The news comes as research from PricewaterhouseCoopers reveals the Creative Partnerships programme, championed by the former Labour government, has the potential to generate £4bn for the UK economy.
Such a figure would be achievable if the scheme continues to increase pupils’ ability to achieve five good GCSEs and helps avoid the associated costs of crime, truancy and low teacher morale.
Creativity, Culture and Education (CCE), which runs the programme, has said the Arts Council’s decision will mean Creative Partnerships will not be able to continue in its current form from September 2011. This will entail job losses.
CCE chief executive Paul Collard said: "We all understand that the country faces unprecedented cuts in public expenditure. However, with the withdrawal of funding from programmes such as Creative Partnerships, it is becoming increasingly clear that children and young people, particularly those from the most disadvantaged communities, will be expected to bear the brunt of the cuts in the arts.
"This is especially disappointing given the wealth of evidence supporting the impact of Creative Partnerships on the attendance, aspirations and attainment of children and young people in school."
The PricewaterhouseCoopers report found that for every £1 invested in Creative Partnerships, it delivers £15.30 worth of benefits, two-thirds of which directly impact learners.
In January, an Ofsted report concluded that creative approaches to learning have a positive impact on pupils' personal development and preparation for life beyond school. Previous research conducted by the National Foundation for Educational Research, similarly pointed to a link between Creative Partnerships and improved educational attainment.
Collard added: "We remain committed to supporting the delivery of high-quality cultural programmes for young people and will continue to work closely with schools, arts organisations and local authorities that have been strong supporters of our programmes and value the benefit they bring to their children and young people.
"We will be developing options for the continuation of Creative Partnerships through alternative sources of funding."
In June the government announced it was to cut CCE’s Find Your Talent programme, which was piloting a scheme to provide young people with access to at least five hours of cultural and creative activities a week. It was originally intended to run in 10 pathfinder areas until 2011.
