What we do

(top) Wolf’s Child, Norfolk & Norwich Festival 2015. Photo: Steve Tanner. (bottom) The People’s Tower, Norfolk & Norwich Festival 2014. Photo: Chris Taylor.

Convening is at the heart of what we do. We bring together the breadth of voices across the UK’s cultural ecology—from freelancers and small organisations to major cultural institutions, local authorities, funders and policymakers—to explore the issues shaping the future of the arts and culture. Through regional Chapters, UK-wide conversations and collaborative partnerships, we connect local experience with national dialogue, creating trusted spaces where different perspectives can be heard, ideas can be tested, and shared priorities and collective responses can emerge. We believe that bringing people together in conversation has the power to inform, inspire and challenge people to do things differently in their own organisations, in our sector and in our communities. 

What Next? creates the conditions for informed, inclusive and trusted conversations that enable the cultural sector to understand change, navigate complexity and respond collectively.

Our Principles for Convening

  • We work under the Chatham House Rule
  • We bring together a breadth of perspectives.
  • We value respectful challenge and constructive dialogue.
  • We prioritise accessibility and inclusive participation.
  • We believe that how we work is as important as what we do.

Our convening leads to:

  • Advocacy: Shaping policy proposals & UK-wide & local strategies. We build the capacity (skills, knowledge & confidence) and access of those most impacted by policy (global majority, working class, disabled) to engage with policymakers in our sector and in government.   
  • Learning & modelling: Sharing and embodying systems leadership – We are a movement of peers in many different contexts with different specialist skills and experiences.  We build conditions for us to share good practice and to build systems leadership. 
  • Amplification: Championing actions that build equitable conditions for the arts & culture.  We work in close partnership with chapter chairs, sector organisations and other networks to champion and amplify campaigns across the movement. 

Influencing policy and practice

As a movement, we bring together policymakers, politicians, funders, academics, unions, sector bodies and cultural practitioners to explore the issues shaping the future of arts and culture. Working collaboratively with members, partners and subject specialists, we develop position papers, consultation responses and submissions to DCMS, HM Treasury, Arts Council England and other public bodies. Our contributions are informed by the breadth of perspectives, experience and expertise shared through What Next?’s regional Chapters and UK-wide conversations, helping to ensure that local insight informs national dialogue and decision-making.

Regional Chapters around the UK

Our What Next? Chapters across the country have continued to convene locally to shape and debate the future of the arts and culture in the regions. Chapters are where relationships are built, emerging issues are identified and local experience is shared. Together they provide What Next? with insight into the opportunities and challenges facing different places across the UK, ensuring that national conversations are informed by the realities of cultural practice.

Local programming includes:

  • the Brighton Chapter creating an ABCD plan for the future of culture in the city,
  • the Bath Chapter focussing a series of sessions on education and learning.
  • in Wandsworth, a new Co-Chair is being mentored bringing fresh perspectives and ideas to the Chapter, including a renewed focus on reaching younger people through the Chapter’s activities. The London Borough of Culture in Wandsworth has also brought renewed energy to the collaborative nature of the Chapter and its members.
  • in Greater Manchester, recent meetings have covered freelancers, placemaking, and creative health, with upcoming meetings on fundraising, social justice, and learnings from year-long cultural programmes. 

We work with our Chapter Chairs to develop our peer-learning network.

Recent UK-wide Programme

Our UK-wide programme responds to the changing policy, political and social landscape affecting arts and culture. Bringing together policymakers, practitioners, researchers, funders and sector leaders, our recent conversations have included:

Policy, Politics & Public Investment

  • Growth, the Cultural Sector and the Spending Review
  • Growth, the Industrial Strategy and the Comprehensive Spending Review
  • Political Spotlight: Recent Reshuffle and Labour Party Conference – What This Means for the Arts and Culture
  • Information Session: General Election and Changes to the Political Landscape
  • Democratic Processes and Ways to Make Change and Influence Policy Making
  • Local Government, Culture and Devolution

Arts Council England & Cultural Policy

  • Hodge Review of Arts Council England
  • Arts Council England and DCMS Response to the Hodge Review
  • Arts Council England Interim Strategic Framework 2026 and DCMS Culture Priority Places

Education & Young People

  • Young People and our Education Systems: What Change is Needed?
  • Spotlight on Education Policy: The National Curriculum, Arts and Creativity
  • Focus on Cultural Education in the Early Years
  • Children and Young People: Policy Spotlight

Freelancers, Workforce & Access

  • Freelancers Spotlight
  • Freelance Focus on Policy: The Freelance Policy Landscape from Colleagues in Scotland, Ireland and England
  • Welfare Reform and Actions Towards Access: Impact on the d/Deaf and Disabled Arts and Cultural Sector
  • Unlimited Takeover

Evidence, Value & Future Thinking

  • How is Evidence Being Used in Case Making, and How Does it Influence Government Policy?
  • The Personal Benefits of the Arts and Creativity
  • Valuing Culture: Challenging and Reimagining Growth
  • Holding Tension: Environmental Responsibility, Sustainability and the Growth Agenda
  • Wales: The Future Generations Act and the Future Generations Commissioner

Alongside our open UK-wide meetings, What Next? convenes policy roundtables, Leadership Group discussions, Chapter Chair meetings and collaborative sessions with government departments, Arts Council England, local authorities and sector partners, ensuring that local experience, specialist knowledge and diverse perspectives help inform national dialogue and decision-making.

Roundtables

  • Roundtable sessions on Arts, Tech and AI in partnership with Arts Council England
  • Working with the former government’s DCMS and DWP on Access to Work modelling

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