Information & Research

The Way Forward document sets out a codesign approach and timetable to bring a draft vision and strategy forward by Spring 2023 for subsequent statutory public consultation. It includes a Culture, Arts and Heritage Strategy Taskforce, which follows on from work of stakeholders who shaped emergency responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, and who called for a longer term vision and strategy to support recovery.

The reconvened Culture Arts & Heritage Strategy Taskforce brought together stakeholders from across the sectors who have mapped out a development and investment report to reorientate how the culture, arts and heritage sectors are collectively perceived, engaged and supported across government.

The work of the Taskforce has now concluded with the presentation of the report, ‘Investing in Creative Delivery,’ to the Department. This report will inform the process to develop a new Culture, Arts and Heritage Strategy.

Dance Counts Report 2022 brings together key findings from two major all-island research projects seeking to understand the working conditions and experiences of dance practitioners on the island of Ireland: the Dance Counts survey and the Dance Conversations study.

Led by Dr Aoife McGrath (Queen’s University Belfast) and Dr Victoria Durrer (UCD) in collaboration with Dance Ireland and Theatre and Dance NI, Dance Conversations was a mixed methods dance, film and discussion-based research project undertaken with six dance artists from both sides of the border. Dance Conversations addressed a need, articulated by professional dance artists at the Co-Motion Dance Conference in October 2019 and in the March 2021 industry-led Dance Think Tanks Report, for collaborative development of North/South creative exchanges and better understanding of the shared living and working conditions of dance artists across the island of Ireland.

Dance Ireland and Theatre and Dance NI, in collaboration with Dr Aoife McGrath (QUB) and Dr Victoria Durrer (UCD), undertook a research project funded by the Co-Operation with Northern Ireland funding scheme within the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

‘Dance Conversations’ addresses a need articulated by professional dance artists at the Co-Motion Dance Conference in October 2019 and in the March 2021 Dance Think Tanks Report for collaborative development of North/South creative exchanges and better understanding of the shared living and working conditions of dance artists across the island of Ireland.

This report presents the findings from a research project that brought together new and existing academic and sector-based research to understand how all-island relations within the professional, publicly-subsidised performing arts of dance and theatre may be nurtured.

The Arts Council’s Strategic Development Department delivers a comprehensive programme of research and evaluation which:

• Builds evidence-based knowledge and understanding of the role and impact of art on people’s lives
• Identifies patterns of engagement and factors affecting engagement in the arts
• Helps create more diverse, equal and confident communities by addressing inequalities as they related to race, disability and gender.

The Minister for Communities made a statement to the Assembly on 3rd July, setting out his proposals for the development of the Heritage, Culture and Creativity Programme.  Through this programme the Minister intends to develop policies on the arts, public libraries, museums and heritage.

Artists in Northern Ireland are earning on average just £11,200 per year from their work according to a stark new report examining the Living and Working Conditions of Artists in Northern Ireland.

The report, which is the first of its kind in over a decade, examined 481 responses from a diverse range of artists across various demographics, career stages, and artistic disciplines. The study found that loss of public investment for the arts, the short-term and long-term impact of Covid-19, and the cost-of-living crisis, were among the challenges which have shaped the acts sector over the last 10 years.

This major new report from the Campaign for the Arts and the University of Warwick is a health check on the UK’s arts and culture, bringing together vital information and official statistics on arts funding, provision, engagement, education and employment. It serves as a stark warning and a call to action for all of us.

A research report and dance screen film exploring pathways to engagement and work in dance experienced by dance artists and facilitators who live and / or work within territorial border areas of Cavan and Fermanagh-Omagh Council areas is now available. This research, entitled Sites of Significance, was funded by an award from Cavan County Council / Creative Ireland and in collaboration with Fermanagh and Omagh District Council and the UNESCO Global Geopark, Marble Arch Caves.

Led by researchers Professor Aoife McGrath (Queen’s University Belfast) and Dr Victoria Durrer (University College Dublin), the project team also included research assistant, Dr Argyro Tsampazi (Queen’s University Belfast), videographer, Simon Mills, and composer, Sorca McGrath. The Sites of Significance film features 15 dance artists and facilitators working in the Cavan and Fermanagh / Omagh local authority areas, and further dance artists and facilitators supported the project through engagement with the audit research.

The project film is directed by McGrath and Mills, with concept by McGrath, editing by Mills, and original composition by Sorca McGrath.

Read the report below

A new report from De Montfort University (DMU) has revealed the profound impact of recent funding changes on Third Sector Organisations (TSOs) working within the employability sector in Northern Ireland. The report, Third Sector Faces Cliff Edge in Northern Ireland, highlights the growing challenges faced by TSOs as they navigate a rapidly changing funding landscape. Vital services provided by third sector organisations (TSOs), supporting vulnerable people to access jobs and training in Northern Ireland, face a ‘cliff edge’ next March unless Government funding is renewed, with around 800 jobs already lost, academics at De Montfort University have concluded.

Response to the draft Programme for Government, 2024-2027, “Our Plan: Doing What Matters Most.”