Don't look on us simply as a grants body, warn Creative Scotland chiefs

• Sir Sandy Crombie and Andrew Dixon reveal the move

Creative Scotland's figureheads warned they are set to pursue radical new funding policies as part of a drive to boost the cultural sector in the face of fierce public spending cuts.

Chief executive Andrew Dixon and chairman Sir Sandy Crombie told an audience of industry figures in Edinburgh yesterday that they wanted to see Creative Scotland become a promotional and development agency for the arts, and "not just be something that hands out money".

Creative Scotland, which opened for business earlier this month after some seven years of discussion and debate about the future shape of the cultural sector, was formed out of the formation of the Scottish Arts Council and Scottish Screen, inheriting a 60 million budget.

But Mr Dixon, previously a regional arts and promotion chief in North-East England, said the new body was expected to devolve many funding decisions to other arts bodies under a new strategy it hoped to have in place by next year.

And he warned it is set to bring a halt to direct funding of major film productions due to a lack of available finance, admitting Scotland was a "bit-player" in the film industry. He said Creative Scotland, which has taken over responsibility for promoting film-making from Scottish Screen, would instead look at supporting initiatives to rear new talent and help film production companies.

Arts organisations and rival parts of the country will be urged to share resources and join forces on major initiatives instead of relying on the arts agency for support.

Creative Scotland's main focus will instead be to raise the profile of the arts and creative industries in Scotland, as well as support and develop initiatives to rear new talent, encourage joint projects between various sectors, and attract greater public and private sector investment in the arts.

Among the projects already in the pipeline are promoting Scotland as a "global festivals capital", working up long-term joint strategies with BBC Scotland, STV and Channel Four and creating a network of artist's residencies around the country. The new body will also back major initiatives like the Cultural Olympiad being held in the run-up to the 2012 London Games, and a 12-month celebration of Scotland's creative industries planned for the same year.

Mr Dixon said: "We are going to put artists at the centre of what we do and shine a real light on the whole cultural sector in Scotland.

"We need to be more fleet of foot. We need to learn to say no faster, so we can also say yes to people quickly. Some organisations are having to make multiple applications for funding. We need to get away from that.

"If we could promote the many things that are happening that are hidden away, and properly harness the work that is going on, Scotland could become the best place to live and work as an artist in Europe, and have the highest level of participation in the arts.

"When I first looked into the number of festivals in Scotland there appeared to be only eight, while the Scottish Arts Council seemed to list around 38. But there are actually a lot more than that.

"We need to do more to help them work together, particularly on major initiatives like next year's festival of the islands."

Background

THE birth of a single new arts agency for Scotland has been a long and often tortuous process, which has been dogged by delays, allegations of political interference and the departure of a string of culture ministers since the idea was first floated.

Its genesis can be traced back to a speech by then first minister Jack McConnell in 2003, when he pledged to deliver a host of new cultural rights and entitlements.

Plans for Creative Scotland were mapped out in a lengthy report produced by a special commission ordered by the Scottish Executive, which endorsed the proposal in January 2006.

However, a change in administration at Holyrood led to a further review and the SNP suffered a blow when its Culture Bill was defeated two years ago. The failure of the bill was widely blamed for the sacking of then culture minister Linda Fabiani.

However, despite widespread opposition from many arts industry figures, the SNP administration pressed ahead with a merger of the Scottish Arts Council and Scottish Screen, which finally took effect on 1 July.

• Agency a long time in the making