Agenda item

The Committee considered a report of the Corporate Director of Regeneration, Economy and Growth which provided an overview of the management of Durham County Council’s theatres and cinemas (for copy of report see file of minutes).  

The Strategic Manager for Culture, Sarah Glynn, presented the report and delivered a presentation which included information on the regional and national context, details of the Council’s three cultural venues, the approach to the visitor experience and current pressures.

The Committee noted that for every £1 spent in the north east theatre sector, an additional spend of approximately £2 was generated in the local economy. The Strategic Manager for Culture described the range of local cultural and entertainment venues throughout the county, including a detailed breakdown of the three cultural venues operated by Durham County Council ie Gala Durham, Empire Consett and Bishop Auckland Town Hall.

The Strategic Manager for Culture referred to the previous presentation and she highlighted that research showed that active engagement in arts, culture and creativity was beneficial for health and wellbeing. The service was developing a programming policy for theatres, in line with the wider service objectives. These objectives were: inclusivity, professional development and supporting local talent, community involvement / social benefit, ensuring a place-based approach and promoting opportunities for young people.

The Committee noted that cultural venues were facing a number of challenges including the age of buildings, sector competition and the need for specialist skills and experience. Film screening attendances were declining year on year and the cinema offer faced strong competition from other operators and streaming services. Initiatives such as ‘Event Cinema,’ ‘Bringing in Baby’ and ‘Gala Seniors’ were part of the work to address the shift in audience behaviour. The catering offer across venues was being considered as part of a wider catering review and the Council’s central marketing and communications team delivered marketing of the venues, however, most theatre venues in the country had dedicated marketing teams.

The Chair thanked the Strategic Manager for Culture for the detailed presentation and comments and questions were invited.

Councillor Nicholls commented that society had created a divide between academic and creative skills, with creative skills perceived as having less value. He spoke of how studying drama from a young age had increased his confidence and taught him important life-skills. He added that there was work to be done to challenge perceptions and increase inclusivity and one of those ways was to make culture affordable to all. Councillor Nicholls highlighted that the Gala provided value for money and he suggested more could be done to market the Gala’s offer.  He also commented that the presentation touched only briefly on dance and he asked what provisions were in place to promote dance. The Strategic Manager for Culture responded that dance formed an important part of the programme and the service supported the dance sector with delivery, such as the work carried out with TINArts dance school. 

In addition, the service was considering ways in which to link the festival and events programme with the ‘Move’ agenda.  

In response to a question from Councillor Nicholls as to how the culture offer catered for those with additional needs, Lizzie Glazier, Culture, Venues and Programme Manager, highlighted that relaxed theatre performances, cinema screenings and break-out spaces were offered.

Councillor Stubbs gave the view that the Gala was a great asset to Durham and he expressed concern that cinemas were under-utilised. He referred to the recent recruitment of an Audience Development and Engagement Manager and he asked whether the new post had made an impact. Councillor Stubbs also commented on the number of music venues and music festivals held in areas such as Newcastle and Stockton, saying that contrasted with Durham’s limited offer. Highlighting Durham’s student population and the income that could be generated from hosting music, he asked whether any consideration had been given to changing the use of cinemas, in order to host live music. In reply, the Strategic Manager for Culture commented that cinema audiences had changed, with an increasing demand for a cinema ‘experience.’ Initiatives such as ‘Event Cinema’ had resulted in a higher yield, however, in order to secure new releases, there was a requirement for a fixed number of showings to be held over one week. The Strategic Manager agreed that there were fewer music venues in Durham compared to some of its neighbours, however, a number of successful music festivals were held. She agreed that a market existed for live music and the Empire was particularly popular for live music. The Strategic Manager for Culture added that the service would continue to consider the best use of space at the Gala, as part of future programme development.

Councillor L Mavin recognised the increasing competition from other cinema operators and commented that she hoped that the service would not follow competitors who were offering ‘table-service’ as that was at odds with the ethos of the Council’s ‘Move’ strategy. In reply, the Strategic Manager for Culture reassured the Committee that the aim was not to offer the same as competitors but to consider how best to deliver a programme which built audience satisfaction.

Councillor Adam asked for clarification on the impact of the recruitment of the Audience Development and Engagement Manager. The Strategic Manager for Culture explained the role of the Audience Development and Engagement Manager was to work across the service to understand audience data, as opposed to marketing. Marketing was carried out through the Council’s corporate marketing team, however, competitors had access to specialised, often higher-cost marketing.

Marketing continued to be a challenge across the service, however, in recent years, there had been positive signs, with the success of ‘Event Cinema’ and an increase in sales for in-house pantomime productions. Councillor Adam suggested that the future development of the marketing strategy should be discussed with the relevant Cabinet Portfolio holder.  Alison Clark, Head of Culture, Sport and Tourism, replied that whilst the service would welcome further investment to enable more creative marketing to be carried out, the wider challenges to the Council’s budget were recognised.

Councillor Adam referred to the demolition work at Claypath which had impacted the Gala and he asked when the work would be completed and whether any compensation was available for loss of income. The Strategic Manager for Culture clarified that the demolition works, which were required for safety reasons, were carried out by the Council and, as access was limited to the stage door, some shows with larger sets, could not be accommodated. The demolition work was complete and the service yard was back in operation, however, access was likely to be limited again, when the land was redeveloped. The Strategic Manager clarified that some additional costs were covered, however, loss of income was not compensated. The Empire had also undergone building repairs which had resulted in lost income and the older buildings presented a constant challenge. The service, however, continued to consider income streams to offset loss of income. 

Co-opted member, Kelly Monahan, observed that the report did not mention the role of amateur theatre groups who perform at venues including schools and community centres. She remarked that for many people, amateur theatre was accessible and affordable. In addition, it offered opportunities for local people to become involved in the arts and to develop theatre skills and she asked for detail as to how the Council engaged with amateur theatre companies. In response, the Strategic Manager for Culture spoke of the importance of amateur theatre in the programme, with the hosting of amateur productions, including the annual pantomime performed by the CBS musical theatre group. The Culture, Venues and Programmes Manager highlighted that all three venues hosted amateur productions and a large number of enquiries were generated from amateur companies. Kelly Monahan then asked, if the Council was unable to accommodate requests from amateur theatre companies, whether it offered support to smaller venues, to host amateur productions. The Culture, Venues and Programmes Manager confirmed that the service provided support and the service’s technical team engaged with venues including schools, community centres and leisure centres, whenever they had the capacity to do so, to assist with activities including lighting and staging. The Strategic Manager for Culture added that the service aimed to deliver a programme for theatres which was in line with the wider culture service objectives, whilst balancing budget requirements to ensure sustainability of the venues.

Resolved:

Members of the Environment and Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee commented upon the information provided in the report and presentation.