Creative Australia

A modernised Australia Council and a bold new chapter for arts and creativity, a new First Nations-led Board, Music Australia, Writing Australia, and Creative Workplaces.

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4 July 2024 

The Creative Australia Amendment (Implementation of Revive) Bill 2024 passes through Parliament 

The Parliament of Australia has passed the Creative Australia Amendment (Implementation of Revive) Bill 2024 today. This is the final piece of legislation in establishing all the functions of Creative Australia under the National Cultural Policy, Revive. Subject to the Bill receiving Royal Assent and confirmation of the commencement date, the Amendments allow us to establish the First Nations Board and First Nations division of Creative Australia (this year) and Writing Australia (next year). 

The First Nations Board will be appointed by Minister for the Arts, The Hon Tony Burke MP. Once the appointments are announced we will convene the first meeting of the First Nations Board, it is anticipated that at least one meeting will be held before the end of the year. 

Appointments to the Writing Australia Council will also be made by Minister for the Arts, The Hon Tony Burke MP. Writing Australia will commence from 1 July 2025. 

If you would like to express your interest in joining either the First Nations Board or the Writing Australia Council, please complete the form on the Office for the Arts website here. If you have any questions relating to the form, please contact  appointments@arts.gov.au.

We warmly welcome the appointments announced by the Hon Tony Burke MP, Minister for the Arts, to the Australia Council Board of Creative Australia, and to the Creative Workplaces and Music Australia Councils.

The Hon Tony Burke MP, Minister for the Arts, has introduced amendment legislation into the Parliament to establish the First Nations Board and First Nations division of Creative Australia. This builds on the 50-year history of the Australia Council for the Arts (now Creative Australia) investment in First Nations arts and culture.

The legislation also introduces Writing Australia, which will be established in 2025.

Once the Creative Australia Amendment (Implementation of Revive) Bill 2024 passes through the Parliamentary process and receives Royal Assent, all the elements that make up Creative Australia, as set out in the National Cultural Policy: Revive, will be in our governing legislation.

An action arising from the Australian Government’s National Cultural Policy: Revive, is for Creative Australia to create a works of scale fund, to support the commissioning of new Australian artistic works of scale. We are in the process of developing this new and exciting fund, which will be called the Creative Futures Fund.

We will be providing full details about the Creative Futures Fund, including the guidelines and the application opening and closing dates, by the end of May 2024.

Today we opened invitations to participate in the First Nations First community engagement and consultation.

The purpose of this consultation is to seek feedback on the establishment of Creative Australia’s new First Nations-led Board, and how it should implement, invest, and deliver on its role and responsibilities. Read more about the consultation process and how you can be involved here.

On Friday 30 January 2023 we welcomed the Australian Government’s National Cultural Policy – Revive; a place for every story, a story for every place. The centrepiece of Revive is the establishment of Creative Australia, an expanded and modernised Australia Council, a transformational step in the evolution of the organisation.

The Government has now passed the legislation to establish Creative Australia and its new functions, which are now in effect.

The Australia Council Amendment (Creative Australia) Act 2023, amended the Australia Council Act 2013, to transfer the functions of Creative Partnerships Australia, including staff, into the Australia Council, taking practical effect on Monday 3 July 2023. This creates synergies between public and private partnerships, as well as government and philanthropic investment. Find out more at creativepartnerships.gov.au.

As part of the transfer, we welcomed the Australian Cultural Fund (ACF) – a fee-free platform that supports and enables private giving to and through the arts. Through the ACF, artists upload their project, start their fundraising campaign, and invite art lovers and supporters to donate, with 100% of donations going directly towards artists’ creative projects.   Find out more at australianculturalfund.org.au.

The Creative Australia Act 2023 and the Creative Australia (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Act 2023 passed through the Senate on Friday 16 June 2023 and received Royal Assent on Friday 23 June 2023. Replacing the Australia Council Act 2013, this new legislation comes into effect on Thursday 24 August 2023.

The new legislation contains the following key provisions:

 

1. An increase in our Board
The number of available seats on the Board will increase from 12 to 14. Appointments to the Board will be made by the Minister.

