Initial Bid - summary Confidential 1 Contents

Foreword...... 3 Economic impact...... 15 Introduction...... 5 Tourism...... 18 Our bid area...... 6 Delivery and capacity...... 20 New city opportunity...... 7 Our track record...... 21 Our vision...... 8 Funding and budget...... 22 2021 programme...... 9 Partnerships...... 23 Our cultural assets...... 10 Legacy ...... 24 Ensuring cultural excellence...... 11 Learning and evaluation ...... 26 Social impact...... 12 Evaluation...... 27 Ensuring inclusion and accessibility...... 14

2 Foreword

Over the course of the last few months, We expect to find out whether we have hundreds of people have been involved in been shortlisted in late June or early the development of Warrington’s bid to July. Whether we are shortlisted or become City of Culture 2021. The process not, we remain committed to ensuring has uncovered a huge number of ideas, culture is at the heart of our place – and has enabled new connections to be made we are energised and inspired by what has and has unleashed significant energy and been achieved so far. Irrespective of the ambition. outcome, our bid is just the start and we look forward to working with you on the We are grateful to everyone who has made next stages of our journey. a contribution to the initial bid process – it’s been a collective effort and without the support, dedication, passion and This is a summary of our bid. We hope you determination of all involved this bid would enjoy reading it. not have been possible. Thank you.

From our proud history through to our present day innovation and our aspirations to become a New City, we have a compelling story to tell and a significant Dan Price, Chair, Warrington 2021 opportunity to build a scalable and sustainable cultural offer into our future plans. During the course of the bid process we have uncovered some fantastic work across all of our communities, but we also know we have more to do to have a ‘fully formed’ cultural offer. We’ve been honest about this in the bid and the process we have been through to develop the bid so far gives us a strong platform from which to build.

3 On behalf of the board

Councillor Dan Price, Portfolio Holder Councillor Tony Higgins, Portfolio holder - - Culture and Partnerships; Chair, Leisure and Community Warrington 2021

Maureen Banner, Chair, Professor Steven Broomhead, Ian Cox, Centre Director, Ken Horn, Independent Emma Hutchinson, Gemma Johnson, Cultural Culture Warrington Chief Executive, Warrington Golden Square Television Producer Managing Director, Culture Director, Culture Warrington Borough Council Warrington & LiveWire

Simon Kenton, Kate Lindley, Warrington Steve Park, Managing Colin Parry OBE, Chairman Paul Taylor, Director, Taylor Assistant Director, 2021 Bid Lead Director, Warrington&Co and Founder, The Tim Parry Business Park Warrington Borough Council & Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace 4 Introduction ‘A great and curious present’ Warrington either lurks in your The issues we face are not about mass From a floating cinema, provocations to subconscious or not at all. You may deprivation, unemployment or poor community festivals and a Grayson Perry- recognise it as a name on a motorway health. They are about a town discovering led tapestry to Slow Art, IKEA-inspired gantry, the cultural ‘desert’ implied by its soul. Our New Town has expanded commissions, gigs in gardens and peace the RSA’s 2015 survey of heritage assets over 50 years to embrace a collection exchanges, Warrington will be the stage for or a place of business parks and the UK’s of disparate towns and villages with a thrilling, unique and transformative year first IKEA. few natural connections to ‘the whole’ of celebration for the UK. and immense variations in affluence Our story reveals a dynamic and very and lifestyle. Beyond the pockets of distinctive town. A town of surprises deprivation that do exist, our area lacks a which, in 1598, gave a ‘great and curious vibrant centre and a fundamental sense present’ to the world – and which has been of identity and cohesion. With the arrival inspiring leading contributions to world of another 30,000 homes over the coming industry, commerce and culture ever since. years we have the opportunity to create a From the original ‘great and curious New City with a strong sense of place and present’ – an Elizabethan organ built by a a confidence in its future. Warringtonian for a Sultan, we have been Warrington UK City of Culture 2021 the home for innovation and creativity will be a catalyst for step changes which for centuries, catalysing the public library strike at the heart of these issues by movement and inspiring pioneering forging a new identity and sense of place; engineers, entrepreneurs and artistic putting the creative economy at the heart giants like Lewis Carroll and Dickens of planning; delivering a dynamic and illustrator Sir Samuel Luke Fildes. targeted uplift in cultural programming, Our vision for UK City of Culture 2021 audiences and outreach; and growing and stands out. It is the story of a 1960s New diversifying the local creative industries. Town coming of age, a town literally and It will be a paradigm for new cities metaphorically at a crossroads, a town everywhere, showing how culture can with ambitions to become a Garden City help create, and shape cities that are as it prepares for £1bn worth of housing SMART, vibrant, green, sustainable and and business development. people-centred. It is about celebrating the place of culture Our programme will capture these in modern, dynamic and successful ambitions, the energy of our area and communities; reaching out to the rest of this incredible moment in our evolution the UK by revealing our great and curious through four compelling and distinctive gift to the world; and defining Warrington themes: New Horizons; Surprising Spaces; to our own residents and beyond. Reveal; and Alternative Futures.

5 Our bid area

All towns and cities are shaped by towns like and Culcheth and Our bid is about ‘making sense’ of an area It is the chance for these communities their place on the map – ours more ancient villages like and that – right now - does not make sense to realise their place within the larger than most. It is defined by the local to the vast New Town estates to many people. It is about connecting conurbation, to celebrate the heritage that authority boundaries of Warrington in Birchwood and Westbrook, Warrington our incredibly diverse but culturally binds us together and share the immense Borough Council, covers a population of town centre and nearby areas of inner city rich communities, using culture, shared opportunities ahead as Warrington more than 200,000 people and is located deprivation like Bewsey and Latchford. heritage and the natural ‘threads’ - the prepares for devolution, city status and precisely 20 miles from in the waterways and green pathways - that run one of the most rapid periods of growth in Each of our communities has its own west and 20 miles from in through the fabric of our area. its 1,500 year history. character and its own cultural contribution the east. to make – but too many sit in isolation

