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A new PhD programme addressing vital issues of inclusivity within the creative economy has been created by the Department of Sociology at LSE and the University of Roehampton.
The new programme, named the Consortium for Researching Inclusive Cultures in the Arts (CRICA), was created by the two universities, following their receipt of a highly competitive Doctoral Focal Award from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).
CRICA will be funded to train a new generation of scholars, performance artists and change makers. Their research will help shape the future of the arts industry, and will pave the way for wider adoption of inclusive cultures and practices across the creative economy. The research undertaken will have a focus on opportunities for widening participation in the arts, including employment, performance and ensuring fair access to all audiences. This important research will help to dismantle barriers to allow disabled people to work and participate in the participatory and performing arts sector.
LSE Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research), Professor Susana Mourato, commented:
“This exciting collaboration will see each institution bringing a unique set of strengths and insights, and will lead to tangible benefits for the participatory and performing arts. From LSE’s side, the programme will build on our exceptional foundation of research expertise in cultural sociology, as well as our robust training provision for doctoral students across a wide range of disciplines.”
Dean of Research and Doctoral Study at the University of Roehampton, Professor Ted Vallance, commented:
“We are very proud to be leading this major collaborative programme, working with colleagues at LSE and in partnership with the arts sector. CRICA supports our commitment to inclusive education at all levels of study, builds on our strong research traditions in the performing arts and has enormous potential to increase career opportunities in the cultural sector.”
The doctoral training programme will include mentorship, supervision and support from world-leading scholars and industry professionals, which will include workshops and innovative experiential labs, embedded placements within the sector and access to a network of performing and participatory arts organisations.
The Programme lead, Director for the Centre for Research in Arts and Creative Exchange at University of Roehampton, Professor Sara Houston, said:
“We are really pleased that the AHRC has recognised the importance of what research in the area of disability arts can do to support and grow the creative economy. We are really looking forward to working with LSE, our arts partners and most of all with our students.”
The Programme co-lead, Associate Professor and Deputy Head for Research in LSE Sociology, Dr Carrie Friese, added:
“As a sociology department, we are delighted to be working with colleagues in the performing arts in facilitating creative, collaborative research that demonstrates the value of disability arts for the creative economy and society as a whole.”
Applications are welcome from scholars and professionals with an interest or experience in this field. To find out more about Roehampton and LSE’s doctoral programme and application process, please visit Roehampton’s Research Degrees webpage or LSE’s MPhil/PhD Sociology webpage. These pages will soon include details regarding information sessions for applying to CRICA in the autumn 2025.