Agenda item

At this point in the meeting, members of the public who have registered their wish to speak at the meeting can do so.  The deadline for registering is Friday 22 January 2010 at 5.00 pm.

Members of the public may register to speak on:-

• An item on the agenda
• An issue within the Executive Member’s remit
• An item that has been published on the Information Log since the last session.

Ben Drake spoke on behalf of Unison and Aspect regarding the proposed cuts to the arts consultants posts.   He raised the following issues of concern:

• There had been a lack of consultation, and the timescale for making representation had been totally inadequate.  There had been no informal consultation to identify other options for saving money.
• The proposal stated that three consultant posts would be redundant and yet staff would be appointed to undertake project work.  This was not lawful and legal advice was being sought on this matter.
• The service was greatly valued, as evidenced by the number of representations that had been received in the short timescale since the proposal was put forward.  The service also contributed to a number of statutory requirements and directorate priorities.  It had not been identified how this work would be delivered and paid for. 

Unison and Aspect requested that the proposal be referred back to the Directorate in order that the process of proper informed consultation could take place with staff and to identify alternative savings.

The Executive Member was presented with additional written representation that had been received by Unison.

Tina Wright, drama teacher, expressed concern at the proposal to cut the arts consultants posts.  She expressed concern that the arts were to be the only teachers to be deprived of an invaluable source of support.  The proposal would affect parents, teachers and, above all, the children whose lives were enriched by this provision.  She quoted from a teacher at Applefields School and from the Head of Drama at Manor School who paid tribute to the work that the arts consultants carried out.  The Executive Member’s attention was also drawn to the role that the arts consultants played in respect of the Arts Award and of the many events and cultural opportunities that they arranged for young people.  Reference was also made to Sir Michael Bichard’s comments in his address to the North of England Education Conference regarding the need for education to help children to develop their own creativity.  The Executive Member was asked to consider the implications of the proposed decision and the impact that it would have on the creativity of many young people.

Liz Wilson, Chief Executive of York Theatre Royal, spoke against the proposal to cut the arts consultants posts.  She paid tribute to the benefits that they brought to the city as a whole and the cross-curricular work that they carried out.  Their posts enabled the city to have cost effective access to expertise as they had a depth of knowledge and practitioner skills.  They were also in touch with developments in the arts both nationally and internationally. They were a key factor in the high number of schools in the city that had achieved the Artsmark Award.  The council was requested to reconsider the proposal in view of the disproportionate effect that it would have on the community.

The Executive Member thanked the speakers for their contribution.  Thanks were also expressed to those who had submitted written representation in respect of the proposals or who had attended the meeting.