For centuries our success has been from their near neighbours and have little MANCHESTER driven by our proximity to these two wider sense of what it means to be part 40 min (20.7 mi) via M62 conurbations – and by the incredible of Warrington. transport infrastructure which has made Beneath Warrington’s economic success, us one of the best connected locations in there are huge disparities in wealth and Culcheth, GlaseburyGlazebury Croft the UK. health which only serve to exaggerate Our area is largely bounded by three the distance between our communities. M6 motorways, the M6 in the east, the Our bid area has some of the most M62 M62 in the north, and the M56 in the persistently deprived wards in the UK as Burtonwood Winwick south. It has the largest 30 minute well as some of the most affluent (18% of Birchwood drive catchment outside the M25. It is residents live in the 20% most deprived Poplars Hulme M62 divided laterally by four historic – and areas in England). All this in a town that Poulton Westbrook North iconic - transport corridors: the River is consistently ranked in the UK’s top ten Orford M6 Mersey; the Bridgewater Canal; the UK’s most economically Great Sankey North Chapelford Poulton Whittle Hall Old Hall South first passenger railway and the mighty successful ‘cities’. Fairfield Rixton Woolston Bewsey Howley Manchester Ship Canal, busier now than it Whitecross For too many people – our residents City Lymm North has ever been. The town is also at the rail Great Sankey included – our area is defined by Centre crossroads of the north west, with non- South what it is not, rather than what it is. Latchford West stop services to London and Scotland via Many locals refer to their hometown Cuerdley Lymm South the West Coast Main-line, and the east Stockton Heath as ‘just off the M62/M56’. Beyond the – west Central Line linking Liverpool to town, people know us for rugby, Manchester and beyond. Grappenhall business parks, Gulliver’s World theme

These external connections put us on park and IKEA. Older communities look LIVERPOOL Appleton the doorstep of the entire nation but either to their immediate neighbourhoods 39 min (19.4 mi) M56 via M62 mask an irony. For all Warrington’s or to Manchester and Liverpool for a fantastic external links, our area is sense of identity and ‘belonging’ while polycentric, a collection of disparate newer residents moving to the fringes of communities born of 1960s New Town the town are sometimes transient or have RAILWAYS MOTORWAYS development and 1974 local government struggled to discover a town with any LONDON reorganisation - from small semi-rural obvious character. 1h 53m by train 6 New city opportunity

Our New City opportunity: Our need A major £350m+ programme is already Warrington 2021 – a year in the life of a connections and relationships, is not simply about fixing the lingering under way in Warrington town centre, New City, both ancient and modern. a community with an innovative and problems of the past. Warrington has with a new multiplex cinema, market and A town at a crossroads, Warrington’s entrepreneurial spirit, a new city made always been an ambitious and dynamic public square set to transform the area geographical location at the intersection by its people that looks for opportunities to town and has set its sights on becoming a and its night time economy to a thriving, of a key north-south route with the foster connections and build partnerships. Garden City. Over the next few years we vibrant and exciting place for people to east-west axis of the Mersey valley, has UK City of Culture will be a tremendous will face some of the biggest changes enjoy a day or evening out. for 2,000 years helped to shape its destiny. catalyst for Warrington to realise a in our 1,500 year history, with huge Our new cultural ambitions sit at the heart A Roman road crossed the river here, genuine transformation, to firmly establish development programmes set to then in medieval times a bridge brought our distinctive and dynamic identity as of these dramatic changes, providing transform key parts of our area. Our bid much trade to its market. A place with a New City, recognised and understood opportunity for the entire town to reflect is an opportunity to make sure that culture such ancient roots will mark the 50th as a place with a unique and compelling on what it means to be from Warrington, sits at the heart of this transformation. anniversary, in 2018, of its designation as a character. We want to offer new to share their visions for its future and to New Town and now the modern motorway opportunities for our young people that Through Warrington Means Business, influence these huge transformations as network has given the town an almost enable them to reach their potential and be we are transforming our bid area, with a we become Britain’s newest city. unrivalled location for commercial and at the heart of the new city’s future. £1 billion worth of new mixed use industrial development. development that will ultimately create We acknowledge that the ambitious But Warrington has come to be seen as proposals outlined in our programme will 31,000 new jobs and 30,000 new homes, a place, ‘stuck between Manchester and require us to continue and intensify our including whole new communities. Liverpool, neither one nor the other […] work improving and expanding the cultural Exciting developments have already taken a town that is always in transition that infrastructure in Warrington. UK City place around the home of Warrington never really changes…’ It briefly attracted of Culture will enable us to strengthen Wolves to create a new ‘stadium quarter’ the dubious distinction ‘Warrington: worst regional, national and international and we have even bigger ambitions to town for culture in Britain?’ but rather than partnerships that will play an important radically re-orientate the town, ‘opening contending with negative attributions it role in this capacity building. This work will up’ our waterways and making the great has more often suffered from a lack of any focus on supporting and enabling the key River Mersey the focus of attention it once attributions positive or negative; it could role of the emerging independent sector was, with new waterside developments be anywhere. in Warrington, drawing on the important and leisure attractions. Warrington is at a pivotal moment in its contribution made by the local authority. evolution, taking the route to becoming a Our vision for UK City of Culture 2021 Our Garden City ambitions are about New City. It is seizing the opportunity to is to share a year in the life of a New City, realising the power of our incredible green put culture at the centre of its ambitions, to embrace cultural excellence from assets too, animating and connecting plans and place-making actions. around the world throughout the year in the 63 parks and the extensive green Our vision for UK City of Culture 2021 Warrington, and take Warrington out to corridors that thread through many of our regions, cities, communities, to people communities to link with the town centre, is the story of a New City confidently establishing its place in the UK, sharing throughout the UK. creating new sculpture and culture parks its rich heritage and exciting potential A unique vision, compellingly and around our circular parklands, city centre as a fulcrum for innovation, creativity, engagingly expressed, that seizes the and waterfront, using street art to animate production and exchange. Our vision is moment to be a New City of Culture the built environment and making new for a positive affirmation of place that in 2021. creative hubs which are accessible to all. celebrates a proud history of international 7 Our vision

