About the Institute
The Institute for Culture is an independent research hub providing the empirical baseline for arts funding. We reject defensive advocacy in favour of hard economic realities.
Our Mission
For decades, the cultural sector has relied on intrinsic arguments to justify public subsidy: art is good for the soul, it builds community, it challenges us. While true, these arguments consistently fail in HM Treasury spending rounds.
We exist to provide the alternative. We treat the cultural sector as an industrial sector. We measure gross value added (GVA), export surplus, supply chain multipliers, and geographic equity.
Funding & Independence
We are entirely independent. We do not accept funding from central government departments (e.g., DCMS) or primary distributors (e.g., Arts Council England) to ensure our analyses of their distribution mechanisms remain impartial. We are funded via private philanthropy and academic research endowments.
The Team
Former Treasury economist specializing in non-market valuation and municipal finance structures.
Maintains our open datasets and interactive models. Previously modeled spatial equity for the Levelling Up department.
Focuses on the efficacy of screen and theatre tax reliefs and their impact on independent production.
Work with our data.
All our datasets are open-source. We encourage journalists, academics, and policymakers to fork our models and challenge our assumptions.
Access Data Directory