We are grateful to all those who provided expert advice and guidance on this report, especially the members of our Advisory Group: Amanda Decker (Cultural Strategy Coordinator, Greater London Authority); Shaun Fradd (Head of Philanthropy, Design Museum); Emma Gould (Head of Youth Policy and Engagement, Roundhouse); Abid Hussain (Director, Diversity, Arts Council England); Michelle May (Director of Socio-Economic Regeneration, London Legacy Development Corporation); Jenny Mollica (Head of Creative Learning, Barbican); Renee Odjidja (Swarovski Foundation Curator, Youth Programmes, Whitechapel Gallery); Anamik Saha (Senior Lecturer in Media and Communications, Goldsmiths, University of London); Jakhya Rahman (Director, Swarovski Foundation); Lucy Shepherd (Foundation Manager, Swarovski Foundation); and Trino Verkade (Chief Executive, Sarabande: The Lee Alexander McQueen Foundation). We would also like to thank the employers we have interviewed, as well as roundtable attendees from London universities and colleges for generously offering their time and expertise to the project.

This report has been greatly enriched by our focus groups with young people who are looking to enter cultural occupations. We are especially grateful to them for sharing their experiences with us, and to A New Direction and the Whitechapel Gallery for hosting two focus groups with the young people they support as part of their programmes. Thanks are due to our colleagues at Centre for London – particularly Richard Brown for steering and contributing to this project. The views in this report are nevertheless those of the authors alone, and any omissions or mistakes remain our own. Finally, we would like to thank Swarovski Foundation for funding this research. Without their generous support this report would not have been possible.