Impact assessment of the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art

Modelling the economic impact of arts venues and cultural activities is relatively new. Traditionally the sector has tended to rely on arguments focussing on aesthetic values. There has, however, been increasing pressure on the arts to justify its value in economic, educational and social terms in order to compete for funding and accurately measure impact.

BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art commissioned ERS to undertake an assessment of its economic, social and cultural impacts over the past five years and its potential future contribution to the local area, the region and the arts sector generally.

The research seeks to capture:

• Employment impacts (direct, indirect and induced);
• GVA impacts (direct, indirect and induced);
• Impact on numbers of visitors to NewcastleGateshead and their spend;
• BALTIC’s broader contributions to the economic, educational and social well being on the local area, the sub-region and the region; and
• BALTIC’s place in the wider cultural landscape.

ERS Contact: Keith Burge kburge@ers.org.uk 0191 244 6102