A Case Study in Policy Delivery:Examining Social Inclusion through Interpretation and Practice

The current body of literature regarding social inclusion and the arts tends to focus <br/>on two areas: the lack of clear or common understanding of the terminology involved <br/>(GLLAM, 2000) and the difficulty in measuring impact (Newman 2001). Further, much <br/>of the literature traces the historical evolution of social inclusion policy within the arts <br/>from a political and social perspective (Belfiore & Bennett, 2007), whilst others <br/>examine the situation in the context of the museum as an institution more generally <br/>(Sandell, 2002b). Such studies are essential; however they only touch on the <br/>importance of understanding the context of social inclusion programmes. As each <br/>individual’s experience of exclusion (or inclusion) is argued to be different (Newman <br/>et al., 2005) and any experience is also process-based (SEU 2001), there is a need <br/>for more thorough examination of the processes underpinning project delivery <br/>(Butterfoss, 2006), particularly within a field that has its own issues of exclusion, such <br/>as the arts (Bourdieu & Darbel, 1991). This paper presents case study findings of a <br/>programme of contemporary arts participation for adults with learning difficulties <br/>based at an arts centre in Liverpool. By focusing on practice, the paper applies <br/>Wenger’s (1998) social theory of learning in order to assert that rather than search <br/>for measurable impacts, examining the delivery of programmes within their individual <br/>contexts will provide the basis for a more reflective practice and thus more effective <br/>policy making. <br/>