Who We Are - Background
Established in 1999 by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) as one of 8 regional cultural consortiums representing the English regions, Yorkshire Culture, the Regional Cultural Consortium for Yorkshire and Humber, we are charged with a challenging and complex agenda of advocating, delivering and developing the policy of cultural services in the region.
Initially the principal aims of the Consortiums were to:
Champion the role of the cultural and creative interests in the regions, bringing them together to ensure that they contribute to the competitiveness, prosperity and enjoyment of life in the region;
Promote the impact of the cultural and creative sectors on the regional economy, including on employment and regeneration, and on schemes designed to tackle health inequality, high crime rates and social exclusion;
Assist in the delivery of effective cultural services;
Provide a forum for debating, representing and developing cultural and creative interests in the regions and encouraging take-up of cultural activity.
In 2001 Deep Roots, Real Achievements, Lofty Ambitions, The Cultural Strategy for Yorkshire & the Humber was published, setting out a vision for the development of the region’s creative and cultural sectors and identifying an extensive set of action points. A companion document, Yorkshire Culture Action Plan 2004 – 2006, was produced to reflect the additional roles and responsibilities awarded to Yorkshire Culture by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in 2004, with an increased focus on strategic leadership, generating added value and involvement in national cultural policy making.
We work in close partnership with our fellow sector bodies, Local Authorities and those in the Regional Development agenda. This strategic approach is already beginning to bear fruit as witnessed by the pervasive integration of culture and cultural activities in the latest Regional Economic Strategy for Yorkshire and Humber.