The economic and social impact of festivals: a case study from the East

Midlands, England and its implications for festivals and regional development

in Europe

Christopher Maughan and Dr Franco BianchiniFaculty of HumanitiesDe Montfort University

Leicester

Aims of presentationTo use case study from East Midlands, England to:Discuss methodological issues concerning the

calculation of the economic and social impact of festivals

Raise questions about the contribution of festivals to regional development in Europe, and how to maximise this

Identify questions for future studies on festivals and regional development in other European countries

The 11 festivals included in the research

February Leicester Comedy Festival

June Art on the Map (Lincolnshire Open Studios)Newark on Water Festival Tideswell Well Dressing

July Buxton Fringe FestivalBuxton Festival Leicester Belgrave Mela Derby Caribbean Carnival

September Northamptonshire Open Studios and ExhibitionWirksworth Festival (and art and architecture trails)

October Now Festival, Nottingham

Income and expenditure data for selected festivals

AotM BF LCF Newark NOSE Tideswell

Income 16.8 549 58 156 12 0.6

Expenditure 16.7 548 49 162 14 0.3

(figures are in 000s)

The Research Methodology

• review of literature on economic and social impact of the arts• design of audience questionnaires• 4,704 questionnaires completed by audience members• an estimated 250,000 people attended the 11 festivals• additional questionnaires to:

– local authorities– tourism authorities– relevant regional bodies– arts organisations – festival organisations– local businesses and sponsors– Chambers of Commerce

• analysis of the festivals’ websites and relevant policy documents

Calculating Economic Impact (1)Two principal sources of financial information:• expenditure by the festival organisation• expenditure by the festival audience – ancillary

This raw data can be used to calculate three types of impact:• direct (expenditures by the festival and audiences in the area)• indirect (expenditures by the suppliers of goods and services to the

festival and to ancillary businesses)• induced (expenditure by the employees of those companies that

supply the festival and the ancillary businesses)

To show:• incomes generated by expenditure in the local economy• jobs created/supported in the local economy

Calculating Economic Impact (2)

• rationale for the choice of the multipliers, or why Atlanta is different from Tideswell (or Tralee)

• the vexed issue of how to define a local economy and why this matters

• the importance of the tourist pound (or euro)

• the infrastructural costs of festivals• local business and festivals

212555N =

Buxton International Arts Festival

Expe

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600

500

400

300

200

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LOCAL

Not local >20 miles

Local <=20 miles

66192157617235979343116721219744 5535831567162205943055511052N =

Festival

Wirksworth Trails

Wirksworth

Tideswell well dress

NOW Festival

Northamptonshire Ope

Newark on Water

Leicester Comedy

Leicester Belgrave M

Derby Caribbean

Buxton International

Buxton Fringe

Art on the Map

Expe

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300

250

200

150

100

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LOCAL

Not local >20 miles

Local <=20 miles

Variations in occupational profiles between festivals

NCODE

NOS

Leicester BM

Derby CC

Buxton IAF

Perc

ent

80

60

40

20

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Occupation, synthesi

Managers

Professionals

Assoc Professionals

Administrative

Skilled Trades

Personal Services

Sales

Process

Elementary

Buxton International Arts Festival

Occupation, synthesis

Elementary Occupatio

Process, Plant and M

Sales and Customer S

Personal Service Occ

Skilled Trades Occup

Administrative and S

Associate Profession

Professional Occupat

Managers and senior

Perc

ent

60

50

40

30

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Derby Caribbean Carnival

Occupation, synthesis

Elementary Occupatio

Process, Plant and M

Sales and Customer S

Personal Service Occ

Skilled Trades Occup

Administrative and S

Associate Profession

Professional Occupat

Managers and senior

Perc

ent

30

20

10

0

Some key findings in Festivals and the Creative Region (1)

Festivals generate wealth and employment• £7 million spent by audiences through local businesses.

A further £4 million may have been generated for the region - equivalent to 209 FTE jobs

• 93% of local businesses saw festivals as good for communities and 84% saw them as contributing to tourism but .....

• 45% thought festivals were not sources of new business for them – 33% did

• 20% thought that festivals were actually disruptive

Some key findings in Festivals and the Creative Region (2)

On social and cultural impact: enhancing local image and identity

• more than 64% of audience members felt more positive about the place where the festival was held

• 90% rated the content of the festials as good to excellent• return visits - almost 70% of the audience would be

more likely to attend other events in the future• 55% of people who attended, had been to the festival

before• increasing interest in arts activities - more than 44%

said they had become more interested in the arts as a result of attending a festival

Some key findings in Festivals and the Creative Region (3)

Varied audience profile• almost 90% of people attending were in a group or couple• 65% of attendees were over 45 years old • young people under 25 represented the greatest potential for growth.

They make up 30.9% of the region's population but for these festivals only make up 13.5% of audiences

Local commitment • audience members generally travelled less than 50 miles return. 50%

travelled less than 5 miles and 16.2% less than a mile.• More than 17% of audience members came on foot. The majority of

those who attended travelled by car (71.9%.) • 44% of people found out about the event by word of mouth and 17%

from the local newspaper• an estimated 33,000 hours of help by volunteers (equivalent to 375 days

work or £15,000 for each of the festivals) demonstrates that many festivals are rooted in the social and cultural life of the host community

Issues around disability, ethnicity and age

• provision for people with disabilities• under-representation of Black and Asian

people in the festivals sector• attracting more under-25s

Stakeholder views: some key points (1)

• need for increased funding• improving communication, co-ordination, the

calendar• weak links with non-cultural policy agendas• profit v corporate social responsibility• local v county v regional• need for integrated action by local authorities in

their partnerships with the Arts Council

Stakeholder views: some key points (2)

• developing project management/evaluation skills• understaffing and dependency on volunteers• festivals are not always party to the existing

dialogue between tourism and business• weaknesses in tourism infrastructure – transport,

accommodation and catering• the weather is not always an asset

Some practical recommendations

• publicity in workplaces • group discounts• improving festival websites• potential role of local newspapers• signage – planning issues and cost• local festival fora and e-newsletters• making festivals part of local cultural clusters • developing high profile niche events

Festivals and the crisis of public social life

Some trends:

• privatisation of public space• standardisation and excessive theming• museumisation• fear of "the other“• the emergence of "gated communities“• information and communication overload• the erosion of free time• a crisis of creativity?

The potential of festivalsA festival at its best can be:

not only• an effective way of nurturing skills and social capital• a vehicle for attracting visitors, and for enhancing the image of a

place for both local citizens and the outside world.

but also• a catalyst for reflection and for imagining alternative futures for both

individuals and communities• a source of creativity and innovation• a way of developing audiences for different forms of cultural activity• a process for generating different perspectives on place identity and

uses of space

Some concluding thoughts• are festivals "festive"?

• the virtues of disruption and ambiguity

• the danger of "instrumentalisation“

• the importance of core audiences and core identities

• widening mental and spatial horizons

• creating new intercultural festivals