The data is in
103 of you helped us with our North East Cultural Freelancers income transparency survey - thank you!
“There does not feel like enough opportunities to go around all the great Creatives in the North. There is often not enough thought around notice for freelancers with an understanding of how they have to plan their whole year. The bar is pretty low for fees. Most offers are still a £150 day rate. Things haven’t moved on in over 20 years with regard rates of pay.”
Income, money and making it work in the North East Creative and Cultural Sector
Over summer, we ran an open survey for all freelancers/ self employed creatives to learn more about the employment of our cultural sector colleagues in the North East.
We called this an ‘income transparency project’ and gave participants the option to remain anonymous. 42 people out of 103 decided to remain anonymous.
Of the people who took part in the google form survey, here are the categories of work they do;
Here is a list with similar jobs grouped together logged in the survey so you can see the breadth and diversity of roles from those who took part. We heard from people working in:
Visual Art and Illustration
Writing and Literature
Dance, Movement, and Performance Arts
Music and Community Engagement
Marketing, Communications, and Project Management
Creative Producing and Consultancy
Education and Facilitation
Heritage and Research
Photography and Digital Arts
Multidisciplinary and General Creative Practices
We see the diversity and range of roles that combine creative, educational, management, and community-focused practices in the arts and culture sector in the North East but it’s not an exhaustive list.
“So many companies never pay invoices on time! I have recently had to stop working for a charity due to the continual avoidance of paying invoices for work that I have already completed. Many orgs will say they don’t have enough money/funding to afford me reasonable hours outside of singular funded projects. It really makes you question your worth.”
Our motivation was to help educate from the inside out and model new ways of working by sharing information with our colleagues. This is a top level data set and needs to be paired with comments and interviews from real people in the sector to give more of a full picture. We know our colleagues but we can get stuck in an echo chamber. Our challenge to you is to seek out those doing work you’re curious about.
Want to run a studio or co-working space? Ask someone who does? Curious about selling online worldwide, come and talk to
.You can listen to some conversations around this topic from creative freelancers and artists in the
podcast right here.Our Income Transparency questions were presented in a google form and the results are below… we invite further comments and questions, do let us know how this lands with you?
(Positive) Food for thought…
Interestingly, we do see potential in more earning online and international partnerships. There is also frustration at the North East feeling left behind and confused in the push for equal/fair pay. There’s a call for more transparency and support so we align our income potential with the wider arts sector in the rest of the UK and don’t undersell our skills.
There’s a theme of competition, lack and worry with many freelancers commenting they take lower rates of pay than they can afford to secure the work.
There’s also a recognition of the positive shift towards being paid for meetings and preparatory time. There’s a sense the sector is pulling itself up a better and fairer playing field but there’s still work to do.
“I’m interested in better understanding the ways NECF can influence government policy in long term around sustainable arts funding including investment in arts education , provision for self employed parents, provision for self employed disabled people, working with local government towards provision of long term low cost leases, on buildings for arts organisations so artists are not required to make regular costly and disruptive studios moves.
We want to work with local government on developing schemes to support north east artists wanting to work nationally and internationally
Leila D’aronville
The Data Set
How cultural freelancers class their employment
60% freelance
20% both employed and self employed
8% solo prenueur
7% a small company
3% other
2% limited company
The median annual salary for full-time workers in the UK is around £33,000. The median is often considered a better indicator than the average, as it reduces the impact of extremely high or low salaries. This means that with 27% of our survey earning under £10k, 21% earning under £15k and 19% earning under £22k we have almost 70% of our survey participants earning under the median.
Regional Differences: Salaries can vary significantly depending on the UK region.
London: Higher than the national average, with median full-time earnings often exceeding £40,000.
South East England: Close to London’s average, with median salaries around £35,000 to £38,000.
Northern Ireland, Wales, and North East England: Generally lower, with median salaries closer to £28,000 to £30,000.
The average salary for arts professionals in the UK is £25,000 with some sources stating average is between £25-35k.
Onto our results…
“Pushing for more consistent and reasonable day rates and for travel expenses as a norm. And that admin and meeting time is costed when working on projects. Sone organisations absolutely get this, others not. Charities and arts and heritage organisations have had budgets slashed for so long that they are not commissioning as much work. Projects are mostly short term. Some organisations pay day rates that are too low. As we have larger rural parts to our region and some organisations don't pay travel expenses to their freelance staff, this can affect income considerably”
“Can we focus more on the rural?”
“The project creep thing would be a good discussion. I don't know if commissioners realise that things like creating images aren't quick little jobs.”
“Many organisations are frightened about employing artists who are overtly political.”
“On Silos - people are pigeonholed and cajoled into niche areas or work and people forget how transferable skills and values are when working with individuals from this sector.”
“I'm interested in transparency around take home pay. The artists who seem to be flying, when you dig, are subsidised by a partner or wealth.”
Challenges
1. Seasonal and Unstable Income:
Many creatives and freelancers in Northumberland face a feast-or-famine cycle, especially due to the seasonal nature of outdoor events and cultural activities, which are weather-dependent. The inconsistency in income forces some to take up unrelated work in quieter months, like winter.
2. Chronic Underfunding and Unpaid Work:
Organisations, particularly in the arts, heritage, and charity sectors, are underfunded, often resulting in late payments and below-market rates for freelancers. The pressure to undercharge and unpaid work—like preparation and administrative tasks—affect sustainability and lead to burnout.
3. Inadequate Support for Mid-Career and Established Artists:
Funding and development opportunities are heavily skewed towards early-career artists. There is a lack of long-term strategic support for mid-career and established creatives. Many suggest extending Arts Council England (ACE) funding cycles to 4-6 years to allow for more sustainable planning and development.
4. Accessibility and Location Challenges:
Northumberland's rural nature and the lack of local cultural infrastructure, such as studios and exhibition spaces, increase travel costs and limit access to national and international networks. This isolation reduces opportunities for collaborations and income diversification.
5. Frequent Relocations and Insecure Studio Spaces:
Due to the short-term leases on buildings, artists often have to move studios, which is highly disruptive. This instability impacts financial planning, the ability to take on larger commissions, and the accessibility of essential equipment.
6. High Application Costs with Low Success Rates:
Applying for funding, commissions, and grants is time-consuming and often requires detailed proposals with no compensation for time spent. This challenge is compounded by the low success rates of these applications, further stressing financial and operational planning.
7. Health, Disability, and Care Challenges:
There is a lack of understanding and support from commissioning organisations regarding the impacts of health, disability, and caregiving responsibilities on artists. Flexible childcare, education options, and reasonable adjustments are not adequately funded or provided for.
These points highlight the urgent need for more robust funding, strategic support, and sustainable practices to ensure the growth and stability of Northumberland's creative sector.
“Just to add that in the income question a big part of this for me is sales of skills/ experiences (rather than physical pieces of art). And most of this comes through word of mouth, recommendations, networking, connections (I don’t have a website) . For me reputation & connections and people passing on my name is so crucial to being able to survive as a freelancer.”
We would like to take the opportunity to thank you again for your time in supporting our work and would love to hear from you in the comments
Team Culture Northumberland
