£35m to support and develop arts

The development of the new £35 million academy for the performing arts is much more than a limited gesture in the area of professional training, the Minister for Education and Science, Mr Martin, has said.

The academy's headquarters and central facilities will be at Dublin City University. A second campus is to be developed at the University of Limerick's Irish World Music Centre. Undergraduate professional dance training will be provided at the Firkin Crane Dance Development Agency in Cork. And a Centre for Creative Practice is to be set up to "regenerate and enhance" the skills of teachers and performers through "continuing professional development".

The minister also said yesterday that he hoped to announce "an initiative to put in place a fully comprehensive policy in relation to arts education." He said the Government was "stating unequivocally for the first time in our history that it intends to make a major, long-term investment in encouraging and supporting the development of artistic talent in this country".

The £35 million is being provided as part of the National Development Plan. The significance of this, he said, was that it "places the importance of artistic talent on a par with the many other, more traditional, physical development needs".

He attempted to assuage the fears of existing educational institutions by stressing that the new academy was not to be seen as "one single, State-supported provider of training in the performing arts". Instead, he wants it to be read as the start of a radical rethink of the place of the arts in education.

"It is not enough," he said, "to have a policy for advanced training in the performing arts if you do not also encourage and support more basic provision in all parts of the education system." The formal announcement of the academy has been expected since before Christmas. The institution will be developed over the next five years, and will have its own, independent governing body.

A planning and steering group, representing two Government departments, Arts and Heritage and Education and Science - as well as outside bodies, will be set up to plan the detailed development of this landmark development. The steering group will address widespread complaints of a secretive approach to the development of the new academy and will engage in "extensive consultations" when carrying out its work.

Although most of the discussion in relation to the academy has focused on music, it will provide a national qualifications certification framework for drama and dance as well.

It is envisaged that existing study programmes from the Gaiety School of Acting and the Royal Irish Academy of Music will be "incorporated" into the new institution. What this will involve has yet to be revealed.