Formation of a Cross Party Parliamentary Brass Bands Group

Jeff Ennis, MP for Barnsley East and Mexborough, has really been a great friend to brass bands in this country. Other MPs and members of the House of Lords are taking a healthy interest in his message; a wider participation of people in brass bands. So much so, that they have formed a cross party parliamentary Brass Band Group. Over thirty Lords and MPs are now signed-up to the group and the list is growing. Some, such as Lord Foster of Bishop Auckland, have campaigned on behalf of brass bands for many years but others are gaining a fresh insight into this vibrant art form. A list of those MPs and Lords that are members of this group will be published on the BFBB website soon.

 

The inaugural general meeting of the group was held at the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday evening, 8^th July 2008. I was asked to attend on behalf of BFBB. After the election of the various officers I gave a brief overview of banding in general and the work of BFBB in particular. BFBB was then asked to perform the duties of group secretariat, to which I readily agreed. Meetings will be held at the Houses of Parliament twice a year. It will be a wonderful platform to air the views and discuss the issues that matter to the brass band sector.

 

This is an opportunity to be grabbed by brass bands, when the list is published, take a look at it and if your MP isn’t on it, write a letter urging him or her to join the group. This group will be able to influence decisions taken in parliament that will affect the future of all British brass bands.

Meeting with Peter Wanless, Chief Executive, Big Lottery Fund

Whilst I was in London with Jeff Ennis MP for the formation of the Parliamentary Brass Band Group, we took the opportunity to meet with Peter Wanless, Chief Executive of the Big Lottery Fund. Brass band’s applications for funding from the Big Lottery Fund meet with about a 50% success rate. Last year bands received £109,663 and this year, until the end of June, they have been granted £53,902 from the fund. In addition to this the National Youth Band of Great Britain has received £573,000 of Big Lottery funding over the last five years through Youth Music and this figure increases year on year. Peter Wanless explained that two of the current funding schemes will be of interest to brass bands:

 

Awards for all

 

Awards for All is a Lottery grants scheme aimed at local communities. The fund awards grants of between £300 and £10,000 in a simple and straightforward way. You can apply at any time and the application form is short and simple.

 

Reaching Communities

 

Reaching Communities will give grants of more than £10,000 and up to £500,000, including a maximum of £50,000 for capital grants. The fund has set a maximum overall project size of £750,000 and £200,000 for the total capital element within a project. They will fund projects for up to five years

 

I asked how brass bands may better access the Big Lottery Fund and we discussed the possibility of BFBB becoming a ‘helper organisation’ for bands that wish to access funds, however, more discussions will need to be had in order to establish how this idea might work in practice. The 2012 Cultural Olympiad and the legacy trust were also discussed and further discussions are likely.

Meeting with Helen Ball of Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council

Brass bands and their associations would find a chat with the Local Government Arts Officer very useful. Alan Davey, chief executive of ACE, has made recent appeals for voluntary arts groups, such as brass bands, to foster better relationships with local government, and I for one agree with him. 

 

Although BFBB is a national organisation Arnold Tattersfield and I went for a meeting with Helen Ball of Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council. We found the meeting extremely informative and helpful. Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council is one of a number of forward looking and innovative councils that have decided to support the art and culture in their area with commitment and openness by pledging time and resources to National Indicator 11 ‘Engagement in the Arts’ (NI 11).

 

NI 11 will be used to measure attendance at, and/or participation in, the arts at the local level. Councils that have signed up to NI 11 realise that participation in the arts, including banding, is an important part of a full and fulfilling life and provides unique personal and intrinsic benefits. It can also have a range of local impacts, including promoting health, education and well-being. Other councils that have taken up this insightful policy for local government can be found listed on this blog at the Local Authorities page.

 

Our discussions with Helen centred on the ways in which the council and BFBB are able to support each other. BFBB has agreed to assist the council to achieve their NI 11 targets and urges bands to talk to, and work with, their own Local Authority Arts Officer if their authority is part of the scheme. In return, the council has agreed to improve communication links and provide easy access for local bands to the Local Authority Arts Officer. They will endeavour to gain full knowledge and understanding of our sector and continuity of these new practices and links has been agreed to. Further to this, Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council will assist bands with applications to ACE Yorkshire for funding. The council is also going to assist BFBB to contact other local authorities through the National Association of Local Government Arts Officers and BFBB is considering using its experience with the council as a model for future partnerships with other local authorities.

 

To ensure there is progressive interactions and healthy collaboration between BFBB and Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, quarterly meetings are going to take place.

Our Creative Talent

A major national conference, entitled ‘Our Creative Talent’ was hosted at the Barbican centre, London on 1^st & 2^nd July 2008 by DCMS, ACE and VAN. The focus of the event was to launch new research that looks in detail at the size make-up and impact of the voluntary arts sector and its potential for growth. On the agenda were also discussions and presentations about the significant contribution that participation in the arts makes to local communities. Of course brass bands are right at the heart of many of our communities and that is why I attended the event.

 

The keynote speakers were Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Minister for Culture; Alan Davey, Chief Executive, ACE; Robin Simpson, Chief Executive, VAN and Feargal Sharkey, Chief Executive, British Music Rights.

 

Much of Margaret Hodges’ presentation was centred on the recent MacMaster’s report and the notion of excellence. She made a welcome distinction between excellence and elitism and spoke about our nation’s social capital, support for the arts from ACE and local authorities, and the diverse ways in which we all communicate and network in this electronic age.

 

Both Robin Simpson and Feargal Sharky called for the recognition that arts groups, including bands, crave for, as well as asking the government for better communication and involvement, support with capacity building and improved innovation and challenges for the sector.

 

So what of the future? Emerging proposals for arts and culture in the 21^st centaury are gathering around the provision of ‘informal adult learning’, that is, finding a balance between the provision for skills and qualifications and the funding of activities for community development. Government, both local and national will be searching for a framework of values that will include the broadcasting media, the use of public spaces and consultation with the voluntary arts sector. A further government report is expected in September 2008 followed by a policy paper that will set out the future vision for Informal Adult Learning.

 

This was truly an inspiring conference. VAN is certainly centre stage to represent the arts at national level, quite rightly so. The brass band sector should be in full support of VAN and congratulate them on a superb event. It was an important day for the voluntary arts, brass bands included, what a pity that none of our so-called band press were there to cover such a significant meeting. Such influential events are vital to the development of banding in the UK.