Policy Updates

3 December 2020

Over the past few months, Craft NI has been among many organisations documenting the effects of the pandemic on individuals in the arts and working to highlight the value of the sector to society as a whole.

Thank you to everyone who responded to our recent Maker Survey, your feedback fed into this paper by Craft NI submitted to the Department for the Economy’s pre-budget consultation in November 2020.

There have been a number of other recent reports and studies which may contain information that is helpful in writing funding applications etc:

Crafts Council (London) summary of their report to the Department for Digital Culture Media and Sport

This study from Ulster University’s Economic Policy Centre (UUEPC) shows the creative sector is “more exposed to the challenges arising from Covid-19 than other sectors and occupations” and makes a number of recommendations. Summary here.

In Dublin, the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media published the Life Worth Living Report which is summarised here.

Makers who are interested in further exploring the impact of the arts and making on health and wellbeing may find this recent report from University College London useful. The report is a literature review of summary of evidence so a lot of the source material, which is listed in a substantial appendix, may also be relevant.