Since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister in July 2026, we have been promised a long-awaited Ten Year Plan. Burnham aims to outline the journey from “where we are now to where […] we all want Britain to be,” according to his speech from outside No.10 the day he became PM. During his time spent as Mayor of Greater Manchester, Burnham became known for his work in the arts, but did his achievements create a long-standing impact for the independent arts sector, and can his attitudes towards the arts in Manchester be transferred to his time as prime Minister and to Britain as a whole?
Andy Burnham was a pioneer for the arts sector of Greater Manchester during his time as mayor. He oversaw and championed the opening of Aviva Studios, the multi million pound venue housing Factory International, the organisation behind Manchester International Festival (MIF) and founded The Greater Manchester Town of Culture Award that supplies a local town with £50,000 to support local arts. These initiatives propelled Manchester into the international arts scene while ensuring that arts funding is not concentrated in the city centre. However, according to The Arts Newspaper, there were worries that, by prioritising international impact, Burnham was unable to foster strong relationships with independent local artists and schemes across the region.
By creating an image of himself as a pioneer to the arts, I think Andy Burnham owes it to Britain to transfer these hopeful approaches to his work as PM. He has shown us that he values the diversification and inclusivity of the arts and I would love to see him shift the attention away from major cities, including and valuing rural areas for their contribution to Britain’s creative industry. Unfortunately, in Burnham’s first speech as PM, he spoke about his passion and plans for many different areas, and the arts was not one of them. He showed us that the arts are not a priority for him – this is why they should be.
One of Burnham’s aims as PM is the reindustrialisation of Britain, and he needs to consider the creative industry’s contribution. Through his plans for reindustrialisation, the creative industry could be treated as an essential part of Britain’s economy, an asset to our manufacturing supply chain and a government interested in producing more things within Britain. His emphasis on technical and vocational education is in incredible opportunity to champion young artists and arts education, a sector that is always the first to suffer, as we can see in the increasing defunding of the arts across the country’s schools and universities.
But it is important to remember that the creative industry and the arts sector are different things. Burnham needs to value the arts for its social and cultural importance, not just their economic value. Britain needs a supported independent arts sector as well as a financially successful creative industry.
In order to do this, Burnham needs to consider the arts, not only as an integral part of his Ten Year Plan, but as a valuable part of the kind of Britain he wants to build. He needs to place the arts at the centre of his plan to reindustrialise Britain.
The Ten Year Plan should support creative manufacturing in Britain, building connections between art schools and manufacturers, as well as providing more funding for arts initiatives across the country. Funding needs to be put in place so that children are not deprived of an arts education because of financial barriers. It is becoming increasingly clear that, when a school or university is struggling, arts is the first to be cut, leaving many working-class children far away from the pedestal society has placed it on. Structures should also be put in place to make pursuing a creative career more stable. Freelancers should have better employment protections, there should be more paid internships and entry level jobs, pricing for studios and workspaces should be controlled, affordable and accessible. Artists have too long been expected to subsidise their own practice, putting up with low paying jobs just to break into the industry, and it’s about time that they are treated like the skilled members of the workforce they are.
Andy Burnham has the resources and mindset to do these things, and I hope that his 10 Year Plan reflects this.
“10 Downing Street, SW1” by Leonard Bentley is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
