showcase aspects of councils’ work related to the Board’s remit.

Decisions

The Board agreed that culture-led regeneration and a session on the impact of community work of Premier League football teams in communities, especially relating to Bournemouth FC, should be proposed.

The Board noted the report, including the Board’s views that the meeting on 21 March should be held at 1-3pm in Sheffield. The Millennium Gallery was discussed as a potential venue.

Ian Leete, Senior Advisor, introduced the paper, which outlined the sections of the 2018 Autumn Budget that impacted on culture, tourism and sport.  

The Board noted the paper.

Discussion

The Board noted areas of the missing from the Outside Bodies section of the minutes, namely the lack of notification of the appointment/reappointment of:

•           Cllr Tom Hollis to British Destinations Board

•           Cllr Geraldine Carter to the Tourism Alliance 

Cllr Matthew Lee also raised that his attendance was not reflected in the minutes and Cllr Phil Twiss being incorrectly identified as a member of East Devon rather Devon County Council. 

Decisions

The Board approved the minutes subject to officers making these changes.

No other business was raised by the Board.

The Chair introduced the report on modelling fiscal devolution. 

A confidential discussion with the Board followed.