Local Manifesto Pledges – Waltham Forest Trades Council

The Local Manifesto Pledges initiative is a campaign to persuade the main political parties in all London boroughs to sign up to five policies that will support Live Performance in the capital.

Equity’s London branches have created a list of policies, that would help develop this sector, to put live entertainment on the agenda in the run up to the capital’s local elections in May.

The campaign asks parties to recognise that Live Performance is a vital part of civic culture, which should be at the heart of a borough’s mission, whether in public health, a growing and diverse local economy, or improving educational attainment and community cohesion. It asks for a commitment to:

Ensure the payment of industry rates for all productions or events which receive support directly or in kind from our local authority, in line with Arts Council requirements for nationally funded work
Guarentee that alongside provision from an arts department, money for professional live performance is part of multiple departments’ budgets, showing the key role it plays in delivering a council’s strategic objectives – such as regeneration, education, parks, libraries and public health.
Ensure at least one ‘Creative Enterprise Zone’ in our borough by 2022 so as to open up access to live performance for all Londoners, irrespective of their background, both as workers and audience members.
Establish a twice yearly trades council meeting for professionals working in the creative industries in the borough, chaired by the relevant cabinet member/committee chair, alongside a cultural chamber of commerce for employers and institutions
Use the planning process and community infrastructure levy to provide professional live performance spaces, in consultation with the artists who live and work in the borough.

The initative was launched at Parliament on 31 October.

Equity calls on members to get in touch with hopeful councillors, asking them – and their party – to commit to these policies.

You can find an email template here.

To find your local councillor’s contact details, go to https://www.gov.uk/find-your-local-councillors and enter your postcode. Other councillor candidates will be announced in the run-up to the May elections.

For more information, please get in touch with Paul Fleming on pfleming@equity.org.uk

Ensure the payment of industry rates for all productions or events which receive support directly or in kind from our local authority, in line with Arts Council requirements for nationally funded work

Guarentee that alongside provision from an arts department, money for professional live performance is part of multiple departments’ budgets, showing the key role it plays in delivering a council’s strategic objectives – such as regeneration, education, parks, libraries and public health.

Ensure at least one ‘Creative Enterprise Zone’ in our borough by 2022 so as to open up access to live performance for all Londoners, irrespective of their background, both as workers and audience members.

Establish a twice yearly trades council meeting for professionals working in the creative industries in the borough, chaired by the relevant cabinet member/committee chair, alongside a cultural chamber of commerce for employers and institutions

Use the planning process and community infrastructure levy to provide professional live performance spaces, in consultation with the artists who live and work in the borough.