France/ 8.2 Cultural consumption and participation  

8.2.2 Policies and programmes

The programmes of cultural policy concern essentially:

• respect for and the development of cultural diversity;
• use of new technologies; and
• innovation in the cultural industries.

However, other fields are always on the agenda because they constitute the background of everyday cultural life in France. Here are some examples.

Artistic education and cultural mediation

The democratisation of culture is a major theme of government political action aimed at increasing attendance levels for heritage and creative works and amateur activities in all artistic disciplines. Without adequate mediation, real encounters with cultural heritage and art works are extremely rare. Arts education is fundamental to France's cultural development policy. Relevant programmes are implemented via specialised training under the Ministry of Culture and Communication and local authorities and via training under the national education system. See also  chapter 8.3.1.

Although it is never the only obstacle, and seldom the only deciding factor, admission prices to cultural facilities tend to curb the cultural participation of a good number of people and young people in particular. The question of admission charges appears to be a vital element in the move toward cultural democratisation. Numerous cultural structures have made significant efforts to reduce admission charges, especially for young people and the underprivileged. Young people under 18 benefit from free entry to national monuments and national museums. Since 1 October 1999, the 98 state-owned monuments offer free admission on one Sunday per month, outside of the tourist period (1 October - 31 March). The national museums adopted this measure on 1 January 2000. Certain cities, like Paris, gave permission for the exemption from payment to their museums.

An assessment of the scheme offering a standard admission price (8 euros) on Thursdays for all national theatres indicates that the people benefiting from it were mainly students, followed by visitors and regular theatre-goers, and thus the measure was not successful in attracting new audiences. Thus, there is a clear need for a communication policy aimed at targeted audiences and, more generally, escorted visits.

A "Culture Cheque" scheme for high school students (15-20 years) has been introduced. This system has already been applied in the Rhône-Alpes région. In contrast to the subscription cards which provide entry to specified cultural establishments, the culture cheque can be used in different establishments (cinemas, theatres, museums, libraries). An assessment of these experiments indicated that culture cheques serve not only as a pricing mechanism, but also as a means to foster new relationships with culture by demystifying cultural spaces, improving cultural choice and "customer" loyalty, broadening interests, etc...