Quick and easy culture stats for local government

The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), Arts Council England and Sport England announce the re-launch of the Active People Diagnostic (APD).

The online reporting and analysis tool provides quick and easy access to Active People Survey results allowing local authorities to investigate public participation and non-participation in culture and sports in their local areas.

For the first time, the revamped APD site includes a new Active People Culture module on library, museum & gallery use and arts participation that provides the baseline data for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s National Indicators 9-11. This data can be investigated using a wide range of demographic characteristics allowing users to build up a complex picture at several different geographical levels.

MLA Director of Engagement North, Keith Bartlett, says: "The new APD culture module is a valuable resource to help local authorities and other stakeholders understand who their cultural service users are. The MLA’s involvement demonstrates our commitment to supporting local authorities to deliver better outcomes - helping them to make more effective decisions about how to deliver and develop their cultural services."

To register to use the APD free of charge, go to: http://www.webreport.se/apd/login.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fapd%2fDefault.aspx

For more information on the APD and Active People Culture, please login to the NI 9 and 10 Community of Practice web site. http://www.communities.idea.gov.uk/c/815391/home.do and visit the forum. Additional guidance on using the APD will also be added to the NI 9 and 10 COP in the next few weeks.

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Notes to editor:

• The APD Culture development has been funded by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council and Arts Council England
• APD has been available since December 2006 when Active People Survey 1 results were published - it currently has over 5,000 registered users from a wide variety of local, regional, and national organisations.
• Active People Survey 2 (APS2) ran from Oct 2007 to Oct 2008 (results published in Dec 2008). The new site will have a similar structure to the current one, but it will enable the analysis of both APS1 and APS2 results. Users can look at where significant changes have occurred.