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1. Synergies between public policies and programmes

2. Partnerships between the culture and creative sectors, youth organisations and youth workers

Synergies between public policies and programmes

The Charter for artistic and cultural education (Charte pour l’éducation artistique et culturelle)

Presented by the High Council for Artistic and Cultural Education (Haut Conseil de l’Éducation Artistique et Culturelle - HCEAC) in July 2016, the Charter for artistic and cultural education (Charte pour l'éducation artistique et culturelle) is the main reference document for artistic and cultural education (EAC), fostering a synergy, a complementary approach between youth policies and cultural policies.

It sets out ten guiding principles and makes clear that artistic and cultural education is not confined to the cultural sphere: it must be accessible to all young people, from early childhood to university, combine encounters with works and artists, artistic practice and the acquisition of knowledge, and contribute to the formation and emancipation of the person and the citizen. It also rests on shared responsibility between the educational community, the cultural sector, civil society, the State and local authorities. 

Since March 2025, EAC has also been backed by a dedicated Interministerial delegation, while the ministry highlights the role of (Institut national supérieur de l'éducation artistique et culturelle - INSÉAC) in research, evaluation and the professionalisation of actors involved in EAC.

Culture and Health programme

For more than two decades now, the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Culture have been running a joint policy bearing on access to culture for the whole hospital community: patients, elderly people, families, health workers and social workers. This is called the "Culture and Health programme" (Culture et santé).

At the regional level, this policy is implemented through agreements between the Regional Departments of Cultural Affairs (Directions régionales des affaires culturelles - DRACs) and the Regional Health Agencies (Agences régionales de la santé -  ARS).This agreement aims to continue the development of a cultural and artistic policy towards people in health facilities in the Paris region, their relatives and the staff.

The objectives of this agreement are to:

• Promote and support quality cultural and artistic actions in health care settings;
• Encourage health facilities;
• Structure relations with local partners involved or involved in the system (sponsors and other funders, local authorities, etc.);
• Strengthen the visibility of the Culture & Santé program in Île-de-France and promote the actions carried out;
• Foster new forms of cooperation between health structures and their links with the different cultural structures of their local area;
• Strengthen the quality of artistic proposals involving health structures;
• Develop new fields of action, especially for early childhood and disability structures, or more broadly, at all stages of childhood.

The Ministry of Culture indicates that the scheme supports more than 1,000 projects per year, with an annual national budget of around 6 million€.

Partnerships between the culture and creative sectors, youth organisations and youth workers

Cultural youth action is usually reliant on teamwork between various stakeholders: artists, cultural institutions, local and national authorities as well as associations.  These partnerships are formally documented in contracts or agreements. It exists several types of contracts.

The CLEA - Local Artistic and Cultural Education Contract (Contrat local d'éducation artistique et culturelle)also referred to as the Territorial Artistic and Cultural Education Contract (CTEAC - Contrat territorial d’éducation artistique et culturelle)

CLEA/CTEA - Local or Territorial Artistic and Cultural Education Contracts (Contrats locaux ou territoriaux d'éducation artistique et culturelle) are contractual arrangements drawn up by the Ministry of Culture for three years, renewable, aimed at setting up and strengthening local artistic and cultural education policies.  They are signed between local government (whether the Region, Département or municipality), the DRAC and the Ministry of National Education; other stakeholders can also climb aboard (foundation, association, holiday club, sociocultural centre, etc.).

CLEAs are tasked with helping children and young people in the local areas concerned to benefit from an artistic and cultural learning path.

They must enable children and young people (as well as the rest of the population) to:

1. Encounter artworks, artists and cultural venues
2. Try their hand at an artistic practice
3. Get personally to grips with artworks, resources and cultural venues in their community

Through CLEAs, all of the partners are invited to bring their skills, remit and resources to bear on organising a shared project with the aim of making artistic and cultural education widely available.