BLOG - THOUGHTS ON A PAGE....

Earlier this month, Arts Professional and Baker Richards published  Arts Pay Survey Report 2025  - a weighty, 174-page assessment of pay, conditions and culture across the UK arts workforce. It’s a sobering read. And for those of us who’ve recently crossed the threshold into freelance life, much of it feels uncomfortably familiar. Access the report here . Worth a read if you haven’t already. After thirty years in organisations, leading teams and commissioning hundreds of bril

Well, it finally happened. The government has announced a curriculum review that, for once, gives the creative arts a proper seat at the table - and I’ll admit, I did a double take when I saw  drama  actually named as one of the four discrete art forms. After years of watching the subject shuffled about like the spare chair at the end of the table, that recognition feels, frankly, overdue. Of course, let’s not get too carried away just yet. The reforms aren’t radical but the

I’ve been having meetings with drama schools over the past few weeks – and they’ve been engaging on so many levels. The overwhelming majority are very tuned in; some are so enthusiastic about my genre of TYA (Theatre for Young Audiences) but it still sadly surprises me how little curriculum time is dedicated to unpacking this area of work with their students. But I guess that’s more to do with pressure on the overall curriculum than anything else. Not being on the inside, it

I’ve been asked by an ex-colleague to write an article...… I guess it’s more of an opinion piece. I’m happy to do it, although, as these things go, you don’t get paid for the time it takes. But I suppose after 30+ years working in applied theatre and theatre-making in the genre of TYA, I hope to have something to say, so why not. I already write this simple blog and review for  Everything Theatre , so how hard can it be to give an opinion? But then I did that thing you do - a