Warrington’s need for UK City of Culture We are committed to placing culture 2021 does not follow the traditional at the heart of our leadership and city post-industrial narrative adopted by regeneration and growth plans, this will many towns and cities bidding for the build strong links between all sectors title. We are one of only 14 UK cities to ensure a sustainable and integrated classified as high wage, low welfare – and cultural proposition. the only one in the north of England. Step Change 2: Making a dynamic and For all this, we have learned that targeted uplift in cultural programming, prosperity alone cannot inspire civic audiences and outreach. cohesion, tackle pockets of deprivation, create a sense of belonging, retain We will maximise use of our current employees or ‘magnetise’ a town centre cultural assets, and bring forward that is overlooked by too many of the new events, locations and performers, communities within the borough. to create new audiences and reach new participants locally and nationally. Our vision is distinctive because it is about creating a vibrant, buzzing city by adding Step Change 3: Growing and diversifying cultural ambition to existing economic the local creative industries, developing success as we enter a new and meteoric skills, learning, and facilities. phase of economic expansion. Number of creative and digital start- It is about connecting our polycentric ups – a public/private two-phase hub area, revealing and celebrating what binds development programme, to go on-site us together. Above all, it is about giving in 2017, with 40 start-ups generated by current residents and our thousands of 2021 and a further 40 to follow as the incoming new residents a genuine sense of first tranche move on to advanced hub what it means to be from Warrington. facilities. Our vision is distinctive too because it taps directly into a broader narrative about Step Change 4: Forging a new identity how we, as a nation, create sustainable and sense of place. communities for tomorrow, and put the The flip side of Warrington’s rapid growth soul into the rapidly expanding towns from a New Town with major cities on and cities chosen to accommodate our either side is that it lacks a cohesive housing need and integrate old and new sense of identity. We will bring together communities. residents, businesses and visitors to STEP CHANGES inform a new image for the area, to create a new narrative and destination economy We have brought together a focused and for Warrington and to embed a greater challenging set of four Step Changes: sense of pride in our place. Step Change 1: Placing the Creative Economy at the heart of the place

8 Warrington 2021 programme

We have worked with residents and in Warrington, and reflecting on the creative individuals and organisations experience of delivering the programme through workshops, interviews and through the year to inform the legacy of informal conversations to identify key Warrington’s place in the UK. themes and strands to underpin our Each of these themes will run across a bid and programme, and the headline different season of 2021 and be shaped activities within each theme. by a series of cross-cutting strands which enable us to shape and explore New horizons: Recognising and examining Warrington’s culture more fully. the central role of navigation, voyaging, • Our Year in the Life of a New City travel, transport, movement, journeys, distribution, departures and arrivals in • Un-fest Warrington’s story. It proposes new routes • Warrington Made and wayfinding, develops new connections and welcomes new visitors from across • Creative residency programme the UK, while also taking Warrington to people throughout UK. Surprising spaces: Introducing and exploring the walled gardens, parks, green spaces and waterways that suffuse Warrington, realising ideas behind Warrington as a locally led new Garden City, and imagining projects that will deliver something astounding in Warrington, using the built environment and open spaces as the stage for production. Reveal: Uncovering and celebrating Warrington’s ‘great and curious present’, exploring the indigenous materials and processes, the alumni and creative achievements that are intrinsic to Warrington. Alternative futures: Imagining what the creative and cultural qualities of a future city could be, developing opportunities for young people to realise their potential and establish creative futures 9 Our cultural assets

Our 2021 programme and lead up We are home too to The Peace Centre, a commercial digital sector, internationally activities will build on a wide range unique building and organisation set acclaimed digital artists like Chris Boyd of cultural assets and venues like the up in the wake of the IRA bombing of and enterprising young creatives, and have council-owned Pyramid and Parr Hall Warrington. The centre is recognised been identified by NESTA as a high growth – venue for gigs by everyone from the around the world and works to prevent area for the creative and digital industries. Rolling Stones and The Who to Doves violent extremism and support conflict We will also work with neighbours like and The Mighty Boosh. We will build on resolution and victims of terror Liverpool’s FACT and Heart of Glass key delivery organisations like Culture (including survivors from Bataclan, in St Helens to unlock local creative Warrington and LiveWire, our unique Brussels and Westminster Bridge). talent, for example, by looking at ways landscape, distinctive local traditions The centre itself provides space for of working with the 1,000 students on (from tree bawming to Walking Days), transformation and residential and digital courses at Warrington’s Priestley the creative heritage of Warrington, conference facilities and has ambitions to College and build on the fantastic work ‘alumni’ like Lewis Carroll and grow events around International of our main cultural delivery agency, Sir Samuel Luke Fildes and our Peace Day. Its annual peace lecture has Culture Warrington, and the success of its area’s engineering genius. been presented by Martin McGuinness, outreach team which engages thousands Sir John Major, Mo Mowlam and We will build on the opportunities of people through community hubs across John Reid. presented by the council’s historic our area. Walton Hall and its recently confirmed We will build on the potential of other, Compared to our larger neighbours £2 million HLF grant by exploring non-physical, assets such as Not Too Liverpool and Manchester, we have ways in which we can develop existing Tame, a young theatre company hailing space too – from waterways to green programming. from Warrington and now part of The corridors and swathes of undeveloped Push Things Forward Collective (which The council itself has also recently begun HCA-owned land – space to do different includes Middle Child from Hull 2017) to explore mixed civic and cultural uses things, on different scales and in different and our Contemporary Arts Festival for another jewel in Warrington’s crown ways. We will consider how, from the which is growing every year and has the – the Palladian-style Town Hall. The broadest possible perspectives, we can potential to become the rounded cultural creation of new town centre council make the most of this asset. production engine that Warrington offices providing a significant opportunity currently lacks. We will explore for a re-positioning of the Town Hall not opportunities for connecting existing only as the borough’s civic heart, but as producers to form new collaborations and a unique venue for future potential share ideas, programming and audiences. cultural programming. This is already happening, with the We are proud of other, contemporary Contemporary Arts Festival in discussions assets. As the home of the UK’s first IKEA, with RivFest – the music festival set up in we are inspired by the huge impact of the wake of the Viola Beach tragedy - as Swedish lifestyles on UK culture and the a direct result of our UK City of Culture sheer number of visitors that the store 2021 bidding process and consultations. has brought to our area. We are home to cutting edge digital companies like Carpe Diem, a vibrant 10 Ensuring cultural excellence

HOW WE WILL ENSURE We will take full advantage of support CULTURAL EXCELLENCE and advice from past UK City of Culture winners in Derry/Londonderry and Hull We will be ambitious and set our bar and use our build-up programme both to high from the outset, clearly defining test and refine initial programme ideas and our expectations and what we mean start developing/building on relationships by excellence across all fronts – from with our 2021 delivery partners. programme content (whether it’s international, national or grass roots- Finally, we will ensure excellence through based) to increased levels and quality the sheer quality of our programme and of public engagement, volunteering those selected to deliver it – whether they and evaluation. are community-based arts organisations or major international artists. We will appoint a highly experienced Creative Director by mid-2018 and start implementing our governance structure as a priority immediately after winning the title to ensure that we have the right processes and expertise in from the start of our programme development.

