Organisations across Wales have been invited by the Welsh Government to respond to their Call for Evidence to help shape a new Culture Strategy for Wales [1]. I spent some time yesterday reading through their framing of the exercise.
What is ‘Culture’?
I welcome that they make clear culture includes ‘sport, creative industries, arts, events, heritage, museums, libraries and archives’ (my emphasis). There may be more on this in the final strategy, but not getting caught up in narrower definitions at this stage (or in general) creates space to look at the bigger, and connected picture of human activity.
This broad definition also lays the ground for another objective in the call, which is for the final strategy ‘to be cross-cutting, demonstrating the importance of culture […] to many other sectors.’ Again, I celebrate this, as too often, culture has been treated in isolation, as if it were unconnected and without relevance to other areas of individual lives and communities. Meanwhile, studies on the closure of cultural institutions during the pandemic have shown the impact of culture on well-being and life satisfaction (for example this one from Denmark).
Public Benefit
I dedicated my PhD research to heritage interpretation and public benefit, so reading the Welsh Government’s ambition to provide public benefit through culture is music to my ears. They ‘want culture […] to be recognised as a powerful force’, not just in its own right but for other areas of importance: ‘individual health and wellbeing, community connection, economic opportunity, international profile and national confidence’.
Don’t get me wrong: cultural activities are important, period. There is an argument that where culture is burdened with continually proving its (public benefit) impacts, we’re running the danger of stifling cultural innovation or, at the very least, just ticking off boxes to get any financial support.
However, there is also a different approach, and it seems the Welsh Government is taking it. It asks for evidence already existent in the sector: what has had an impact, e.g. on health and wellbeing, community connection, economic opportunity etc. in the broadest sense? This captures the cross-cutting value of culture and hopefully builds an empirical baseline from which to strengthen culture in Wales. Such an approach is less about bending cultural practice to pre-defined outcomes, but rather recognises that culture has impact.
The question then becomes: what is needed for that impact to grow?
The Consultation
The Call for Evidence makes clear that this is about a longer term vision: for Wales as ‘a nation where culture […] [is] an essential part of national life’. The Welsh Government have captured some of what this means:
- people participate regularly;
- children and young people grow up with access to culture as part of everyday life;
- barriers linked to poverty, geography, disability, language, confidence or background are actively removed;
- institutions and community assets are sustainable and connected;
- the workforce is valued, skilled and fairly supported.
I see these as the foundations for culture to be able to widen its impacts, rather than outcomes.
The questions put to cultural organisations are similarly about the fundamentals: understanding pressures and barriers, strengths and evidence gaps. They seek input on what success would look like. Perhaps most importantly, they look for clarity on what the Welsh Government needs to do, and what the role of organisations is.
Where’s the evidence?
In the end, the questions do come back to evidence – but, as I find, for a very good reason: ‘to hold government and partners to account’.
We are not talking here about prescribing impact and failing organisations that don’t produce the evidence required. This is about being clear on the data that will be used to ‘track progress’ towards securing the above foundations so that culture may indeed become the ‘powerhouse’ the Welsh Government envisions.
But yes, there is an element of measuring impact. In my books, that’s not a bad thing. Especially in the public sector, I think we all know of examples where perhaps we’ve neglected research on impact. We may even inadvertently have continued activities that exclude people, or achieve little of what the core purpose of our organisation is– just because an activity seemed worth it.
That’s where evidence on impact becomes a tool not only for accountability, but also for improvement. And to get better at what we do is likely something we all want.
Participate!
If you’re in Wales and interested in Welsh culture, make sure you respond to the call. The consultation is open until Friday, 18 December 2026, mid-day.
