This report is the outcome of the OMC Working Group on Artists’ Residencies, a group of national experts from the EU Member States, launched in April 2013 under Priority Area C ‘Skills and Mobility’ of the Council Work Plan for Culture 2011-20141, which implements the European Agenda for Culture.

The Open Method of Coordination (OMC) is a voluntary form of cooperation between EU Member States, which aims to improve policymaking and structured cooperation through peer-learning and the exchange of best practice. The method was extended to the field of culture in 2008 on the recommendation of the European Commission in the European Agenda for Culture (2007).

The OMC Working Group’s mandate was to identify the success factors in preparing, carrying out and following-up artists’ residencies, with a specific focus on building capacity and with the goal of reducing imbalances in incoming/outgoing residencies. The good practice identified should help to build capacity, both inside the EU and when developing residencies in third countries, as well as to facilitate networking at EU level.

The aim of the Policy Handbook is to provide an analysis of the value of artists’ residencies and to identify examples of good practice. It also looks at recent trends, benefits and success factors to inform policymakers and practitioners of the best way to support and develop residency programmes in the 21st century.

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