In the last issue of Dance UK News I wrote about DanceVote 2010,
www.dancevote2010.com, the campaign devised by Dance UK and a steering group of our sister support organisations, to put dance on the agenda of local political candidates in the run-up to the general election.
So, here we stand, post election, in a new era, and what did the campaign achieve
1,355 people sent over 3,000 DanceVote 2010 emails. 260 candidates sent detailed replies, revealing an amazing array of connections to dance and in some cases, genuine passions.
85 of those who had pledged their support for dance went on to be elected MPs. That’s an amazing 13% of the total number of 650 MPs.
Dance, against all the odds, became an election issue in one of the hardest fought campaigns of the last 20 years. The New York Times even ran a feature highlighting that candidates standing for election were being challenged on their attitudes towards dance (much to The Guardian newspaper’s amusement)!
Feedback about the DanceVote campaign has been incredibly positive.
Catherine Busk, dance artist and Dance UK member emailed us to say: ‘The website is excellent. So easy to send a letter. Fab work guys!’
Deb Barnard wrote: ‘I have to say, I am extremely impressed with this use of technology – what an excellent, excellent initiative. Good to see things jumping forward.’
Why having a Steering Committee worked:
Having the support of the 18 organisations which sat on the steering committee and helped financially to create the website made all the difference. Not only did Dance UK have a powerful group of people to work with to set the key messages we communicated, we also had a way of activating thousands of dance fans through their audiences, staff and company members.
Companies and dance artists were incredibly generous and provided free use of footage of performances for the DanceVote 2010 film. In the end, we had more than we could possibly squeeze into the short 90 second advert. Sadler’s Wells edited it for free and posted it on their youtube channel, keeping the costs down and widening the audience.
Sarah Dekker emailed Dance UK, ‘Just to say I really enjoyed watching the video! It cheered me up and reminded me why I work in dance, which sometimes I forget!!’
Why does talking to MPs matter
The impact of dance working to communicate with politicians over the long term was clearly proved when David Cameron announced his new cabinet appointments and known dance champions were appointed to key positions.
Jeremy Hunt MP, the new Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport attended his first contemporary dance performance with Dance UK, (La La La Human Steps). He has attended several performances with the All Party Parliamentary Dance Group and chose Dance East’s Jerwood DanceHouse as the location for the party political broadcast that he presented on Channel 4.
Ed Vaizey MP, the new Culture Minister regularly attends dance performances and his chief of staff, Helen Burrows, used to be Dance UK’s information and communications officer.
Anne Milton MP, the new Health Minister was the first Vice Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Dance Group. And Chris Huhne MP, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change is a member of the All Party Parliamentary Dance Group and a big supporter of dance and The Point in Eastleigh.
The new Sports Minister, Hugh Robertson MP met with Dance UK in April 2008, to talk about the ambitious Olympics inspired research project looking at dancers’ injuries, the causes, and how dance and sports can share health facilities. This is the project led by Dance UK, Laban, Jerwood Centre for Prevention and Treatment of Dancers’ Injuries, and University of Wolverhampton.
Mr Robertson gave Dance UK the following statement of support: ‘Professional dancers require a level of physical fitness equal to that required by the very elite level of athletes and sports stars. It is, therefore, vital that they have some measure of protection from the injuries that can blight their careers and I could not welcome this scheme more wholeheartedly.’
DanceVote 2010 – what next
Now the DanceVote 2010 campaign has helped us identify the politicians who will support dance we need to get back in touch with them and ask them to follow through on their pledges.
Dance UK has changed the message on the DanceVote site, so you can easily send congratulations emails to your new MP by simply typing in your postcode.
The email will ask him or her to visit local dance activities, join the All Party Parliamentary Dance Group and attend a special celebratory event called Dancing on Parliament, which is planned for Thursday 8 July, 12 - 2pm.
Dancing on Parliament is a public event which is part of Big Dance and will see a double decker bus with a pop out dance floor parked on Horse Guards Parade near parliament. Dance UK, English National Ballet, Westminster Council, Arts Council England and the Big Dance Bus team are arranging short performances by local dance groups and companies.
We are inviting all MPs and members of the All Party Parliamentary Dance Group to come and watch the dancing and meet the performers and their local constituents. The event will be a celebration of the richness and diversity of dance in Britain.
If you want to come along to Dancing on Parliament and meet your MP contact Caroline at Dance UK on 020 7713 0730 and Dance UK will work with you to arrange a meeting with them.
Spending cuts – why now is the time to keep talking to MPs
The new government has already announced emergency budget cuts with the Department for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport receiving a cut of £88 million and then passing to Arts Council England a £19 million cut which it has to cope with in this year’s budget.
This is just the beginning. The comprehensive spending review (CSR), which will take place in the autumn, will result in further cuts in the next three year’s budgets for government departments.
In Scotland – as part of the £6.2 billion package of cuts, the Scottish Government will receive a £332 million reduction in its devolved budget from UK Government but this will not come into effect until 2011/12. In the meantime the Scottish Government has committed to maintaining the current funding levels of Scottish Arts Council and Scottish Screen when they merge to become Creative Scotland on 1 July 2010.
As we’ve said before – it is at times like these when dance professionals really need to communicate with politicians. Giving politicians POSITIVE information about the success and impact of dance activities nationally, and importantly, LOCALLY will help them understand why investment in dance offers value for money. If they feel a sense of civic pride in the arts and dance in their area, they are more likely to feel justified defending it.
If spending cuts are being made, we don’t want dance activity to be the easiest thing to cut because politicians do not have knowledge of local dance activity.
Please go to www.dancevote2010.com today and email a congratulations message to your new MP. Together, we’ve already seen, we can make a difference.
www.dancevote2010.com 
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