Arts

Our Experience

Harlow Consulting’s research and evaluation work within the arts sector spans work with heritage, film, museums, music and broader cultural institutions. As well as a depth of knowledge of research within the sector, many of our team have first-hand experience of working within the arts and heritage sector. We also work with several associates with dedicated expertise in the arts, including television production, screen sector skills and music.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS): Cultural Infrastructure Maintenance Assessment

This research provided DCMS with an understanding of the scale and nature of England’s cultural infrastructure by assessing the cost of the maintenance, repair and replacement backlog of organisations, specific repairs and renewals required. We worked in partnership with Purcell Architecture. We employed a multi-faceted approach combining desk research, stakeholder interviews and an online survey targeting cultural venues, gathering detailed financial data and technical information on building condition.

Historic England, in partnership with Arts Council England, DCMS and the National Lottery Fund: Understanding Museum Heritage Estate Management

Working with Simpson & Brown, Harlow Consulting surveyed a sample of 101 museums across England to understand the issues and challenges they face in maintaining their listed estates. Survey data was supplemented with depth interviews, which explored in detail the challenges and motivations experienced by museums. Detailed quantitative analysis was undertaken on the survey data, to estimate a total value of the backlog in the region of £337.5m. DCMS announced funding of £18.8m for museums to undertake vital infrastructure and urgent maintenance backlogs as a direct result of the findings in our report.

Help Musicians: Review of Postgraduate Award Funding Model

Help Musicians, a charity for professional musicians, supports postgraduate music students through its Postgraduate Awards and required research to support the review of their funding model against the current and future needs of musicians. Harlow Consulting provided qualitative and quantitative support for the review, creating a database to understand the characteristics of support available, comparing higher education data to Help Musicians’ awardee and applicant data to understand the demographic makeup of those studying music and undertaking interviews with 15 stakeholders including music students and Higher Education staff to understand challenges and opportunities. Our report presented findings on gaps in postgraduate support and recommended additional support Help Musicians could offer musicians in training.