ACE responds to Government demands for cuts

117.5 of the 559.5 of Arts Council England’s full-time staff posts will be made redundant by July 2013 as part of a Government-imposed cost-cutting programme , and its regional office infrastructure will be reduced in size, leaving major offices in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Bristol but only small local offices in other parts of the country. Five areas covering London, the South East, the South West, the Midlands and the North will replace ACE's current regional structures and responsibility for organisations based in Hampshire will move from the South East to the South West. Four Executive Directors will work with Chief Executive Alan Davey to deliver the organisation’s overall strategy, down from eight at present.

To achieve its aims with fewer staff, ACE will be introducing a “more streamlined investment processes and a more focused set of priorities”, and grant application, assessment and monitoring processes will all be simplified. The role of relationship management will be retained within the organisational structure, but “pragmatic” solutions will have to be found to preserve support the sector: “We'll do less and we'll do it differently – but we'll do it well”, said Davey. Artform and cultural policy expertise will be distributed around the country, with staff having both a local and national remit. National policy leadership will focus on three areas – children, young people and earning; creative media; and engagement and audiences. Other areas of leadership will support 13 specific disciplines, namely touring; philanthropy, fundraising and private giving; organisational resilience and environmental sustainability; international; diversity; combined arts; dance; libraries; literature; museums; music; theatre; and visual arts. Transition to the new structure will begin on 5 November, with appointments being made to the Director posts by Christmas and external and internal recruitment to vacant posts starting in April 2013.