S eCreCV?
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Sir: Patrick Marnham sees the Arts Council (Notebook, 1 April) as a little-understood organisation due to the 'secretive habits of bs functionaries'. In spite of the Kafkaesque idiom of that no doubt carefully chosen Phrase, the habits of the Council's 'functionaries would, I am afraid, be a disgrace even to the most inept Secret Intelbgence trainee. Being human, and therefore fallible, we transgress the first elementary rule of secrecy. by agreeing that there is
a need to find ways of better informing the public about our work.
It is true that the Council does not have any of the press at its meetings or those of its panels. This is not out of a stubborn desire to be dog-in-the-manger, as Mr Marnham suggests. The Council is aware of the arguments in favour of holding open meetings but at present it believes that on balance it would not be in the best interests of its clients if information made available to the Council by them were simultaneously known to the press. But in other ways, the Council has recently developed its information services in several directions. It has just appointed a Press Officer, who is available at all times to assist the media by making the Arts Council more accessible.
The Council publishes a free bi-monthly news bulletin; there is a press conference after each monthly Council meeting; the range of the Council's publications has been greatly extended and includes a comprehensive booklet on all the individual awards, bursary and commission schemes available. The Council's senior officers are readily available, and spend much of their time travelling the country to make the Council's work better known to local authorities, arts associations and clients, often in public meetings.
In addition the Arts Council has just started a' series of regular press briefings with its departmental directors. The 'functionaries' come face to face with the media, describe the work of their departments and answer all questions directed at them. The Council's shop in Sackville Street, London, is also a source of information and advice.
All these activities are complementary to the publication of the Council's Annual Report, which lists every subsidy offered during the year as well as containing a full report of current policies. Strange behaviour for a secretive animal?
Angus Stirling Deputy Secretary-General, Arts Council of Great Britain, 105 Piccadilly, London W1
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