Both sides in this vital meeting came away with very different impressions of what had been agreed. The Committee was impressed with the objectives and many of the achievements of the Royal Opera House's educational programme. The Royal Opera House should attach the highest priority to seeking additional sponsorship for its educational activities following the redevelopment. We recommend that separately identified subsidy for the work of the House's Education Department, either from the Arts Council of England or possibly, when established, from the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts, should be considered in a general review of the development of education in the arts. We also believe that State schools should be represented in the audience for schools matinees more nearly proportionately to their pupil populations.
Incremental change is no longer enough.
The Royal Opera House is now faced with two options. The first of these is privatisation, though under present United Kingdom tax law, which does not offer incentives to donors, this is inherently impractical. If this option is chosen, the Arts Council subsidy should be ended forthwith. The House could endeavour to finance itself by means comparable to the private donations which have staved off insolvency recently. In such circumstances, the House's status as a charitable organisation would also cease.