 

2. The establishment of the Music Australia Council
A Council of eight representatives, with relevant and appropriate experience in music, will be appointed by the Minister for a term of four years. Appointments to the Council will be made by the Minister.

  • Their role is to advise the Board about the responsibilities of Music Australia, which are:
    • supporting and promoting Australian contemporary music practice
    • supporting and promoting the development of markets and audiences for Australian contemporary music.
  • The Chair of the Council is the CEO of Creative Australia.
  • A director of Music Australia will be appointed by the CEO, in consultation with the Minister.
  •  
    3. The establishment of the Creative Workplaces Council (Creative Workplaces is the official name for the Centre for Art and Entertainment Workplaces referred to in the National Cultural Policy – Revive).

  • A Council of six representatives, with relevant and appropriate experience, will be appointed by the Minister for a term of four years. Their role is to advise the Board about the responsibilities of Creative Workplaces, which are:
  • promoting fair, safe, and respectful workplaces for Australian artists, people employed, or engaged, by organisations that are engaged in, or supported by, Australian arts practice, people involved in Australian arts practice, and
  • providing information and advice about fair, safe, and respectful workplaces.
  • The Chair of the Council is an external appointment.
  • A director of Creative Workplaces will be appointed by the CEO, in consultation with the Minister.

The rest of the Act contains provisions that are carried across from the 2013 Act.

The Creative Australia (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Act 2023 – sets out that all our staff (which will include the staff that have transferred to us from Creative Partnerships Australia), assets, and liabilities will transition seamlessly in replacing the 2013 Act with the new Creative Australia legislation.

The establishment of the First Nations-led Board and Writers Australia will come later.


 

What happens next?

The Creative Australia Act 2023 and the Creative Australia (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Act 2023 received Royal Assent on Friday 23 June 2023, and come into effect on Thursday 24 August 2023.

As set out in the Creative Australia Act 2023, the Minister appoints the governing Board for Creative Australia, which will continue to be known as the Australia Council Board, and appoints the Councils of Music Australia and Creative Workplaces.

On Thursday 24 August 2023 we became Creative Australia and are in the process of setting up the first meetings of the Australia Council Board of Creative Australia, and the Councils of Music Australia and Creative Workplaces. The Board and Councils will, at these meetings, begin to establish their initial priorities and strategies.

We are working on the recruitment strategy for Music Australia and Creative Workplaces.

Read more about the Australia Council Board of Creative Australia, Creative Workplaces and Music Australia.

 


 

FAQs

Please note: these FAQs are a work in progress. Check back for updates or send your questions to ncp@creative.gov.au.

 

You can download a PDF of the National Cultural Policy: Revive via arts.gov.au. There is also a summary of the policy and an overview of the key pillars and principles.

The National Cultural Policy signals a bold new era for the Australia Council. In becoming Creative Australia, we will become a larger, modernised, creative investment and development agency, with a stronger focus on building public and private partnerships for maximum impact.

Our objective is clear: With artists at the heart of what we do, Creative Australia will connect Australian stories with audiences and build the marketplace for those stories to be shared on a national and international scale – enhancing our reputation and bringing our rich culture to the world.

In March 2023 the first tranche of legislation to establish Creative Australia, the Australia Council (Creative Australia) Amendment Act 2023, successfully passed through the Australian Parliament. This provides for the transfer arrangements for Creative Partnerships Australia (CPA) functions and staff, which took practical effect on Monday 3 July 2023.

CPA invests in the professional and business development of the arts and cultural sector to maximise partnership potential and long-term growth. CPA works with philanthropists and businesses to facilitate and champion arts partnerships and investment, and provides matched funding programs for artists and arts organisations. All functions, staff, and assets will transfer.

The second tranche of legislation, the Creative Australia Act 2023 and the Creative Australia (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Act 2023, passed the Australian Parliament on Friday 16 June 2023. These Acts establish Creative Australia and the governance arrangements for Music Australia and Creative Workplaces.

On Thursday 24 August 2023 the Australia Council became Creative Australia.

As set out in the Creative Australia Act 2023, the Minister appoints the governing Board for Creative Australia, which will continue to be known as the Australia Council Board, and appoints the Councils of Music Australia and Creative Workplaces.

