Weeknotes 31

Hi Everyone. I've been looking forward to writing these notes, as it's been an incredibly exciting week with lots to share.

Highlights

1. It was a pleasure to join Susan Wills MBE and her colleagues at Surrey County Council to find out more about their placebased partnerships in Staines and Stanwell. The arts, culture and sports teams have been working across the council with economic development and public health to deliver an improved offer in parts of Surrey that have lower levels of engagement in culture and activity. In Staines, it is a culture-led offer based around the relocation of the library to a more prominent location, allowing for more effective co-location with other services and partner organisations, while also enhancing the library offer. I was delighted to hear how they have used the findings of Cornerstones of Culture to help guide this work. I was given a tour of the new premises, which immediately showed how much opportunity will open up from the move. In Stanwell, it has been a physical activity-led offer, with a variety of new options being offered to residents. It was incredibly positive to see different teams coming together to support places, and demonstrates why councils are best placed to support communities. I also picked up useful insights into how national systems could change to better enable the local work, so will be feeding that back into government.
2. I joined Cllr Tracey Dixon, Leader of South Tyneside Council and our Board's Deputy Chair, in Manchester with about 150 other sector leaders to hear Lisa Nandy's first public speech about her plan for Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the sectors it supports. It was enormously positive to hear her talk about the importance of place, and mention the work of several councils. Her passion for improving equality of access and lifechances for young people came out strongly, and the importance of all people seeing their contribution seen and valued. Cllr Dixon spoke directly to Lisa about the important role of councils in delivering culture, tourism and sport, and Lisa agreed to attend our first board meeting in October to discuss how we collaborate across central and local government.

Positive progress

• Samantha Ramanah and Isobel Parkes hosted the latest meeting of the Placebased Physical Activity Leadership Network, convened by Julie Russell . It was really positive to see the diversity of voices being represented as the network discussed the ways to deliver on the vision set out in Movement for Change: A National Active Wellbeing Service. There was also a helpful update from DCMS about their work following the change in Government, which includes an enhanced placebased approach. There are also significant opportunities for physical activity to contribute to the Build an NHS fit for the future mission. The Network will be developing its ideas further ready to influence things like the upcoming Spending Review.
• We have published three infographics looking at the pressures facing council cultural funding, the complexity of funding pots that they have had to navigate, and the associated governance structures that they need to put in place. In a time of limited resources, this is not an effective way in which to operate, so we are calling on the new Government to simplify, streamline, and pool budgets, and deliver them over a longer time period, so that we can maximse the impact of our work for communities. I am delighted at the positive reaction we have had to this work, the final legacy of Lauren Lucas ' work at the LGA, as it shows both the importance people place on cultural services, but also the frustration they feel about the current system. And of course, it is an equally complicated picture for other council services, and VCSE partners.
• Samantha Ramanah , Isobel Parkes and I got together as a team to further develop our thinking about how culture, tourism and sport connect to the three missions that we're prioritising - Kickstart the economy; Build an NHS fit for the future; and Breaking down barriers to opportunity. It was really helpful to focus on the existing council offer against these missions, before moving on to some of the barriers. There is still much more thinking to be done though - I would welcome seeing/hearing other people's thinking on this, so please do point me in the direction of anything public.

Things you might like to know

1. I attended the Creative Industries Council growth group, where we looked at the new Government's priorities, the role of the newly announced Industrial Strategy Council, and what the creative industries need from the new government if they are to deliver on their potential for growth.
2. I joined the National [Sport] Sector Partners Group to have a similar conversation about unlocking the benefits of physical activity for a greater part of the population, and engagement with the many new parliamentarians who may not be familiar with the offer of the sector on positive social outcomes.
3. I met with Isabel Churcher FRSA to discuss support and advocacy for archives, and how to ensure that they are recognised for the work they do.
4. I contributed to a Culture Commons steering panel on the future of local cultural decision making. It was very interesting to hear from a wide range of voices, some of whom I agreed with, and others where I did not but had to think hard about why I didn't. Some of the early findings of the project are now being published and it's worth having a look at them - some of the findings are surprising.
5. Government are continuing the development of the registration scheme for short-term lets, and I'm suggesting some council experts to contribute to the design. It's good to see this carry on after the election, as it's very important for councils and communities.

After all that, I feel the need for a chilled drink to start the weekend. Hopefully the weekend is a little cooler than Wednesday!