Making the grade

There are many routes into the UK’s thriving cultural sector that may not require formal qualifications. Passion, commitment, confidence and good networking skills are all crucial. However, there is also huge competition, and gaining a specialist formal qualification can be a way of standing out from the crowd. There are over 180,000 creative and cultural-related courses, numerous funding streams for training and myriad informal approaches to skills development. The industry is oversupplied and under-skilled, with over half a million further education (FE) and higher education (HE) students on creative or cultural courses, competing for only 6,000 annual vacancies. Certain professional skills need to be developed in relation to specific roles, and there are still too few courses that reference cultural leadership or business management for the creative industries.
So what does this mean for a creative and cultural sector that has in the past relied on a principle of on-the-job learning and informal training provision? Some people gain experience in other industries, or study courses that aren’t specifically cultural and then apply skills such as fundraising or marketing in the cultural sector. While the sectors vary, in general they are graduate-heavy. A postgraduate qualification is now expected, yet employers say that these graduates haven’t the right skills to be successful in their chosen careers. In addition, the industry considers it vital that training has an educational context. Mentoring and apprentice schemes are considered crucial, yet in many cases learners are taught only theoretical and historical contexts.
Cross purposes
This mismatch between what employers are demanding and what education providers are delivering has meant that qualifications have had to become more vocational and relevant to the needs of industry and arts professions. As the UK has moved towards a system of qualifications based upon competence (or learning outcomes), a current focus on work-based learning is unsurprising. The curriculum for 14–19 year olds is being reformed to encourage more students to stay on in education by providing vocational routes to accredited qualifications. Chief among these is the new Creative and Media Diploma led by Skillset (the Sector Skills Council for Creative Media) in partnership with employers. Another programme, Creative Apprenticeships, launched in 2008 by Creative & Cultural Skills (the Sector Skills Council for Advertising, Crafts, Cultural Heritage, Design, Literature, Music, Performing, and Visual Arts), has an annual UK target of 1,000 apprenticeships, and government funding will be matched by appropriate employer contributions.
These new routes – coupled with the adoption of more market-focused approaches by FE and HE – will, it is hoped, deliver a more qualified and highly skilled workforce. The curriculum has to be current, topical and well managed, taking into account new qualifications alongside trends and changes in the external environment. For example, over five million people attended 193 festivals in 2006–2007, generating £12.9m in ticket sales and contributing almost £42m to the UK economy. Forward-thinking institutions are now offering programmes designed to equip students with event management skills. Work is being carried out by the Creative Industries Higher and Further Education Forum to map and connect the developments within academia relevant to skills and knowledge transfer agendas. The Entrepreneurship and Skills Task Group of the Forum has recommended the development of a National Enterprise Programme to prepare graduates to work in the creative industries, citing the fact that 43% of employees in this sector are educated to degree level or higher, compared to 16% of the workforce as a whole.

Community links
Enterprise and entrepreneurship courses have a specific focus on practical skills. Individuals can have an early experience of operating in a business environment with support available. They can interact with leaders and role models in their field. Clear and explicit learning agreements are developed, while students develop both theoretical and applied perspectives to real scenarios. These and other work-based learning initiatives allow education providers to engage with the wider community, and build links and access to resources, knowledge exchange, volunteering and community outreach and support. The development of employer partnerships has been mutually beneficial, enabling the expansion of innovative course delivery and enhanced accreditation. One example is the recently launched National Skills Academy (NSA) (AP170), which matches training provision with employer needs through regional educational partnerships. A consortium of employers in the East of England is working closely with colleges to create a programme of training for the NSA that will generate better links between education and employment. This has resulted in educational providers tailoring current curricula to reflect skills required in the offstage technical and live music sectors, e.g. health and safety for outdoor music events. Such work is not limited to young people either, with the NSA wanting to reach older workers who face obstacles in accessing skills training, in order to broaden the base of recruitment for employers.
Specialist skills
Employers increasingly recognise that the sector’s ability to address topical and current policy issues and remain competitive rests on a professional, skilled workforce. In addition to attracting experienced individuals from other professions into the sector, it is vital that high-quality training, information and accreditation are available, affordable and accessible to existing employees. Training programmes, such as the Clore Leadership Programme and training from management association and industry-led bodies, are tailored much more effectively to individuals’ and employers’ needs. Open and flexible learning can take place in many ways and may vary according to whether the individual is in the sector, but generally involves use of study packs or other resources, which can include online training, and interactive, multi-media or study guides. Self-study with a guide or mentor allows flexibility. No one has to work through irrelevant material and courses closely match the needs of the organisation. It’s a cost-effective, efficient way of learning, with proven benefits. It starts with the learner’s needs. The end result is that individuals are likely to find more job satisfaction and provide a greater and more productive contribution in terms of work as they have been at the centre of learning activity rather than a passive recipient of knowledge.
Very few of these informal approaches to learning are accredited, and whilst the aim of such programmes may be to motivate and orientate individuals’ learning, arguably the dominant role of assessment practice for all stakeholders in the UK is still the measurement of individual learning. The long-term objective is still an educational offering that genuinely reflects the industry’s needs: informed by employers, delivering sector-led qualifications that offer vocational relevance for new entrants whilst at the same time offering accredited professional development for those already in the industry.