Via our member Kulturhusene i Danmark (the national network of cultural houses in Denmark), we received this report on data collection about cultural centres in the context of the DELTAG project. DELTAG follows up on the RECCORD research project, carried out in participation with the ENCC, which focused on participation in cultural centres across Europe.
Researchers from Aarhus University have finalized a first of its kind nationwide survey of Danish cultural centres. The survey is part of the project PARTICIPATE (‘DELTAG’), a research and development project that runs from 2019 until 2022, as a collaboration between Aarhus University and the Danish ENCC member, Kulturhusene I Danmark, and supported by Norda-fondenAssociate. Professor Louise Ejgod Hansen and PhD student Karen Nordentoft published the results in an open-access report that draws on data from 308 responding cultural centres.
The survey shows that Danish cultural centres facilitate many activities, such as audience events to creative and practical activities facilitated by staffers and citizens. Centres combine artistic and cultural content along with political, social, and craft activities. Concerts and lectures usually make up the most widespread program content. However, the most common activities that users participate in are political gatherings, music, games and physical activities like dance or yoga.
According to the survey, adults and seniors are the most common target groups, whereas children and young people are targets in about half of the cultural centres. One out of three centres works with marginalised or underrepresented groups in society. Users generally have the opportunity to influence the operations of these cultural centres. The extent to which varies between groups and regions. Also, the capacity of the centres differs significantly. In 2019, one out of five cultural centres had a turnover below €13,500, while one out of ten could write up to €1.35 million in their annual report.
Slightly more than half of all cultural centres have zero or 1 to 3 employees. This, perhaps, explains the economic disparities between cultural centres.
Furthermore, the survey includes main public libraries that answered to pre-defined criteria. The report also analyzes the variations in responses from non-library cultural centres and library cultural centres. It stresses the legal and financial preconditions, organizational, and geospatial variations between those surveyed.
The survey report (in Danish) is free to download. For further information about research-related matters, contact Associate Professor Louise Ejgod Hansen. For information on the general project, contact Project Manager Søren Ohlsen.
- Karen Nordentoft, PhD Student, Aarhus University