Warrington is a town of best-kept secrets. We are well-run and “the economic progress and employment prospects are the envy of many other towns but now that we are bidding to be City of Culture, we need to show that Warrington has much more to offer.

We have a vibrant classical arts and music side, which has been largely hidden and it’s time to show it off.

Dr Michael Murphy, Secretary, Warrington Arts Council”

11 Social impact

Warrington faces a broad range of social through neighbourhood hubs, including • Voluntary activities/community groups: and health issues within and beyond its Warrington Community Arts Festival. The Council supports 500 community inner city wards. Health figures highlight organisations through hands on • Warrington agencies have developed the true disparities across our area, support, facilitating many events other great and innovative work models, with men in inner city Fairfield and through delivery support, licensing e.g. Creative Remedies – a five year Howley living to just 73 years of age and other requirements, volunteer old arts on prescription project run – ten years less than residents in leafy engagement and group-building. by a local charity to address mental Stretton and Walton. health, substance misuse and public • Warrington Voluntary Action, Our population is ageing rapidly. health. Creative Remedies welcomes which receives £100,000 p.a., Mental health and isolation are key issues any Warrington resident over the age provides infrastructure support and amongst parts of our older population of 18. Cultural activities include digital seconds an R&D post to Mela to (10% of our older people report feelings of photography and media; music; develop the festival. loneliness). We have well above national Read 2 Relax; performing arts; • A range of activities in libraries – levels of obesity, with 68% of adults being Developed Keep Learning/Take Notice, reading groups, creative writing overweight or obese and above average a series of wellbeing interventions and groups. levels of physical inactivity (almost a third outreach activities to engage, build up of adults). personal activity programmes, • Amateur/leisure activities. and volunteering potential. We have a very high proportion of • Council community hubs - From the disabled residents (20%) and a growing • Warrington Disability Partnership local fund, £187,500 has been granted migrant community. The three largest delivers the town’s biggest week long to community events and cultural foreign-born communities in Warrington community event, attracting 28,000 groups over the last three years, from a are Polish (1,650 residents in December people from around the country total budget of £372,000. 2015), Irish and Indian, but children in which has been replicated our schools between them speak a total internationally. of 71 different languages. These migrant • Education and learning, including communities have traditionally settled in work with primary schools, BTEC and their own ethnic groups in different parts art foundation college students, of the town, adding to the disconnection/ family education sessions and tours. lack of cohesion that characterises so much of Warrington. • Foundation, a charity delivering health and social We have developed a strong track record interventions through a range of in using culture to address some of these programmes, from GRACE, an older key issues: people’s dance group, to a Children • Culture Warrington’s outreach team has in Need funded sports and arts bespoke offers for each neighbourhood, programme for children and working with existing community young people with disabilities groups, providing support to and additional needs. community festival boards, working 12 Social impact

REGENERATION, COHESION, as a way into or to link together the skills HEALTH AND WELLBEING pathway for the creative and cultural industries). Our programme will impact on regeneration, cohesion and health and Specific activity for targeted groups: social issues across three levels: We are interested in building on achievements of Warrington Pride and City wide: Audience development is a the highly successful arts on prescription key aspect of the step changes we seek. work of Warrington’s Creative Remedies Over 2017-2021, our proposed Cultural programme. We are also keen to support Investment Programme will result in an career development opportunities for enhanced cultural offer for residents and young creative talent through a new skills a general increase in cultural engagement. pathway for digital creative. We will also Almost a quarter (24%) of our residents explore the development of ‘spin-offs’ from report low emotional wellbeing and our our traditional Walking Day celebrations programme, and build up activities, will to encourage more regular physical activity seek to address this significant pattern and amongst overweight adults. the high incidence of loneliness and social isolation reported amongst older people in some of our inner city wards. By developing Grassroots activity: We will work with the right content and right means of community groups to enhance their access, we believe the programme can programmes and the social and cohesion promote individual wellbeing, a greater benefits they deliver. Key targets will include sense of civic identity, cohesion and shared the Warrington Polish School and organisers ambition across our area. of Warrington Mela festival. The Mela currently attracts up to 5,000 people a year Our 2021 volunteering initiatives will but we see its growing popularity as a model provide opportunities for more active and structured approach for nurturing talent involvement of people of all ages and bring from all minority communities. We are also associated health benefits too. Currently lucky to have Warrington Voluntary Action, 8% of residents take part in some sort of an active voluntary sector umbrella group voluntary activity. We will create 1,000 through which we can engage with up to 500 new volunteering opportunities through member groups representing everything the Warrington 2021 Volunteering from LGBT interests to disability. We will Pathway, building on existing provision work strategically with them to identify and networks and offering opportunities particular areas of need/opportunities for to everyone who wants to get involved exciting and novel interventions which but focusing on specific groups (e.g. deliver genuine impacts. volunteering amongst older people to combat loneliness and social isolation; volunteering amongst younger people

13 Ensuring inclusion and accessibility

PARTICIPATION: ACCESSIBILITY AN INCLUSIVE APPROACH We will: Baseline position • Design a cohesive and high quality The most recent DCMS Active People programme which covers a broad range Survey (2010) puts cultural engagement of interests and tastes so audiences are in Warrington very slightly above the interested in accessing events in the national average (museum and gallery first place. engagement is 54.9% compared to 51.5% nationally and arts 46.8% compared to • Establish a programme advisory group 43.8% in England as a whole). representing a broad range of key interest groups (reflecting different We know that outreach activities run age, ethnic, income, sexuality and health by Culture Warrington are effective in interests) to advise on programme reaching poorer households (20% of access arrangements. families attending family outreach events came from the top 10% most deprived • Respect the interests and beliefs of all areas nationally) but need to build a more communities at all times. comprehensive and nuanced baseline • Work with transport providers to across all different groups and activities (from spectating to volunteering and secure affordable public transport participation). options for all communities. We will use our Cultural Investment • Ring-fence tickets for Warrington Programme to seek Arts Council funding residents and explore ‘postcode’ style to replicate the depth and breadth of the ticket allocation to make sure most pre-London Olympics Take Part survey local/poorest households can engage/ and look for ways of measuring the quality take part. of cultural engagement in Warrington as • Secure TV coverage and live streaming well as mere event attendance. of key events. • Explore opportunities for satellite events in other parts of the country, e.g. using our partnerships with other cultural providers to showcase content in other cities. • Provide appropriate translation and interpretation support where required.

