Modern Cultural, Artistic and Educational Strategies for the Formation of Socio-Cultural Space: Experience of the University of Cumbria (UK)

The purpose of the current study is to examine the essence of research and educational approaches in the dimensions of cultural studies as factors in shaping the social significance of culture for the formation of socio-cultural space by analysing the experience of the University of Cumbria (UK). The research methodology employed analytical and structural-typological approaches to emphasise the areas of research projects in higher education, the semiotic approach to interpret the content of cultural and artistic projects and innovations in contemporary art education, the historical approach to analyse the formation of research institutions and agencies, the synthetic method and the method of theoretical generalization, both of which allowed the ultimate formulation of reasonable conclusions. The scientific novelty of the study lies in its establishment of a productive relationship between the research and educational activities of the University of Cumbria (UK) in the optics of cultural studies as a cultural practice and an institutional tool for shaping socio-cultural space. Conclusions. The research and cultural and artistic projects carried out within the structure of the University of Cumbria have a pronounced interdisciplinary and innovative character, are deeply implemented in the educational process with the use of digital technologies, visual arts, immersive art technologies and natural experiments, focused on the problems of socio-cultural reality. This approach enables the modernisation of the educational process, achieving a balance between the demands of the socio-cultural sphere and the cultivation of the creative individuality of the personality, the formation of their worldview ideals, and thereby contributing to the resolution of local community needs through the integration of the outcomes of cultural, artistic and educational practices into socio-cultural industries. The findings of this study can be adapted and implemented by colleagues in Ukraine.