Flora Dodd from the Fabian Society makes the case for rejuvenating arts education

In his first speech as Prime Minister at Labour party conference, Keir Starmer outlined his government’s commitment to ensuring all people can access the arts. He argued ‘everyone deserves the chance to be touched by art. Everyone deserves access to moments that light up their lives’.

Whether it is music, dance, drama, art, design, or craft, arts education is valuable. Engaging in the arts in school can improve wellbeing and aid social mobility. Far from being ‘nice to have’ subjects, the arts are an essential part of a broad and balanced curriculum, and help increase attainment in other subjects. Studying the arts offers young people a wealth of skills which future employers seek such as collaboration, social skills, self-confidence, communication and adaptability. Importantly, young people enjoy the arts; they want to participate in them, and many consider creative careers. A good quality arts education is critical to Labour’s mission to break down the barriers to opportunity.

Despite the benefits of arts education, it has been eroded in state schools. The past fourteen years of Conservative governments have promoted policies that has reduced the amount of time children spend on the arts in school.

For example, the EBacc and Progress 8 – accountability measures introduced in 2010 and 2016 respectively – exclude the arts from the longlist of subjects which pupils are encouraged to take at GCSE level. Both are a performance measure for schools, rather than a qualification for pupils. They have resulted in the de-prioritisation of arts subjects, and a 47 per cent reduction in the number of arts entries at GCSE between 2009/10 and 2022/23.

There is also an arts workforce crisis in schools. Evidence suggests a majority of primary teachers lack confidence in teaching the arts effectively, largely because they are generalists and not specialists. The number of secondary school arts teachers (excluding dance) fell by 21 per cent between 2011/12 and 2022/23. Recruitment targets for both music and art and design have been consistently unmet.

On top of this, schools have faced real-term budget cuts, affecting the purchasing of supplies and equipment and the utilisation of external arts provision. For many children, trips to museums, galleries and heritage sites are an important part of the school experience. They boost children’s development, yet fewer children have been accessing school trips as teachers grapple with budget cuts. 

Accountability measures, workforce crisis and budget cuts have created a stark inequality in provision. Unlike state schools, private schools invest substantially in arts and culture provision, promoting a broad curriculum that allows children to pursue their passions and strengths and to build their skills and confidence.

To address this inequality in access to good arts education and break down the barriers to opportunity, the Fabian Society’s Arts and Creative Industries Policy Unit published a range of recommendations in Arts for Us All: Putting culture and creativity at the heart of national renewal.

The pamphlet recommends that the arts should be fully embedded in a reformed national curriculum – and valued as an essential part of a broad and balanced education. Labour has committed to a curriculum review, which must restore regular, high-quality arts education for every pupil. At primary school, we propose that 10 per cent of the school week is devoted to teaching the arts.

Labour should implement their manifesto pledge to require the EBacc and Progress 8 accountability metrics to include a creative subject. Labour’s pledge to end one-word Ofsted judgements is also welcomed, but this should go further. New ‘report card’ assessments for school should include a specific arts section to measure the quality and accessibility of arts provision.

Greater engagement with local and national heritage should be encouraged through a museum loan box service. This would mean the government requires all publicly funded museums, galleries and other appropriate institutions to provide a school loan box scheme for primary schools. Funding could come from both the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Education, with additional support from charitable foundations. Labour should also consider ‘twinning’ schools with local arts organisations, focusing on community connections, increased participation in the arts, and wider opportunities for children.

That the Prime Minister chose to speak passionately about the impact of the arts on his own childhood in his Labour Party conference speech suggests that tackling inequality in arts education is a government priority. Over the next five years, Labour must transform ambition into action and ensure that every child has access to a high quality arts and cultural education that breaks down barriers and enriches lives.

Flora Dodd is a Researcher in the Fabian Society’s Arts and Creative Industries Policy Unit and a co-author of Arts for Us All: Putting Culture and Creativity at the Heart of National Renewal.

Image credit: Keir Starmer – Creative Commons

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