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About the Sector Support Network
About the Sector Support Network
The UK cultural sector is powered not only by artists, venues, festivals, and producers, but by a wide range of organisations working behind the scenes to support, strengthen, and sustain cultural activity.
This Network brings those organisations together in one place.
The Sector Support Network is a collaborative, UK-wide network of Sector Support Organisations (SSOs), Investment Principle Support Organisations (IPSOs), and national cultural networks. Our shared purpose is to make the cultural ecosystem more resilient, equitable, and effective by ensuring that the organisations who support artists and arts organisations are visible, connected, and understood.
What is a Sector Support Organisation?
What is a Sector Support Organisation?
A Sector Support Organisation (SSO) is an organisation that primarily exists to support the cultural sector, rather than to produce or present artistic work directly.
Sector support organisations may work locally, regionally, nationally, or internationally. They often specialise in a particular artform, professional group, community, or area of practice.
Typical areas of support include:
Professional development and training
Research, data, and insight
Advocacy and policy development
Equity, access, and inclusion
Environmental sustainability
Leadership and organisational development
Freelance support and workforce wellbeing
Networks, membership, and peer learning
Some SSOs also deliver artistic programmes, but their core role is to enable others to create, present, and sustain culture.
Why This Network Exists
Why This Network Exists
Sector support organisations play a vital role in enabling cultural life across the UK. They strengthen artists, organisations, and communities by providing expertise, networks, advocacy, and long-term infrastructure.
This network exists to:
Make visible the organisations that support culture behind the scenes
Bring clarity to the different forms of support available across the sector
Connect artists and organisations to the expertise they need to thrive
Strengthen understanding of sector support as essential cultural infrastructure
Create a shared space for collaboration, learning, and collective voice
By bringing sector support organisations together in one place, the network helps ensure that the systems sustaining culture are as strong, connected, and resilient as the creativity they enable.
This network exists to address that gap.
Our aims are to:
Make sector support organisations easy to find in one place
Clarify the distinct role SSOs play in the cultural ecosystem
Support collaboration rather than duplication
Strengthen collective advocacy and visibility
Improve how sector support impact is understood and measured
How This Network Works
How This Network Works
The Sector Support Network is a peer-led, collaborative space.
It is not a funder or a governing body.
We bring organisations together to:
Share knowledge and resources
Identify gaps and overlaps in provision
Develop shared language and frameworks
Support fairer funding, policy, and assessment structures
Strengthen the long-term sustainability of the cultural sector
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