In the week when the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has agreed a settlement with the Treasury regarding spending cuts in the Arts, a new report looks at the impact of Arts education on skills needed for the economy.

Arts Council England had warned organisations to expect a 15% cut to the DCMS budget, following the Comprehensive Spending Review, which will be officially announced on June 26. However, the settlement indicates that the cuts are expected to be around 8% for the department’s budget in 2015 to 2016.

Chair of Arts Council England Peter Bazalgette said: "We understand that we’ll see a good result for arts and culture in a tough economic climate. It is hugely encouraging that the Chancellor and the Treasury have listened to the argument that the arts and culture makes such a valuable contribution to our quality of life and the economy.”

Meanwhile, Art for Art’s Sake? The Impact of Arts Education, published this week, offers a comprehensive review of research studies into the effect of arts education on skills valuable to the workforce, such as memory, reading, verbal skills and general academic achievement. The authors assessed more than 200 studies covering a sixty-year period.

The report funded by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) looks at the evidence for a causal relationship between arts education and the development of skills. The report finds that there is strong evidence that arts education has a positive impact on the development of certain selected skills. However, it says there is far too little research on the impact of arts education on outcomes affecting creativity, problem solving, and behavioural and social attributes. The authors call for further research into the effects of arts education on these skills.

Moy Eng, senior advisor and former executive director at the Community School of Music and Arts says: “Art for Art’s Sake? The Impact of Arts Education is an exceptional new resource. For my policymaker and philanthropic colleagues, I strongly suggest that you read and take note. There appears to be an opportunity for us to collaborate and invest in long overdue and seminal research studies in arts education.”

PODCAST

Report co-author Stéphan Vincent-Lancrin talks about Art for Art’s Sake?

Useful Links

Arts education in innovation-driven societies by report co-authors Stéphan Vincent-Lancrin and Ellen Winner on the educationtoday blog