  • Music Australia: will be informed by a Council of artists and industry expertise and will use the best possible industry advice to ensure strategic investment, whether in talent, in skills, in touring, or in export sales and building international markets.
  • Creative Workplaces: will promote fair, safe, and respectful workplaces for Australian artists, people employed, or engaged, by organisations that are engaged in, or supported by, Australian arts practice, people involved in Australian arts practice, and provide information and advice about fair, safe, and respectful workplaces.

In 2024 the following will occur:
Subject to legislation being introduced and funding received in 2024, a new First Nations-led Board will be established within Creative Australia. The First Nations-led Board will be established to invest in, create, and produce First Nations works of scale, with priorities and funding decisions determined by First Nations leaders. It will develop a First Nations Creative Workforce Development Strategy, and promote best practice cultural protocols, self-determination, and cultural safety training across arts and cultural organisations.

In 2025 the following will occur:
Subject to legislation being introduced and funding received on Tuesday 1 July 2025, Writers Australia will be established within Creative Australia. Informed by a Council of writers and industry expertise, Writers Australia will advise on how best to invest in supporting the creation, publication, promotion and sharing of Australian stories. It will also establish a Poet Laureate for Australia.

Creative Australia will be a bigger and bolder champion and investor in Australian arts and creativity. We’ll become a creative investment and development agency, with a stronger focus on building public and private partnerships for maximum impact. 

Given the scale of the new investments and functions of Creative Australia the Government has allowed for additional resourcing to deliver our objectives. These will be phased in over the coming years as we build Creative Australia and its new functions.

We are committed to equity and inclusion, and welcome applications from diverse communities, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, cultural and regional communities, and people with disability. 

You can find our current vacancies on our Careers page.

 

 

As it grows, Creative Australia will continue to have investment in and through artists as its focus. We will, as ever, be guided by artform and industry experts. The National Cultural Policy investments are staged incrementally, allowing Creative Australia to build new processes and respond to needs as they surface.

This investment will enable us to effectively support the sector through our existing programs to deliver greater impact in areas including youth and community arts.  

Amongst the people who come to us for funding, we see significant numbers of wonderful projects of real value that we have been unable to support within our current budget.  

The investment will flow from this year as we launch and build Creative Australia and there are staged investments to dedicated initiatives over the next three years. 

We will draw from the best expertise from across the public, private and commercial sectors to ensure the maximum impact and return on investment of public money. 

We know there is enormous return on even modest investment in arts and culture, and this additional funding provides the opportunity to invest in more projects of real value, for the benefit of all Australians. 

The National Cultural Policy transfers the functions of Creative Partnerships Australia (CPA) into Creative Australia. We have made a commitment to continue to deliver existing activities, including the Australian Cultural Fund, Plus 1, Awards, Capacity Building, and Research.

We are very much looking forward to taking on the functions of Creative Partnerships Australia. We recognise the excellent work that has been achieved in fostering private sector support for the arts over this past decade and welcome our CPA colleagues and the expertise they bring with them.

We are excited to continue this work and to explore new initiatives that will further attract and recognise public, and private sector partnerships in support of artists, cultural organisations, and the benefit of all Australians.

 

Creative Australia will continue to have an office premise in Sydney, and we’ll also have premises in Melbourne following the transfer of Creative Partnerships Australia. However, our staff work from a number of locations around the country and are not only Sydney/Melbourne based.

We’re committed to equity and inclusion, and welcome applications from diverse communities, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, cultural and regional communities, and people with disability. 

You can find our current vacancies on our Careers page.

You can find our tenders and opportunities open for proposals on our Procurement page.

Watch the recording of our launch, Thursday 24 August 2023 at Wharf 1, Sydney Theatre Company.

 


 

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Feedback and questions

We take our responsibility seriously to ensure maximum return on the investment of public funds, so it’s important we take this time to listen, and be guided by expertise across the sectors. We would love to hear from you, and we encourage you to provide your feedback on the new functions within Creative Australia.

Please refer to the detail of the policy when submitting your responses (particularly page 69), and make sure to watch our webinars on this page.

Please email the team at ncp@creative.gov.au.