The first directory listing all of the business support and help
available to the thousands of freelancers working in the region
has been launched by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA)
as part of a new package of support for the £1.1 billion-a-year
cultural and creative sectors.
The West Midlands Creative
Freelancer Support directory, now on the WMCA website,
lists more than 200 offers of support provided by 138
organisations, individuals or collectives.
These include mentoring, training and development, seminars,
information sources, networks, advocacy, workspace and equipment
provision, and funding opportunities.
The West Midlands’ creative and cultural sectors are a hugely
important part of the region’s economy, directly employing around
25,000 people. But they were among the sectors hit hardest by the
pandemic, with freelancers, who make up around one third of the
workforce, among those most affected economically by successive
lockdowns.
The WMCA’s Cultural Leadership
Board (CLB) commissioned the directory to provide an
overall picture of the resources currently available to
freelancers and to identify potential gaps or opportunities to
provide even more support.
CLB members gathered with freelancers from across the region and
leaders of sector organisations at the Birmingham Open Media
(BOM) yesterday, Thursday, 28th September, to discuss the
findings and put forward their own ideas of what further help and
support they require.
This support for freelancers is part of a £4.1 million package
from the WMCA’s Commonwealth Games Legacy Enhancement Fund that
will aid the ongoing recovery of the region’s cultural and
creative sectors, which includes developing plans to drive
engagement, investment, and skills development.
, Mayor of the West Midlands
and WMCA chair, said: “There are many thousands of local people
who as freelancers make a huge contribution towards keeping our
wonderfully rich and diverse cultural sector and creative
industries going. They generate many benefits for our region and
not just economically. Arts and culture can have an incredibly
positive impact on the wellbeing of individuals and entire
communities.
“The directory that the Cultural Leadership Board has
commissioned is an important piece of work because we know
freelancers can feel invisible, especially when it comes to the
support they need to develop their skills and opportunities, and
during times of crisis as we saw with the pandemic.
“This is just the beginning, and very soon we’ll be making more
announcements about how £4.1 million from the Commonwealth Games
Legacy Enhancement Fund, combined with the new partnerships we’re
creating with national organisations such as Arts Council
England, will deliver a significant investment into our cultural
and creative organisations helping them to thrive in the months
and years ahead.”
The West Midlands has one of the largest cultural and creative
sectors outside of London.
In addition to the economic value to the region, arts, culture
and heritage deliver a number of other benefits linked to health
and wellbeing, skills development, volunteering, pride of place,
attractiveness of place for inward investment, and community
cohesion.
Support for the sector is also being strengthened thanks to the
region’s ground-breaking devolution deal, agreed with
Government in March. This has paved the way for new direct
partnerships with the likes of Arts Council England,
Historic England, Sport England, the National Lottery Heritage
Fund, the National Lottery Community Fund and Visit
Britain to ensure more people have opportunities to
take part in arts and heritage activities.
Skinder Hundal, chair of the WMCA’s Cultural Leadership Board and
global director of arts at the British Council, said: “Our report
‘Mapping support for creative freelancers in the West Midlands’
showed there were over 200 offers of support available when the
report was written. The key question is how we can signpost this
support better and also leverage further support through the
Commonwealth Games Legacy Enhancement Fund.
“This is an important first step for the CLB as we look at
what else can be done or how the existing offer could be made
more visible and accessible.”
Alison Grade, a West Midlands-based career freelancer, who sits
on the CLB’s freelancer working group, said: “Freelancers are the
lifeblood of the creative industries, their skills and expertise
are a key ingredient in our region’s creative output. The
challenge for many is that they’ve been offered technical
training to do their work, but little support in how to be the
best freelancer they can be. This is hard enough when it’s
business as usual, but the global pandemic, strikes and cost of
living crises mean many need to think differently about how they
approach their work, and this support is much needed.
“The WMCA should be commended for recognising this and leading
from the front once again – this support is very positive news
for the region, its economy, and the freelance community.”
The West Midlands Creative Freelancer Support directory is part
of the WMCA’s Cultural Advocacy
Toolkit created in partnerships with its advisory groups
and a range of partners to advocate for and promote the
importance of culture across the region.
Find out more about the WMCA’s culture programme of work
at www.wmca.org.uk/what-we-do/culture-and-digital/culture.
