Explore the Cultural Participation Monitor
This research starts from a belief that everyone’s experiences, and everyone’s cultural engagement, matters. That we cannot understand the cultural impact of this moment without listening to the whole of our society. And that we need to recognise the different situations from which people came into this crisis and the different ways — whether in its apparent changeability, or in reinforcing existing disadvantages — that it has affected people as they have passed through it. We hope that it will also help us to ‘build back better’, responding to a far wider range of experiences and needs than before.
Key things to note about this research are that it:
- Samples the whole population
- Covers all sectors
- Shows change over time
- Is linked to Audience Spectrum
“We're starting to get some clues about what the new cultural landscape may look like after COVID-19, with people increasingly keen to get back to live attendance - especially younger and metropolitan groups - but with a risk of some others being left out. Ensuring disabled people aren't excluded is key, and so is adapting to the persistence of home working, which is likely to encourage more local attendance."
- Oliver Mantell, Director of Evidence and Insight
Regular Key Findings
The Origins of the Monitor
The Cultural Participation Monitor was part of our work on the Covid-19 Impact Research with Centre for Cultural Value at Leeds, funded by the UKRI Covid Response fund. From autumn 2020 – autumn 21, we did several waves of a survey of the population asking them about their changed and changing attitudes to culture and creativity, going out and staying in, spending their time and money.
'Waves' of the Cultural Participation Monitor Survey:
- Wave 1: 6,055 responses, Oct 2020
- Wave 2: 1,503 responses, Feb 2021
- Wave 3: 2,002 responses, June 2021
- Wave 4: 2,025 responses, Sept 2021
- Wave 5: 6,057 responses, Nov 2021
- Wave 6: 3,197 responses, March 2022
- Wave 7: 3,557 responses, Sept 2022
What's Next for the Monitor
It has proved so useful to have a robust source of information about a proper cross-section of attitudes right now, we have decided to continue the Monitor as quarterly survey in a partnership between The Audience Agency and Centre for Cultural Value. We are currently crowd-funding it while we secure a long-term funder. Opportunities to participate in the future of the monitor include:
- Collaboration and partnership | We are now working in partnership on each wave of the Monitor to give it a special focus or resonance - and helping us to spread the cost. For example, the spring wave was carried in our in partnership with Vocal-eyes and Stagetext and focused on the experience of disabled people and audiences. The summer one is with Association of Cultural Enterprises and looks at retail and catering in cultural venues. We are currently planning planning waves for November 22 and February 23 and are inviting collaborators.
- Bespoke Analysis | We have collected a wealth of information over the past 2 years and hold detailed information – including by region and demographics - from a wide range of questions about live and online engagement. If you have specific questions, we may be able to answer them straight away or can offer our services to carry out bespoke analysis for a small fee, contributing to ongoing overheads.