Aligned to the recent Future Skills report, launched to government ministers in parliament during June 2022, at Kingston University we see creativity and creative subject areas as central to the development of future curriculum across the university and we are seeking to centralise creativity as core to the development of graduate attributes and creating sought after students. It is our responsibility to produce adaptable and employable students, resilient and open enough to add equitable and inclusive values to future employers.

The subject areas within Art and Design are finding themselves in increasingly challenging and somewhat precarious positions under new/proposed governmental educational policy directions. This challenges not only the existence of these subjects, given the reduction of opportunities at secondary-education and further-education levels to undertake creative courses, but their position within universities nationally, as can be seen by recent course closures and staffing reductions across the sector.

The governmental position around creative courses and programmes nationally, threatens the very notion of creativity and its place within academia.

Of real concern is the impact upon academia, but also opportunities for future students to engage meaningfully in a creatively focused educational journey, this also includes further impact on the national economy as well as the impact upon productive and positive societal change.

In many ways this proposes a reframing of the notion of creativity, in order to centralise it across all academic disciplines, with a focus through design thinking methodologies.

The agenda within the conference is to develop and embed aspirations at a cross-institutional level, and enabling our engagement with external stakeholders, industry, and future employers.

CHEAD members receive one free place at the Annual Conference with registration opening in December.

For more information, please contact Anna Maloney, Director of Membership and Operations via: anna@chead.ac.uk