14 Economic impact

OVERVIEW: THE POTENTIAL • Build swiftly on identified high growth in These ambitions are set out below in creative and digital industries with the relation to current assets, industries ECONOMIC IMPACT OF UK CITY OF CULTURE IN WARRINGTON SPARK digital accelerator hub. and audiences, forecasting the potential impact that this bidding process will have Warrington Means Business, updated • Ensure a more ambitious cultural – and is already having - in Warrington’s in 2017, sets out a powerful vision for programme and infrastructure economy, community and wider plans. Warrington today, and demonstrates alongside economic growth, supporting tremendous growth and vitality since the innovative Garden City approach the first strategy was produced in to future development. THE CULTURAL AND CREATIVE SECTORS IN WARRINGTON TODAY 2013. A series of transport and urban • Establish a National Portfolio developments, plus high-performing Organisation to generate and drive The cultural and creative sectors in businesses and industry clusters, have change alongside enhanced culture Warrington show a strongly performing given Warrington a sound economic basis infrastructure and political leadership and growing economy, particularly in the – but a growing need for a place-making, and commitment. commercial and digital areas. There is culture-driven programme to attract, excellent potential, but the subsidised arts develop and retain talent and investment • Bring together education, training and cultural sector requires structural has been identified, and is at the heart and skills activities into a recognisable investment and commitment to balance of this bid. career and professional development the continuing dynamic growth in the pathway for creative and cultural Warrington UK City of Culture 2021 is digital sector; and the digital sector practitioners, with a new Performing requires support to continue that growth. our opportunity to focus development Arts pathway. of leadership, identity and branding, Current cultural provision including the creative economy development and • Bring together the massive economic council’s libraries and museums service, improved infrastructure support, including potential of major corporations and local performing arts facilities, festivals and enhancing the city centre offer. It is about companies operating in the borough venues/green spaces like Walton Hall and Warrington becoming the place to live, to develop sponsorship, investment Gardens, provide only a small fraction of work and visit, with a cultural offer that and artist placement/commissions in a the employment across the sector. Backed matches its economic growth. Patrons Programme scheme, working up with research into current activity, we through Warrington & Co and our links have drawn some key lessons for our bid The economic impact of our City of to the Institute of Directors. from this. Culture programme will: • Developing outreach and • The growing digital and creative • Put ambitions for cultural assets and volunteering at major participation industries form a core part of our infrastructure at the heart of city events, expanding existing engagement creative economy and need to be better planning and image-building – in the activities, community policing, health linked and integrated with the wider current city centre developments on and wellbeing and leisure activities. cultural offer, and as part of our site and in future public arts use of our fundamental proposition, re-positioning major assets. Warrington as a centre for innovation, growth and creativity.

15 Economic impact

• To achieve this we will be forming a The key cultural infrastructure and Warrington Wolves, a Super new deal between the existing cultural assets are mostly Council-owned and League club, saw it’s biggest attendance leadership and infrastructure and run, or managed, through commissioning increase last season, with a 2015-16 the on-the-ground activities and relationships between the Council and average of 12,258 per league match opportunities for local artists, musicians two partners: Culture Warrington (up almost 3,000 per match on the and start-ups. To build on these (which runs Pyramid and Parr Hall, previous year). They bring not only activities, a combination of support the Museum and Gallery and a range extensive event and marketing experience; for networking, engagement across of other activities); and LiveWire, their charitable foundation already works the sector, development of physical (which operates the libraries and leisure with cultural and wellbeing providers. As a facilities and space and a significant services). In an average year, the Council bid partner they will bring added strength commitment to more investment in the gives c. £1.3m to Culture Warrington, and to our UK City of Culture offer. arts and cultural offer will be the core on top of this funds a range of additional of our Cultural Investment Programme commissions.

between now and 2021.

• The dynamic growth in the digital In 2014/2015 Culture Warrington sector is highlighted in NESTA’s 2016 engaged 234,341 times with people, report, The Geography of Creativity, through visits to the museum and gallery, where Warrington and Wigan are ticketed events at the Pyramid and Parr identified as high growth areas for Hall, and also participation in both internal the creative industries (using the and external activities supported by DCMS definition). Together, the report Culture Warrington. estimates there are: • 1,743 creative businesses Major events giving current audience (6.1% of total businesses) baselines – and potential for building • 7,128 employment significantly larger figures, include: (2.2% of total employment) • 28,000 at the Warrington • 13,869 jobs (4% of total jobs) Contemporary Arts Festival. • £382,477 GVA (3.2% of total GVA) • 25,000 at the Warrington Festival. The report identifies strength in software • More than 10,000 at the Warrington and digital industries, and in advertising, Music Festival. design and architecture. It also notes the • 40,000 to see the Olympic Torch. area as a digital marketing technology hotspot. Importantly, it highlights the • 20,000 to see the Queen’s visit. new ‘creative conurbations’ alongside the known creative cities.

