Inequality in the arts is not new
Regrettably, the Sutton Trust’s confirmation of baseline class inequity in the arts isn’t new news (Young working-class people being ‘blocked’ from creative industries, study finds, 13 November). What is sad is that those charged with making and delivering arts policy have consistently failed to alleviate it.
This is surely not due to a lack of data, when as long ago as 1985, the Brighton, Parry and Pearson study revealed that more than half of all artists came from the top two social classes. Even then, the inadequacy of arts employment prospects was the core reason.
Forty years later, post Tory austerity cuts, post the pandemic’s put-artists-last arts policies, it’s deja vu. Artists have never worked so hard and for so many hours as they do now just to keep their heads above water. The diminishing amount of openly advertised paid work is on worse terms than ever before. Essential research and development grants are as scarce as hen’s teeth. It is not surprising that however talented individuals may be, those with a lower socioeconomic upbringing fall by the wayside.
In the “club culture” of the arts it’s not cool for artists to be upfront about unaffordable housing, their struggle to replace essential equipment, that they’ve absolutely no savings, let alone a pension pot. Moves to improve participation levels in creative arts subjects will count for nothing unless there is a sea change in the infrastructures that enable – and prioritise – public access to the arts but do so at artists’ expense.
Dr Susan Jones
Rowlands Gill, Tyne and Wear
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