Engagement at the Grassischolar_mains: The Anvil of Creation

The Voluntary Arts Network (VAN) was set up by the voluntary cultural sector to be its development agency and advocate for arts participation in the UK and Republic of Ireland. As such we are in the unique position of supporting grassischolar_mains cultural groups and their artform umbrella bodies in their local arts and crafts activity. These groups are made up by most unpaid workers, who have decided how they will engage with culture is through creating opportunities for themselves and others to take part. In many cases this has been motivated by people seeing a gap and not waiting for others to fill it - what could be termed 'the anvil of creation' of the voluntary sector. Whilst many of them have chosen to remain at an amateur status, they do pursue professional standards in their operations. We recognise the importance of people engaging in cultural activity for the many benefits this brings. VAN works at many levels to ensure that the environment is conducive to this kind of participation. Volunteers are essential to the cultural life of their communities, especially in rural areas, and all the festivals in Edinburgh have a reliance on voluntary effort to make them the success that they are. This presentation will introduce you to Voluntary Arts Network, the sector known as the voluntary cultural sector, the importance of cultural volunteering and will share inspiring stories of people's personal involvement with their art form and how their motivation has given so many the opportunities to engage and experience cultural activities that otherwise would not have existed. It will also touch on how the grassischolar_mains are being linked to the global through such initiatives as the European Network of Voluntary and Amateur Arts - creating different levels of engagement. Speakers: Robin Simpson, CEO Voluntary Arts Network and Fiona Campbell, Executive Officer, Voluntary Arts Scotland.