16 Economic impact

THE IMPACT OF UK CITY OF ENGAGEMENT IN EDUCATION, The SPARK digital accelerator hub has CULTURE 2021 ON OUR TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT, been developed by private sector leaders CREATIVE SECTORS PARTICULARLY AMONG YOUNG in local digital companies as a new PEOPLE start-up facility and meeting/network/ Placing the Creative Economy in the heart industry development hub in the city Warrington is already making a direct of planning, capital and infrastructure centre. Funding is being committed response to the low numbers of development recognises that the by the council for fitting out a suitable performing arts practitioners identified creative economy can not only make its site. With the target of 40 start-ups by in the sector employment data through contribution to wealth and quality of life 2021, Warrington UK City of Culture the development of an innovative as part of economic growth, but it can provides a massive enabling focus for this Performing Arts Pathway, with advanced become a leading and liberating force in opportunity. plans already in development. Using a developing city life and social change. Centre of Excellence model and targeting The hub will also link to the new We have substantial industries in IT, disadvantaged communities, the Pathway Performing Arts Pathway to create a telecommunications, architecture, will bring together school arts curricula parallel Digital Pathway for commercial design and creative industries which are for 11-14 year olds, and 16-18 year olds at and creative practitioner development. part of the dynamic wider economy. a school site in the borough. Our programme will bring together the Hub with existing artists such as We recognise that the future of An accord is in place between several Chris Boyd operating out of Bank Quay Warrington needs a stronger creative schools in order to prepare an application studios, to develop new apps such as an practitioner core, new leadership and for a new Performing Arts Free School in interactive heritage and information app connectivity through arts and culture June 2017 with an identified site, and a for the famous annual Warrington Walk networks and infrastructure, and a timetable to open in 2020 with 120 pupils event. We will also provide funding and stronger offer for talent retention p.a. sited in a new building with evening marketing support to develop links and and attraction. community use as a potential theatre/ a new practitioner network across the recording venue. Developing this bid has already digital and creative economy. generated significant political support Our UK City of Culture programme will WARRINGTON – LONG TERM and opportunities for economic impact, directly engage with the new school to ECONOMIC IMPACT and commitments to strategic activities provide work experience, mentoring, leading up to and including the UK City of and masterclass opportunities. The cumulative impact of the changes Culture 2021 programme. outlined above will be to focus internal It will bring direct extra council and external perceptions of Warrington investment to support Warrington Music as a city of independent identity and Festival plans to upscale and diversify, character, able to attract a wide range of linking to the RivFest and Warrington investment and talent, and to grow the Contemporary Arts Festival for a three participation of local people and visitor day Festival. This will become a major numbers. This will enable us to forge a developmental plank of skills and tourism new identity and sense of place where development between 2017-21. we have set media and marketing targets to develop our long term place-based success.

17 Tourism

Warrington is growing rapidly through exploring possible markets. We need to • Work with our existing attractions city centre regeneration, with more than properly assess our current offer and and spaces, such as Walton Hall £107m being invested in the central infrastructure, and undertake some work and Gardens, Gulliver’s World, the leisure and cultural offer at Time Square on national perceptions/media reporting Burtonwood and Lymm heritage between now and 2020, along with plans to understand the profile and awareness centres, Warrington Wolves, Golden for Garden City status and the continuing of Warrington outside the area. Our offer Square and others to explore how development of our streetscapes through needs to be about Warrington – and cultural programming engages and the Strategy for Public Art Development, our USP. reimagines different venues and a core part of our regeneration and facilities, whether through immersive • Identify, within our Cultural Investment growth plans. Existing destinations theatre performances or street and Programme key target events, like Walton Hall and Gardens are also food fairs. experiences and audiences which receiving significant investment to create we will develop and grow as visitor • Work together, as a network, to identify refurbished and new facilities. drivers. For example, we know that, some key target groups in 2017/2018 As expected of a growing economy, in 2015, 10,000 people visited the and to begin testing some visitor Warrington’s visitor base is primarily Contemporary Arts Festival from packages, putting together transport, made up of business and retail visits. outside the Warrington area. We want accommodation, leisure, eating out, With a developing emphasis on creative to grow the Festival as a destination retail and the cultural offer (both visitor business, leisure and an enhanced cultural event – it is already included in a destinations and activities) to develop offer, Warrington now aims to grow its successful Cultural Destinations bid to our marketing, learn about our visitors visitor economy in parallel with its wider Arts Council England, and so work is and enhance our offer. We have already economy. We know that we begin from already beginning in this area. identified the weekend family market a low cultural tourism base, but also that A significant music promoter is as one which we would like to target, there are both events and attractions that currently exploring a major two day building on our excellent transport could be better celebrated and supported music festival in Warrington for links on the West Main Coast Line, the to bring in tourists. Summer 2018. A combination of major availability of hotels at weekends (when events and enhanced programming will business travellers are not in the area), Our Step Change 2: Making a dynamic and be tested before 2021, to enable us to the navigability of the town and targeted uplift in cultural programming, stretch and improve our delivery, test local attractions for families with audiences and outreach will be the main how we work with tourism partners young children. driver for raising the ambition and quality across the city and develop our of our current tourism offer and better HOW UK CITY OF CULTURE 2021 WILL marketing and visitor knowledge. celebrating and marketing our area. BOOST OUR VISITOR ECONOMY • Create new spaces/facilities in Working through a place-based network, Data for 2013 shows 9.2m visits were Warrington for culture; when exploring linking tourism, economic development, made to Warrington, with visitors and assessing the feasibility of these – infrastructure and the cultural offer, spending £334.7m and creating an whether a sculpture park, a new visual we will: economic impact of £447m. This was art showing space, or the potential an increase of more than 2m visits on • Begin by improving our intelligence base, mixed use of the Town Hall – we will be 2009 figures (a 28% increase over four finding out about the current drivers for assessing their contribution and fit to years), and at the time demonstrated tourism to our area and identifying and our visitor offer. similar growth to the wider Cheshire area. 18 Tourism

Currently, this market is driven largely by a • Creating substantial major events ENSURING OUR TOURISM AND combination of business and retail visitors, leading to overnight stays and linked to TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE CAN and those visiting friends and family. urban and rural accommodation across MEET DEMAND We are specifically planning activities to the borough. support an increase in visitors for Our position at the intersection of major IMPACT ON MARKETING AND cultural activities. road and rail routes gives us a significant GOVERNANCE advantage. Locally, significant investment At present, our intelligence about cultural We will make important changes to in our transport networks is already under tourism in the area is limited, so we have support tourism growth. Warrington’s way and is enabling improved traffic flow selected a proxy indicator for growth in tourist economy is emerging from the to better cope with increased demand. this area (we would anticipate adding shadows of Chester and the neighbouring In relation to accommodation, while we other specific targets to this as we develop big hitters Manchester and Liverpool. need to undertake the necessary research our knowledge). Our Contemporary Arts We are positioning ourselves as a uniquely and development to identify exact need, Festival in 2015 drew in almost 10,000 well-placed growth city with surrounding we already know that, to deliver the people from outside Warrington, and rural market towns, offering access in all Warrington 2021 vision, we will need around 2,400 people travelling from directions, from a revitalised city centre increased overnight capacity. outside the North West and staying. This is achievable in multiple ways and An impact of £575,000 was estimated Our UK City of Culture bid is already could include making best use of hotels as resulting from these visits. We will be giving us immediate impetus to invest in and package opportunities with partners targeting growth in day and overnight new marketing activity with a strong focus just outside of our bid area, providing a visitors of double the 2015 figures by on supporting and enabling place-making. boost to the wider sub-regional economy. 2020, and a further uplift to treble The amount of space we have available in the 2015 figures in 2021, bringing an As part of our targets for Step Change 1: the borough and our enabling approach economic impact of around £1.7m. Placing the Creative Economy in the to business mean that we could welcome heart of the place – strategic alignment new build sites alongside, subject to the MAXIMISING OUR TOURISM IMPACT of economy, environment and culture, commercial proposition being sound. We will maximise the net impact of we have identified the need for a new Our night time economy will be tourism by: multi-sector place marketing network. strengthened by the new Time Square The network will support the development • Packaging our assets to maximise the development coming on stream by 2020 and delivery of a coherent view of place as opportunity for overnight stays. and an enhanced early and late evening a key mechanism for integrating audience food and leisure offer. During large scale • Transforming the ratio of business/ and marketing growth, and, with the events, we already augment existing retail/cultural tourism to leave a emerging stronger identity of Warrington, provision with ‘pop ups’ to meet demand changed destination economy. to drive a new visitor destination profile and see this as a way of providing a scalable development with immediate effect. • Improving strategic links to other and sustainable approach to delivering the

