There is a crisis in arts education in schools in the UK. A new government, educationalists and industry must address it soon otherwise it will become terminal. For too long the rounded and balanced education that every child deserves — and positively thrives on — has been undermined by an over-emphasis on STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) to the exclusion of the arts.
State schools have been made to drop arts subjects from their main accountability and performance measures while the independent sector boasts ever-more extensive arts facilities, from design, ceramics and music studios to theatre and concert halls. But where is the logic in making arts the preserve of the privileged, when Britain prides itself on being the world’s cultural powerhouse?
