Active cultural participation is primarily (financially) supported by local governments. Most municipalities subsidise amateur arts associations, such as choirs, theatre groups and orchestras, as well as the facilities these associations use. Nearly seventy per cent of municipalities have a dedicated fund for children and young people growing up in poverty, enabling them to participate in cultural or sporting activities (Youth Fund for Sport and Culture). At the same time, in the past decades, there have been municipal budget cuts affecting (active) cultural participation. Provincial authorities also play a (smaller) role in cultural participation, trough provincial institutions supporting cultural education and participation (joined in the Council of Twelve), the provincial Heritage Houses (joined in OPEN)
The Ministery of Education, Culture and Science and the associations of municipalities (VNG) and provinces (IPO) have signed the Bestuurlijke Afspraken Cultuurbeoefening 2025-2028 (administrative agreements on cultural participation). The core principle of the administrative agreements is that municipalities, provinces, and the national government work together to promote active cultural participation for everyone in the Netherlands. Cultural practice encompasses the domains of cultural education, cultural participation, amateur arts, intangible heritage, heritage participation, and talent development.
Successive national cabinets focused primarily on investing in school-based cultural education, but recent years attention to active cultural participation in amateur arts and heritage practices grows. The Covid pandemic played a stimulating role in this. The Cultural Participation Fund (Fonds voor Cultuurparticipatie) operates since 2009 as a public cultural fund subsidised by the national government. It promotes active cultural participation with programmes in cultural education (such as Cultural Education with Quality and Music Education Impulse), amateur arts, and talent development (Multi-Year Talent Development Scheme). Also, the fund has a Cultural Participation Programme A subsidy scheme where the social and cultural domains work together to create culture for everyone, for example culture and healthcare. Concerning this domain, the Netherlands was involved with in the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group on Culture and Health. This EU OMC group recently posted a report with strategic recommendations.
In the field of cultural heritage participation, the Netherlands signed the ratification of the European Faro Convention in 2024. This treaty calls for cultural heritage to serve society and includes several key principles: broad participation, openness to alternative conceptions of heritage, and placing heritage at the heart of community life.
In the area of receptive cultural participation (i.e. cultural consumption), all three levels of government share responsibilities., Municipalities making the largest investment, by subsidising local cultural institutions (like concert halls, museums or public libraries), or through a City Pass for people with low incomes that provides discounts on admissions fees. The national government expects the cultural institutions subsidised in the BIS (see chapters 1.2.2 and 1.3.1) to engage with the widest and most varied audience possible.
Other national policies and programmes focus – at least partly – on receptive cultural participation. An evaluation of this policy over the years 2001-2021 (Beleidsdoorlichting cultuurdeelname 2001-2020) concludes: the national government’s cultural policy instruments are broad, stable, and transparent, with expert-driven assessments and a strong focus on artistic quality. The weaknesses are that there is too little focus on participation, existing habits make renewal difficult, and inclusivity, diversity, and accessibility still need improvement.
Instruments to promote receptive culture participation are cultural ‘cards’ or ‘passes’. Subsidized cards are the Culture Card (Cultural Youth Passport) for secundary school pupils and the MBO Card for students in upper secondary vocational education (MBO). In 2023, over 700,000 pupils held a Culture Card and approximately 80 per cent of primary schools took part. Nearly 80 per cent of MBO institutions currently participate in the scheme, reaching 263,000 students. The budget on the cards can be spent on cultural activities. In addition, the private initiative the Museum Pass (Museumkaart) gives cardholders free access to more than 400 museums in the Netherlands. In 2023, 1.5 million people held a Museum Pass. Several institutions also offer their own discount cards.
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