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Chief executive of the Arts Council of Wales Joanna Weston was expected to announce her resignation as The Stage went to press. Weston's anticipated departure follows weeks of uncertainty over the future of the quango and escalating demands from the principality's leading arts figures that she should quit. It comes less than a month after the publication of a damning independent report by finance expert Richard Wallace on ACW management, which said its senior personnel had, through a series of bungled funding decisions, lost the confidence of the arts community and that of the council's own staff. It is alleged that Weston's decision to quit is being forced upon her by the ACW board, which had registered a vote of no confidence in her ability to continue to lead the body. She is said to have refused to heed increasing criticism of her two-year tenure. Welsh culture secretary Tom Middlehurst met with ACW chairman Sybil Crouch in the wake of the Wallace report. In a National Assembly debate last week he refused to be drawn on the issue of Weston's employment, but pointedly declared his backing for Crouch. Weston, who took over as chief executive from Emyr Jenkins in April 1998, has presided over a sequence of disastrous funding strategies, including the infamous theatre in education fiasco. A PriceWaterhouseCoopers review into that programme is due to be released by ACW tomorrow. Commentators say its publication had been held back because of internal wranglings over Weston's departure. ACW chiefs, it is thought, want to be seen to be taking firm action prior to releasing what is certain to be another highly critical study. Speaking in anticipation of this week's announcement, Chapter Arts Centre director Janek Alexander said: "ACW has become cut-off and isolated in recent years. A change at the top has been long overdue. By the end of this summer the loss of credibility and confidence in ACW was total. It's important that they bring in new people from outside the organisation and restore confidence quickly." Wales Association for the Performing Arts chairman Chris Ryde added: "Even ACW staff felt let down and went as far as balloting for industrial action. The Arts Council had difficulties - but they were self-inflicted." |
| The Stage web site: www.thestage.co.uk |
| ALEXA BARACAIA e-mail: alexa@thestage.co.uk |
Thursday, September 21, 2000 |
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