Image Credit: Visual Stories || Micheile
Callum Lee
Managing Director
Callum leads the BOP team, its portfolio and strategic partnerships. His cultural and creative industries expertise is grounded in his work for major clients in the UK, Europe and Middle East.
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Today marks the culmination of BOP’s year-long project with Festivals and Events International to develop the future strategy for Edinburgh’s Festivals in partnership with the strategic stakeholder group Festivals Forum.
An end but also a beginning, as the Forum – which includes the Scottish Government, Creative Scotland, City of Edinburgh Council, VisitScotland, EventScotland, the British Council and Festivals Edinburgh – and the Festivals themselves move forward with the implementation of 38 recommendations over the next 10 years.
The Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Europe and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop said, “The Scottish Government recognises the importance of Edinburgh’s Festivals to the whole of Scotland…. We welcome today’s report as a driver for future change”.
Our research shows that “Edinburgh is the undisputed world leader as a festival city”. It has achieved a great deal in an ever-changing and often challenging context over the last 10 years during which the Festivals have responded organisationally, innovatively, and entrepreneurially. BOP’s 2011 Impact Study also shows that the festivals are worth at least £261 million to the Scottish economy and we are in the process of updating that impact study, with the results due in 2016.
We identified six key themes, which emerged as significant drivers of change. These are:
The Festival City: Infrastructure and operations need to continue to evolve to ensure The Festival City provides an unrivalled experience for its citizens, and the artists, audiences and opinion-formers who visit from around the world
Deep and Wide Engagement: The festivals will collaborate to support educational aims and social justice through participation, learning and belonging
National and Global Positioning: Relationship-building and developing strong international partnerships is central to forging a new understanding of leadership for the city and Scotland, with branding and marketing providing a voice on the world stage
Digital Ways and Means: Looking at the balance between the live and the digital experience, and developing a strategy to make the most of new technologies incorporating partnerships across the public and private sector
Investment and Enterprise: Recognising the challenges facing public finances, the report urges that funders maintain existing levels whilst alternative funding models are considered
Developing and Delivering: Recommendations of ways for stakeholders to develop the Festivals Forum including new terms of reference and responsibilities, to allow the structures to evolve and embrace new opportunities to take Edinburgh’s Festivals through the next decade.
In order to sustain and strengthen the festivals and the benefits they bring, our report makes it clear that “the next 10 years is about capitalising on this reputation and advantage, finding new ways of experiencing and investing in one of Scotland’s greatest assets.”
The Chair of the Festivals Forum, Lady Susan Rice, said: “While much has been delivered already, this review and re-focus will ensure Edinburgh addresses key challenges and opportunities ensuring the Festival City retains its global competitive edge in the months and years to come.”
The full report "Thundering Hooves 2.0" can be downloaded below.
In order to sustain and strengthen the festivals and the benefits they bring, our report makes it clear that “the next 10 years is about capitalising on this reputation and advantage, finding new ways of experiencing and investing in one of Scotland’s greatest assets.”
Project Report
Thundering Hooves 2.0 – A Ten Year Strategy to Sustain the Success of Edinburgh’s Festivals
ABOUT US
EXPERTISE
A global research and consulting practice for culture and the creative economy
The report outlines the findings from a major study into the international activity of the Arts Council England-supported cultural ecosystem.
International Activity Report
Arts Council England
BOP Consulting was appointed to outline a pilot for a Creative Worker Income Guarantee for Brighton & Hove, working on behalf of the University of Sussex and the ABCD Cultural Recovery Programme.
Cultural, Creative and Collective Recovery: Exploring a Creative Worker Income Guarantee
University of Sussex
The report on how global cities tackle climate change with cultural policies and programmes. Insights from the World Cities Culture Forum's latest report.
The Green World Cities of Tomorrow: Culture and Sustainability – Special Report Prepared for WCCF Global Conversation
World Cities Culture Forum (WCCF)
Unique case guide is co-produced with the participating cities of WCCF, highlighting city examples and a global cities approach to evidenced-based policymaking.
Culture Counts: New Approaches to Evidence Based Cultural Policymaking in World Cities
World Cities Culture Forum (WCCF)
Working alongside CRAIC, a new research and collaboration centre at Loughborough University, we conducted an extensive survey of virtual production assets throughout the United Kingdom to map the country’s growing ecosystem.
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Loughborough University
The World Cities Culture Report (WCCR) 2022 builds on the ground-breaking 2018 and 2015 Reports. It gives insights on the major challenges world cities facing.
World Cities Culture Report 2022
World Cities Culture Forum (WCCF)
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BOP's contribution to the 2nd edition of the report UNESCO's Global Creativity Report, examining policies safeguarding the creative and cultural sectors.
UNESCO's Re|Shaping Policies for Creativity Report – Addressing culture as a global public good
UNESCO
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Inter-American Development Bank - IDB
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Culture: The cornerstone of the UK’s high streets
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BOP’s updated Handbook for the Inter-American Development Bank sets out strategies for sustainability and urban resilience
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Opportunities and Challenges of AI for the Cultural and Creative Industries
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Published today: ‘Design for Good: 90 Years of the RSA Student Design Awards’, a new publication from the RSA, co-authored by BOP
A History of Bright Ideas: 90 Years of the RSA Student Design Awards
The Royal Society for Arts (RSA)
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An evidence-base for the growing Gulf festivals sector
British Council
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Conscientiousness, optimism, and curiosity
Museums Galleries Scotland
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BOP’s report on creating a healthy night-time economy for the Nanjing City Government demonstrates the importance of cross-cutting policies.
Creating Healthy Night-time Economies in World Cities
Nanjing Creative Center
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Creativity in health settings
GOSH Arts
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Cultural Infrastructure for the 21st Century
Chengdu Media Group
Our new report for UNESCO sets out the huge global impact of COVID-19 on the cultural sector. We estimate $750 billion lost for the CCI and 10 million job cuts.
Economic impact of COVID-19 on the Cultural and Creative Industries
UNESCO
Our analysis of the strengths and challenges of music in the Midlands report published for Arts Council England.
Hitting the right notes in the Midlands
Arts Council England
