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The national event took place at the British Museum on the afternoon of the 23 November and was attended by over 300 delegates and a large number of virtual participants. You can see full details of our panel, participants and all the online films and resources here .The debate was wide-ranging and covered many different aspects of cultural learning and its future. Some of the main themes, pledges and ideas from the national event are included in this blog post, but the conversation is on-going and we urge signatories and partners to get in touch with their thoughts.Our keynote speaker, Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture, Communications and the Creative Industries, gave a speech with a number of significant implications for the CLA. He asked us to work with the Government to create a definition of cultural learning and to build on the results of the music review (currently being undertaken by Darren Henley). In the new year the CLA will produce a coherent overview of current initiatives and will identify opportunities for collaboration and partnership, creating a cultural learning blueprint which supports organisations, local authorities and charities.Other Ministerial plans include a review into arts charities in the new year, a pledge to establish a cross-departmental ministerial group on culture (including  the Department for Education, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Work and Pensions) and the acknowledgement that culture should be ‘front and centre’ of the Prime Minister’s new Happiness Index.The subsequent panel and audience discussion, chaired by Mike Baker, was passionate and wide-ranging. Collaboration and sharing of resources and ideas was a key theme, and delegates discussed the ideas of teachers acting as Cultural Ambassadors and of young people leading our cultural practice. Delegates aired their concerns that the Comprehensive Spending Review will have a disproportionate effect on culture, on children and young people and the professionals that work with them and many spoke of projects that are currently being curtailed, or have already been cut.Andrew Nairne of Arts Council England highlighted that ACE’s new national strategy for the arts includes specific provision for work with children and young people. He also stressed that funding and activity for children and young people should not be disproportionately cut by arts leaders and those running cultural organisations.All the panel and delegates agreed that it is critical that we all respond to emerging government policy wherever possible and that we make our case to every forthcoming review and enquiry.The CLA will be putting forward the case for cultural learning at every available opportunity and will spend the next few months working on our national strategy and a blueprint for cultural learning. However, we need your help to gather together the full picture of cultural learning practice in this country and ensure that we represent the views and experiences of our signatories. We urge you to revisit the Campaign Questions from the Big Link Up and to get in touch. You can e-mail info@culturallearningalliance, join the conversation on Twitter at

#culturelearning