adjacent offers to grow in the additional capacity required.

sub-regional context.

19 Delivery and capacity

WHO IS LEADING OUR BID? leaders. We will continue to build on in a managed way that maximises the We expect that, once established, the City the successful networks that have been transfer of learning. At this stage we have of Culture company will work closely with Warrington’s bid is being led by a public/ established throughout the bidding deliberately not been prescriptive about our existing partners across Warrington to private sector board with a breadth of process to nurture and maintain a organisational structure in order to ensure commission work in a way that optimises experience across the arts, production, wider advisory network of cross sector that our proposition is sufficiently flexible the sustainability of the legacy in the broadcasting, creative and digital supporters and critical friends who will act to enable us to attract top national talent. longer term. We envisage developing industries, events, fundraising, education as both an informal sounding board and as We are realistic in our budget assumptions further relationships with the Institute and business. The board’s role is to ambassadors for the programme. about the overall capacity that is required of Directors, Love Warrington and other provide strategic direction, professional for delivery at this scale. partners who have an interest in cultural insight and to facilitate access to In addition, we have engaged an external The City of Culture company will be development locally if we are shortlisted. resources to support the delivery team. company to provide objective feedback to autonomous, ensuring creative freedom Board membership will be updated us throughout the bid process. HOW WE ARE CONSULTING LOCAL and agility to deliver, but also needs to be to incorporate stronger sub-regional PEOPLE, GROUPS AND COMMUNITIES DEVELOPING AND DELIVERING rooted in the place to deliver maximum representation post shortlisting. THE PROGRAMME value and to ensure strategic alignment We have taken a deliberately considered The bid delivery team is headed up by a Our delivery proposals are based on with the wider aspirations for our New approach to the first phase of bid lead with national programme delivery learnings from previous UK City and City. As such, the City of Culture company communication ahead of the initial bid submission. We have built strong support experience. However we recognise European Capital of Culture years and we board will be drawn both from members of from both local and sub-regional media, that winning the UK City of Culture have carefully considered what will work the existing Warrington 2021 board and with active in kind support from every will require us to bring in new skills and for Warrington. If our bid is successful, also from wider talent from the sub-region local commercial media outlet including expertise to augment our existing capacity we will establish a separate City of and national cultural sector. the Warrington Guardian, Wire FM and both in the run up to 2021 and to ensure Culture company with responsibility for The council’s Chief Executive will act as Warrington Worldwide. In addition, we that the programme and its legacy are producing, commissioning and curating the council’s cultural lead. have established a website and social the programme and related activity. delivered in a way that maximises impact media presences for our bid and in just a This approach will enable us to attract THE ROLE OF OUR BID PARTNERS locally, regionally and nationally. few months have generated more than the talent needed to deliver a programme WHO ELSE IS INVOLVED IN Between now and 2018 the City of 4,500 followers on Facebook. We are of national value and to ensure that the DEVELOPING AND SUPPORTING Culture board will continue to oversee also in the process of setting up a small entire focus of the company is on the OUR BID? bid and delivery activity and will play a network of cultural ambassadors programme, in turn maximising impact co-ordinating role in relation to access to in schools. To ensure that the bid is ‘truly Warrington’, and maintaining the confidence of our resources across partners. The bid process we have engaged creative minds across funders. We envisage that the culture has identified a clear opportunity to better the borough and beyond in a series of company will work closely with partners align the work of Warrington’s economic cross sector workshops. These have inside and outside of the borough to development engine, Warrington & Co, to harnessed existing creative energy develop and deliver the programme, and support cultural outcomes and to ensure and developed our ambitions in a way to facilitate a level of skills transfer both that culture is embedded within all the that is both realistic and authentically through the work itself and as part of the major borough regeneration strategies rooted in the place. This consultation legacy. The new company will appoint a and related governance structures. has involved a wide range of people Cultural Director to start no later than the This alignment will continue alongside the including Chief Executives and Directors Autumn 2018 and will continue operating bidding process. to artists, designers, digital entrepreneurs, beyond the 2021 year to ensure legacy community groups and community activity and hand over to the 2025 winner 20 Our track record

OUR TRACK RECORD The development of our city centre by By 2021, we will have invested in 2020 enables us to make better use of excess of £350m in our new city centre, space and to better integrate our overall including a new public square, cinema and cultural and leisure offer as part of our leisure offer to complement and enable desire to re-position Warrington as a growth of our wider cultural programming. destination of choice. Our ambition to better animate our city centre is reflected in the growth of our events programming in recent years, with a developing capability and a focused ‘scaling up’ of our ambition and impact. We acknowledge that we are not yet fully mature, so to achieve this upscaling in a managed way, we are working in partnership with experienced, national, events providers as well as local organisations, maximising opportunities for cross fertilisation of ideas and transfer of learning. We believe that this approach enables us to best manage risk and to develop a sustainable capability in the In Warrington we are a run up to the UK City of Culture year. team – and not just on the field. Our track record delivering international events like the Rugby League World Cup games show our ability to deliver in terms of both quality and scale. We are fully behind Warrington’s bid for UK City of Culture and look forward to continuing to work together with our partners to show the UK what Warrington is made of. Karl Fitzpatrick, Chief Executive, Warrington Wolves

