An evaluation of an arts-based pedagogy: the benefits of cultural animation for SME owners in an economically deprived region

ABSTRACT This paper explores insights from a recent entrepreneurship education programme in Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire, an economically deprived region of the UK. An arts-based pedagogical innovation, Cultural Animation (CA), is evaluated for its learning outcomes. The case study explores the specific benefits of this pedagogy for improving the skills of SME owner-managers. Taking an ethnographic approach, a series of CA sessions are analysed to understand their benefits for SME owner-managers. The findings are that CA generates three significant learning outcomes: the development of social ties; the encouragement of peer learning and the creation of a sense of equality amongst participants. This paper contributes to the research on arts-based pedagogies in entrepreneurship education. The findings have applicability to policymakers and entrepreneurship education providers, particularly in economically depressed regions where a lack of social connection is considered to be an obstacle to growth.