Independent research published  in June 2023 confirmed the huge contribution that Edinburgh’s Festivals make to the economic vitality of Edinburgh and Scotland. The latest study – conducted across the festivals in 2022 and surveying 22,000 people – shows that the Edinburgh Festivals continue to be Scotland’s world-leading cultural brands.

An overarching evaluation report of the key findings from the Birmingham 2022 Festival. This report represents the culmination of 12-months’ work collaborating with the Organising Committee for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games (the OC) to evaluate its cultural programme, the Birmingham 2022 Festival.

What role does digital streaming have in the future asks Sharon Chou, South Bank Centre as part of her Fellowship at the Audience Diversity Academy

In the final of three blogs looking behind the scenes at a major project across Dorset, arts marketer, Director of storytelling agency, Storiie and AMA member Laura Mulheron takes us through the final phase of Dorset Moon featuring Luke Jerram’s Museum of the Moon.

In the second of three blogs looking behind the scenes at a major project across Dorset, arts marketer and AMA member Laura Mulhern explores the importance of collaboration and partnerships.

Laura Mulhern, arts marketer for Dorset Moon and AMA member, takes us through how three festivals in Dorset came together for the first time to  produce a joint festival – Dorset Moon. Featuring Luke Jerram‘s internationally acclaimed Museum of the Moon a key objective of the collaboration was to bridge the gap between tourism and ... Read more

Can you tell our readers a bit about what you do?   OutdoorArtsUK is a national membership and strategic organisation that aims to bring together the many diverse parts of the Outdoor Arts sector.   OutdoorArtsUK celebrates the wonderful work, amazing talent and tremendous achievements of the brilliant individuals, companies and organisations working in this most accessible of art ... Read more

This report has been produced by The Audience Agency in partnership with Outdoor Arts UK. “The work challenges and entertains; it is our most inclusive and empowering art form; it captivates communities and inspires innovation and cohesion.” Outdoor Arts UK

In this case study, Helen Wright from SQIFF (Scottish Queer International Film Festival) shares the impact of introducing a sliding scale ticketing system to the festival.

Rachael Biggs from Nonconform describes how they repositioned the UK’s longest running and biggest annual celebration of Arab arts and culture.

Learn how Young Norfolk Arts Festival has built up a festival from scratch and created opportunities for young people.

Gain inspiration for working with festivals to engage young people in the arts.

In 2000, the British Arts Festivals Association (BAFA) commissioned its first economic impact study into the UK arts festivals sector. Festivals Mean Business (FMB1) established a snapshot of the sector and proved invaluable in demonstrating the economic and cultural contribution that festivals make to the UK. In 2002, an update, Festivals Mean Business II (FMB2), showed ... Read more

Luoghi Comuni 2011 – “Teatro In Casa” was the third festival organised by Etre Associazione, a network of Italian performing arts companies.  The 2011 festival took place in Como and was focused on the long-standing Italian tradition of ‘theatre in the home’. This case study outlines the key objectives and activities of the festival together ... Read more

Luoghi Comuni 2014 – “Play with us” was the sixth edition of a festival organised each year by Etre Associazione (a network of Italian performing arts companies).  The 2014 festival took place in Mantova.  Participating companies were given the remit of producing (or adapting) theatre that would bring performers closer to their audience to create ... Read more

Community engagement is a core part of the Mackay Festival’s planning and programming, with events such as the Bobcat Ballet bringing new audiences to the arts. This case study demonstrates some of the learnings from years of community engagement activity.

The Manchester Literature Festival has taken place every October since 2006 and is the city’s largest literary event. In this case study, Kate Feld describes the Festival’s 2013 online digital marketing campaign, which included e-newsletters, Facebook, Twitter and blogging. The success of this campaign, particularly its social media activity, contributed to the Festival attracting a larger and ... Read more

JustSoFestival is an annual weekend-long camping festival for children and their families. Since the first festival in 2009, it has almost doubled in size, from a capacity of 2,600 in the first year, to a sell-out of 5,000 in 2013.  With no money for advertising, the festival has grown through online and offline word-of-mouth. In this ... Read more

From humble beginnings the Celtic Connections festival has grown from a single-venue event to a network of performances by an impressive array of international and local artists. The fundamental aim of the festival is to build connections, networks and relationships through traditional music and culture. This ethos of connecting networks is also reflected in the management of the event.

Why do some festivals thrive, while others fail? Knowing what is likely to go wrong is a good first step to avoiding problems and creating a sustainable organisation. This study looks at a lifecycle model of organisational development and applies it to Buxton Festival, to see if the forecasts used in the commercial sector can ... Read more