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A wide-ranging independent review of the management and decision-making processes at the Arts Council of Wales (ACW) has been ordered by the National Assembly in the wake of a series of highly controversial funding moves by the Welsh funding body. ACW has been at the focus of intense criticism, and also threatened with legal action following its decision to suspend its offers of franchises for Young People's Theatre (YPT). The U-turn leaves the five companies that had been made the offers with an uncertain future. One of the affected companies, Cwmni'r Fran Wen, had been offered almost double its previous grant, but this has now been withdrawn. All five have entered into contracts and started to develop their organisations and their relationships with schools and other partners on the basis of the ACW offers. The row over provision of Young People's Theatre started last year when Gwent Theatre and Clwyd Theatr Cymru were not awarded franchises. The decision to suspend the strategy was made following an appeal by Gwent Theatre. The Independent Theatre Council (ITC) has written to ACW demanding that it honours its .contracts with the YPT companies, and suggested that an independent mediator be appointed to help resolve the situation. Frustrated by the failure of AC 'W to respond to its letter, ITC then approached Tom Middlehurst AM, Assembly Secretary for Education and Training, accusing ACW of 'an inability to meet deadlines, unclear process and decision making". ITC had written to former First Minister Alun Michael as long ago as February 1999, drawing his attention to "the lack of strategy and leadership" at ACW, but never received a response. In contrast, Middlehurst has announced a review, whose recommendations will be handed on to the National Assembly. Elin Jones, Plaid Cymru AM and the party's spokesperson on cultural affairs, said, "We hope that the performance review will restore the confidence of the public and the arts constituencies in the organisation." The YPT strategy U-turn is but one of a range of ACW decisions to have enraged the Welsh arts community. It is also under fire for its new writing strategy, which is subject to a cut in funding from £240,000 to £170,000. The decision to fund Dalier Sylw to set up a new bilingual theatre writing centre for Wales may mean that Made in Wales, which failed in its bid to run the new centre, will be forced to close. |
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Monday, March 13, 2000 |
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