Arts Strategy

Arts, culture and creativity at the heart of our University

Arts, culture and creativity are at the heart of our University. University of Southampton has reaffirmed its commitment to arts, culture and creativity through its Arts and Culture Strategy (2018-22) and a Memorandum of Understanding (2018-2021) with Arts Council England.

Our University’s Arts and Culture Strategy – a commitment to creativity

Central to the strategy is a pledge to continue to contribute to Southampton’s growing cultural reputation, and to ‘animate the city’ through its inspiring arts and culture programme.

Our arts and culture programme is locally relevant and internationally acclaimed and we want that reputation to continue to flourish. We attract leading national and international talent - from our students and staff to the artists we work with - and we will continue to support high quality, innovative and interdisciplinary practices that bring together artists with pioneering researchers in a unique creative environment.

Louise Coysh, Associate Director, Arts and Culture, said “University of Southampton’s arts and culture programme enriches people’s lives, giving opportunities for discovery, increasing engagement, connectivity and wellbeing for our students, staff and diverse communities. These activities are at the heart of what we do as a University and they remain as a focal point of our new arts strategy,”

The arts strategy is also focused on continually improving the career prospects of our students through professional development opportunities and workplace placements, arising through our collegiate and proactive partnerships with a wide range of organisations. Our student Arts Ambassadors play an important role in the programme, supporting career progression whilst raising the profile of the University’s arts activities throughout the student community and beyond.

Find out more by downloading the University of Southampton Arts Strategy document.

Shared Commitment with Arts Council England to Creativity in Southampton

Southampton’s growing reputation as a city of culture and creativity has received a major boost with the signing of an agreement between the University of Southampton and Arts Council England.

Thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding, the long-standing partners will embark on a new phase with a strategy to further champion the provision of arts and other creativity-focused activities throughout Southampton and the wider region.

The University has made a commitment to animate the city with inspiring arts and culture activity through its own arts and culture strategy. This, in conjunction with the Arts Council’s strategy, will embed creativity as an essential part of everyday life for everyone in the city and the surrounding area, particularly children and young people. Darren Henley, Arts Council England Chief Executive, and Professor Sir Christopher Snowden, former University of Southampton President and Vice-Chancellor, signed the Memorandum of Understanding document in 2018. 

Darren Henley said “this city is a hotbed of creativity and innovation thanks to the long-term support of the University of Southampton. It’s exciting to mark the next stage of our partnership. I’m certain the arts will continue to grow in importance here, as Southampton develops even further as a great place to live, work and study.”

Professor Sir Christopher Snowden said “we are very pleased to enter into this new phase of our relationship with Arts Council England. This agreement recognises the importance and value of creativity as an essential part of everyone’s lives and will help facilitate using the arts as a way of increasing connectivity throughout our community and region whilst improving the health, well-being and improving life chances for the young people of Southampton.”

The agreement also pledges a shared commitment from Arts Council England and the University of Southampton to:

• support the development and democratisation of the city’s cultural and creative ecology, creating opportunities for talent development, enhancing skills and employability and growing the city’s international reputation;
• increase public understanding and promote the positive impact and benefits of arts and culture in reflecting a diverse contemporary culture and promote equality in Southampton;
• support new opportunities for talent development, increase skills and employability in relation to current and future needs of cultural and creative sectors;
• develop opportunities for creative research, development and innovation that supports artists, arts professionals, increasing interdisciplinary research, access to facilities and collaboration across the digital and creative industries;
• develop and deliver a strategic cultural agenda with the higher education sector across the region, increasing graduate retention, contributing to the city and region’s growing dynamic creative ecology and reputation internationally;
• establish an evidence base to capture the impact of how the Southampton’s Cultural Quarter as a future creative arts hub can enrich the lives of children and young people, acknowledge and develop best practice, addresses inequalities, remove barriers and seek to contribute towards national policy.

Download the Memorandum of Understanding here pdf

Over many decades, the University of Southampton has developed and nurtured a pioneering history of cultural patronage through the arts, theatre and music, playing host to some of the city’s most respected and renowned venues: John Hansard Gallery, Turner Sims and close associate with Nuffield Southampton Theatres. The institution is also home to a research-active Arts and Humanities Faculty encompassing Winchester School of Art, as well as a successful and well-connected multidisciplinary Public Engagement with Research Unit (PERu) and over 40 performing arts student societies.

There is a wealth of arts and cultural activity taking place across the University of Southampton, and you can find out more across our Arts at University of Southampton pages and via our social media channels.