YOU could say that Darren Henley is the most powerful person in the arts world of England.

Certainly, he's one of the most influential, and refreshingly enthusiastic about all things creative.

He has written two defining Government reviews into music and cultural education and has championed the importance of arts and culture in the lives of children and young people.

He has penned no less than 27 books about music and the arts; for three years chaired the Music Manifesto, a government-backed national campaign to improve music education, and in 2013 received an OBE for services to music.

After 23 years at Classic FM he left the award-winning radio station on Friday, April 17. On the following Monday, he picked up the baton as chief executive of Arts Council England, succeeding Alan Davey who had been in the hot seat for seven years.

Stopping off in Cumbria on his recent whistle stop introductory tour, he said he was hugely impressed by the commitment of South Lakeland District Council to arts and culture.

He met Chris Hogg, the Mayor of Kendal, and Culture Portfolio Holder, and SLDC's chief executive, Lawrence Conway: "Both of them were very impressive in underlining to me their vision for arts and culture in the lives of everyone who lived in the area - as well as the thousands of tourists who visit every year," explained Darren, taking time out of his hectic schedule to chat about his visit.

And he popped into Lakeland Arts' venues - Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Blackwell Arts and Crafts House and the new Windermere Jetty in Bowness, plus Dove Cottage in Grasmere, home of the Wordsworth Trust.

He also visited Kendal's Brewery Arts Centre: "I was really impressed with the board and executive team there - it’s really important that arts organisations develop sustainable business models that help to ensure their long term future. And it was great to hear how much the team at the Brewery have achieved in this area."

Since his ACE appointment, Darren's talked about the arts receiving more investment outside of London, which could potentially see more funds flow into Cumbria.

"We want to make sure that everyone has access to the highest quality arts and culture wherever they live in the country. So, a few weeks ago I announced that we would be increasing the proportion of our National Lottery revenue that we spend outside of London. Currently, we invest 70 per cent of these funds outside London and 30 per cent in the capital. By the end of 2018, we will increase the figure that we spend outside London to at least 75 per cent."

Darren was born and brought up in Kent.

He studied politics at the University of Hull.

His first paid job at the age of 16 was reading traffic and travel bulletins on his local radio station.

"I began making the tea and by the time I was at university, I was freelancing as a journalist, reporting and reading and writing news bulletins. I used to travel down to London at the weekend and read Classic FM’s Sunday afternoon news bulletins. I would then sleep on the sofa in the then chief executive’s office - he never knew - before getting the first train back up to Hull on Monday mornings. When I started at Classic FM in 1992, it was just two months old and nobody could quite predict the success it would become."

First he was a journalist, then a producer, then in charge of news and speech programming, before climbing the ladder to managing editor in charge of all Classic FM's programmes in 2000. He took over responsibility for all aspects of the business in 2004 as managing director.

So what attracted him to the Arts Council role?

"The Arts Council is a huge force for good in England’s life. Our teams of people in nine offices spread across the country are made up of knowledgeable, passionate experts who really care about developing artists, arts organisations, museums, galleries and libraries right across the country. I’m very proud of the work that our people do to bring arts and culture into everyone’s lives, no matter who they are or where they come from."

And music is extremely close to his heart:

"When I’m at home, I have music playing from the moment I get up to the moment I go to sleep. And my tastes are very wide-ranging. The first album I ever bought when I was only about six years old was by Showaddywaddy. I saw them playing at the Theatre Royal in Wakefield a few weeks ago. It was great fun.

"My first classical concert that I can remember was an outdoor firework concert at Leeds Castle in Kent. I must have been quite small. The orchestra played Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture with real military cannon supplying the bangs at the appropriate points. The force of the blast from one cannon was so strong that it blew a whole branch off a nearby tree."

He pointed out that although he learned piano as a child, he'd never been particularly good at playing: "Recently though, I bought myself a ukulele and I plan to have some lessons to learn how to play it properly. I was wondering the other day if it was something that my Arts Council colleagues might fancy. Perhaps we could form the Arts Council England Ukelele Orchestra."

As far as career highlights are concerned, Darren says that he couldn’t imagine doing a job that he didn’t love: "I’m very proud of all the awards that we won at Classic FM for making radio programmes that connected with people.

"And it was a great buzz to write two books that featured in the Sunday Times bestsellers list (The Classic FM Hall of Fame and Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Classical Music…But Were Too Afraid To Ask).

"Another highlight for me was the two independent reports into Music Education (published in 2011) and Cultural Education (2012) which I authored. The first report resulted in the creation of a network of 123 Music Education Hubs across England with the aim of enabling more children and young people to receive the highest possible music education.

"The second resulted in the creation of the National Youth Dance Company, a network of Heritage Schools, the Museums in Schools programme, the BFI Film Academy and a big increase in the Sorrell Foundation’s National Saturday Club of art and design schools."

He's also a fervent believer of investing in cultural education in schools: "Right now, our creative industries are growing incredibly fast and are something that the UK is famous for right around the world. It’s absolutely vital that we continue to invest in the pipeline of talent that enables us to be leaders in this field. There’s also a very important link between the cultural industries that receive public funding investment and the very commercial end of the creative industries. The two are inextricably linked together and are mutually dependent.

"I wrote a book about this last year called The Virtuous Circle, which argues that an excellent cultural education is the right of everyone, bringing personal, social and commercial advantages that can only benefit the lives of all individuals in our society."

ACE has recently launched four new funds - Ambition for excellence, a £35.2 million fund to help organisations produce high quality and spectacular events and works of art, particularly outside London; Creative writing in schools, which will place professional writers in schools. Developed specifically for deprived areas and with low levels of arts engagement in the north and south west of England, the programme will inspire children through high quality workshops and residencies;

Large Capital programme, which has returned for 2015-18, continuing ACE's work of improving arts infrastructure with National Lottery funds. ACE is planning on investing £88 million the length and breadth of England.

Last, but not least, an opportunity for existing creative people and places consortia to apply for funds to help more people experience and be inspired by the arts; £5 million is available, with a further £5 million in April 2017.

"In Cumbria, we invested over £15 million in the last three years, helping to make it an exciting and creative place to live and visit," continued Darren. "We have a number of funding streams that support a wide range of cultural activities and to help us achieve our mission of great art and culture for everyone. Funding streams that range from regular funding to our major partner museums and national portfolio organisations – like the Brewery in Kendal – to our Grants for the Arts scheme which supports individuals, arts organisations and other people who use the arts in their work."

His visit also included travelling north to Carlisle, to Tullie House and he heard the first performance of the Cumbria Youth Jazz Orchestra at The Sands Centre. He said he was "really excited" to see the work of Cumbria Music Education Hub in action at The centre. He added: "It’s one of 123 music education hubs around the country, set up to ensure that every child receives access to high quality music education, both in their schools and outside of the classroom. This year, we will invest £642,500 in the hub in Cumbria - an increase of more than £136,000 on last year.

"I would like to think that in Cumbria, a child will be able to grow up and enjoy the opportunities the arts offer as never before."

Outside of the arts, the 42-year-old is a big football fan and with the new season looming, on Saturdays, he'll be sporting the colours of his beloved Gillingham: "It’s my local side and I’ve had a season ticket for years now. I’m hopeful of a promotion run this year – but then I say that at the beginning of every season."