| Visions and Goals
Collaboration with the leisure and cultural industries has been a key aspect of the work of the Institute. Our visions and goals are:
• to demonstrate how the leisure and cultural industries can contribute to wider regeneration strategies through developing a better understanding of the wider social, economic and cultural impact of these industries;
• to develop innovative methodologies for analyzing the nature and impact of the cultural industries;
• to monitor the effect of policy changes in this field.
Operating Principles
A key feature of our work is the multidisciplinary approach we are able to take by virtue of the wide-ranging backgrounds and interests of our research team. Our work also incorporates a commitment to:
• working with user groups and local communities rather than for them;
• a partnership approach to working — with other agencies and local communities;
• working in a way that appreciates diversity and is culturally sensitive- both within our own team and amongst our partners, clients and stakeholders.
Main Markets and Constituencies
Research and consultancy in this area has included studies for a diverse range of agencies including local authorities, government departments (particularly the Department for Culture, Media and Sport), regeneration agencies and national bodies such as the Sports Council and the Health Education Authority.
Specific studies have also received support from funding bodies such as the Nuffield Foundation, the Leverhume Trust and the European Union.
Expertise Offered/Provided
Research staff are drawn from academia, industry, government and the voluntary sector and can offer specialist expertise in the arts and cultural industries, film, gambling, hospitality, museums, parks and outdoor recreation, and tourism planning.
Our work has included:
• Economic and social impact studies
• Cultural audits
• Feasibility studies
• Mapping and auditing studies
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Recent and Current Activities
Recent and current work in this area includes:
• Cultural and Urban Planning
Extensive research into parks and outdoor recreation sites has been carried out by the Centre, including a four year study for the royal Parks Agency on the users of the nine Royal Parks of London. This study is the largest ever observation of parks usage with over 35,000 interviews conducted.
• Gambling and Public Policy
The Centre for Leisure and Tourism Studies (CELTS) within the Institute has been host to the National Lottery Research database and publishes an annual research digest on the Social and Economic Impact of the National Lottery, on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). It is also interested in the ways in which women gamble, and the pleasures that they find through participating in these activities and is investigating the implications of casino gambling for residents and tourists in the UK and elsewhere.
• Cultural economics and economic history
Members of the Institute have received support from the Leverhume Foundation to research film going and risk in film production in the UK and USA and have been developing innovative methods for analysing box office records and patterns of popularity.
• Sports Culture
The Research into Sports Culture (RiSC) group provides a focus for research into the social sciences of sport within the Institute. The group includes researchers with background or expertise in psychology, sociology, anthropology, policy analysis and geography. RiSC exists not only to build on and extend well-established areas of research in sport, but also to stimulate new research developments and paradigms.
• Leisure and social exclusion
Current research projects in the Centre include the use of leisure and tourism as tools with which to explore social exclusion in leisure participation. Specific research projects include tourism amongst ethnic minority groups, focussing on the problems that racism and prejudice impose on such groups, and the impact of class, gender and sexuality on leisure and sport participation.
• Transport and social exclusion
The Transport Research and Consultancy Centre (TraC) has carried out extensive research into cultural industries, with specific reference to exclusion and inclusion with regard to access and personal mobility. Recent contracts of TraC have included Social Equality and Transport Organisations (Canadian High Commission); Jubilee Line Impact Study (Transport for London); Open Space Standards for London (LPAC/Greater London Authority); cultural Industries and Success /factors in the Regeneration of Canadian Cities (Canadian High Commission).
For more details of projects in this area go to projects |
