Presentations and Publications

Cultural strategies can be an essential way to build a strategic vision and commitment to culture within and across places. In this piece, Professor Dan Ashton from the University of Southampton explores how cultural strategies can connect with Creative UK’s Culture as Growth Infrastructure provocation paper and wider developments around local growth plans and the inclusion of culture in the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act.

Accessible at Creative UK here.

Analysis of cultural strategies in England by University of Southampton researchers recently covered in Arts Professional provides evidence of the drive for places to have current cultural strategies. In this article, Professor Dan Ashton focuses on recommendations from the Cultural strategies and futures report (co-authored with Makanani Bell) and considers the challenges faced in aligning cultural strategies to changing policy and geographic landscapes.

Accessible at Arts Professional here
Accessible Open Access here

Dan joined the panel on Culture, Creativity and Place at the Local Policy Innovation Partnerships conference:

•Prof Daniel Ashton – the Cultural Strategies Think Kit.

•Val Birchall – National Cultural Framework

•Dr Joseph Owen – learning from the And Towns project and LUCIA programme

•Prof Abi Gilmore – UKRI DCMS Policy Fellow Cultural Infrastructure and Place-based investment/LPIP Hub evidence review

•Helen O’Gara –  Legislative Theatre, local government & community development

•Eifiona Thomas – Cymru Wledig Rural Wales LPIP

Dan’s short talk explored the connection between cultural strategies and devolution between the Local Cultural Strategies (1999) Guidance and the Hodge Review (2026. Dan connected this to the National Cultural Framework and concluded with the following:

Perhaps the most notable thing in drawing contrast across 25 years is not about the cultural strategies as such, but their relevance and contribution to and position within a functioning cultural system?

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Dan and Dr John Wright (University of Leeds) presented together on their collaborative work on international cultural strategies. Here is the abstract:

Cultural strategies are a ubiquitous part of city and regional cultural policy development. Although strategies are not policies in themselves, they tend to function as visioning tools for governmental decision-makers and cultural institutions. Despite the prevalence of cultural strategies, policy research and scholarship remain underdeveloped in key areas such as processes and initiation, whose voices are heard and how strategy circulate and transfer.

Our paper addresses these issues by exploring narratives within a selection of international cultural strategy documents. The paper draws on a study of the systematic collection of strategies from The World Cities Culture Forum (WCCF). The WCCF provides an invaluable data set of strategies from cities and regions across the world.

Ian and Dan joined with Elise Hurcombe (Bristol City Council) and Emalene Hickman (Winchester City Council) for an Innovation Session introducing the Think Kit and focusing on the following recommendations and resources: methods and consultation; living and responsive; and continuity and evaluation.

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Recording and slides accessible on CLOA website here

This collaborative webinar with LGA and University of Southampton will be hosted by CLOA Chair Donna Pentelow and will provide practical support for councils undertaking cultural strategies.

The session will feature an introduction to the context for the Cultural Strategies Think-kit from Ian Leete, Senior Adviser – Culture, Tourism and Sport at LGA.

Dan Ashton, Professor of Cultural and Creative Industries at University of Southampton, will introduce the Cultural Strategies and Futures research and how the recommendations from the report were developed through a community of practice into a Think Kit, which includes practical resources, tools and templates linked to various areas to focus on in developing and maintaining a cultural strategy.

During the session we will also hear user case studies from two CLOA Members on how they have connected with the resources and the components that have been particularly helpful within their working context:-

• Michelle Butler, Culture Development Officer Canterbury City Council
• Elise Hurcombe Arts Development Manager at Bristol Council

This is a timely session for all those officers seeking to align culture with broader outcomes such as place, health and wellbeing and the environment through cultural strategies and compacts.  It will also be of relevance in preparing for devolution and reorganisation.

Dan gave a short presentation for the launch of Winchester District Cultural Strategy Launch. There is coverage on LinkedIn and the University of Southampton website.

In the UK, cultural strategies documents are widely used by local government and culture trusts (and other emerging collectives and partnerships) to plan and coordinate cultural activity within a specific place. This presentation will introduce the ‘Cultural strategies, compacts and futures’ project (funded by Public Policy Southampton), reflect on some of the findings of the project around priority themes (place, health, environment) and introduce for discussion the twelve recommendations suggested in the project report.

Posting on LinkedIn (22.10.26):

Lovely to catch up so many people from near and far at the packed and fascinating Key Cities Innovation Network iPlace 2026 in Southampton . Special thanks to all the panellists. Southampton City Gallery was a magnificent venue for the reception. 

A few reflections connected to the cultural strategies research and activities I’m involved with. Links are to the Cultural Strategies Think Kit (developed with Ian Leete and the Local Government Association).

– Where to listen and learn with. 
Listening and leaning with others might be focused nearby or it might be with ‘similar’ places from anywhere across the country. This also links to Arts Professional piece on ‘layers of place and policy’ .

• For exploring ‘neighbours’ , the Cultural Strategies Explorer map might help.
• For exploring further away and experiences from similar places, the Cultural Strategies Network might help.

– Capacity and approach
Ed Matthews-Gentle made a great point about cultural strategies and capacity (more research on this to follow!) AND difference in approaches. The diverse ways places and partnerships approach cultural strategies is evident with the Cultural Strategies Dataset.

The approach with the Cultural Strategies ‘think (not tool) kit is to resources for reflection rather than prescribing fixed approaches. This is why the Network and sharing experiences is such an important part.

– Quiet transformation of place
I loved Phil Gibby‘s take on ‘quiet transformation of place’ exemplified with Little Lost Robot.

When it comes to cultural strategies, this is a helpful call to remember, celebrate and reflect on all the energy and commitment that current initiatives and projects build on.

The Cultural Strategies Think Kit resource on policy highlights and offers ways to address the challenge (impossibility?) of policy alignment. ‘Place and past’ alignment is another way into this with the Cultural Strategies Think Kit resource on continuity.