21 Funding and budget

CULTURE – A STRATEGIC INVESTMENT While the 2021 year is clearly the focus 1,000 volunteers, with a specific focus of the bulk of our planned revenue on attracting interest from key groups, As we transform from a New Town to a investment, by taking a longer term including older people, to maximise the New City, we recognise the strategic approach to budgeting, we are clearly able overall benefit to Warrington. importance of culture in creating a to demonstrate our ongoing commitment compelling and competitive overall city Our approach to defining expenditure to, and understanding of, what it takes to offer. We understand the value that has been informed by experience deliver at a national scale. culture can bring to our people and our and learning from other areas but is place and we know we need to invest. Our budget principles assume that more sufficiently flexible to adapt as the Our bold ambitions to create a New City than half of the total income generated for programme evolves. We are realistic in are matched by equally ambitious cultural the programme will be spent on delivery, assuming that incoming talent will want ambitions. We have a strong track record excluding volunteering and the internal to influence the shape of the business of delivery in relation to economic and creative team. structure and the approach to overall social regeneration and transferable skills programme delivery and that to attract Budgets have been costed against an that we intend to use to complement and the very best talent we will need to illustrative programme, and will be augment our cultural delivery capacity. ensure strong and effective governance, adjusted as required post shortlisting as but relative operational autonomy in Warrington is a town that has doubled in more detailed planning takes place. relation to delivery. size in the last fifty years and while we’ve Just over 20% will be spent on operating experienced significant population and In developing our bid, we have visited costs and just under 20% will be spent on economic growth, our cultural offer has Hull and talked to the team at the City of PR and marketing. Reflecting on Hull’s not kept the same pace. Bidding for UK Culture company and within the council. experience, we envisage that we would City of Culture 2021 gives us a significant Members of our board have had prior use a combination of in house resource opportunity to reflect and to rebalance, involvement in evaluation for Derry/ and external agencies for the latter, and enabling us to make a considerable step Londonderry and in Liverpool’s Capital that the City of Culture company will work change in relation to sustainable cultural of Culture. We have used learning from all closely with other local and sub-regional investment for 2021 and beyond. of these to inform our approach to budget partners via a place marketing network planning. We have a strong understanding with representatives from tourism, Recognising the need for us to ‘scale up’ of what it takes to deliver and are grateful arts and marketing disciplines to ensure we have set out a seven year trajectory, to colleagues in all of the cities mentioned close co-ordination of work and sufficient indicating how we will increase revenue for sharing their experiences with us. resilience. This in turn enables us to fully spending over a longer timeframe to exploit all opportunities, to positively Throughout the 2021 year we intend to ultimately deliver a sustainable uplift in increase Warrington’s overall profile and build on existing sponsor relationships cultural funding both in the run up to, and to ensure longer term knowledge transfer, to develop a legacy programme with then beyond, the City of Culture year. improving overall value for money. associated sponsorship that will enable We understand that attracting external Our Cultural Investment Programme us to scale up the investment in this area. funding will only be possible if this is research strand in the lead up to 2021 We have not included these assumptions matched by public funding and will pave the way for a successful in-year within our projections at this stage. with this in mind, if we are successful, marketing approach. the council will commit additional direct revenue investment to fund an ambitious Our assumptions include the delivery run up programme and 2021 itself. of a volunteer programme of around 22 Partnerships

PARTNERSHIPS Alongside the development of the City of Cultural Capital in Liverpool and of Culture bid, a Business Improvement the Institute for Cultural Practices Our City of Culture board gives us a key District covering the centre of Warrington in Manchester. At this stage we also partnership mechanism through which is also in development and the governance recognise the need to significantly we can engage with cultural and potential of the BID will provide an additional strengthen our tourism offer and to use funding partners both directly and structural link to partners across the available expertise of neighbouring indirectly, exploiting the access that each Warrington. Additionally, we will seek agencies such as Marketing Cheshire board member has to wider networks wider business input and support through and Marketing Manchester as well as within Warrington and beyond. our link to the local Chair of the Institute forming new partnerships directly Board members are deliberately drawn of Directors who is a supporter of the bid. with Visit Britain. from a variety of sectors, with senior From a funding perspective, we are representation from the University of already working towards a more strategic Chester, Warrington Borough Council, relationship with the Arts Council, the Taylor Business Park, The Tim Parry and Heritage Lottery Fund, Big Lottery and Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace, other cultural funders. We see these Culture Warrington, LiveWire, Golden relationships as being key to enabling our Square Shopping Centre, Warrington & ambitions. We also see the relationship Co and independent representatives from with DCMS as being critical. the cultural sector. We also have strong partnerships with the LEP, Warrington From a delivery perspective, we are in Wolves, the Warrington Guardian and early discussions with the director of a other local and sub-regional media as world leading museum about the potential well as with non-cultural partners such as for a northern presence in Warrington. the NHS, Warrington Voluntary Action We are also talking to FACT, Heart of and a host of third sector organisations. Glass and other regional partners about Following shortlisting we plan to augment collaborations for the programme itself. the board to include representatives with national profile in order to inform the next I’m proud to call Warrington stage of development. home and am talking to the City Throughout the bid process, we have Our planned delivery partners are set out of Culture team about what I expanded existing partnerships and on page ten and alongside these we would can do to use my experience and sought to forge new partnerships both look to commission national production connections to support the overall within Warrington and beyond. engines to base work in Warrington during vision and to deliver a world class our UK City of Culture year. One of the major benefits of the cultural year. bid process so far has also been the Our Cultural Investment Programme Simon Moran, Managing Director, connections that our partners have made research strand delivered between SJM Concerts with each other – something we intend to 2017-2021 will enable us to capitalise RISKS support and build on. on our near proximity to the Institute

23 Legacy

Our UK City of Culture 2021 programme • Supporting and committing in the • Creative practitioners in Warrington will leave a lasting legacy because it will long term to exemplary upgraded and will be better celebrated and supported, be a milestone, but not the endpoint, of a new facilities and assets, including with networks which bring them longer term development that is already the SPARK digital accelerator hub, together and encourage interaction under way. Our Cultural Investment the Performing Arts Academy, the between art forms, genres and between Programme will establish ways of working long-term use of the Town Hall, the the commercial and subsidised sectors. which will gear us up for 2021, but potential for a sculpture park and other • Enhanced support for new digital also put in place structures, principles, possible plans for visual arts spaces and accelerator hubs will double the start- capacity and commitment which will enhanced performance spaces. None up rate for creative industries. go beyond the year itself and be the of these projects are just for 2021: • Young people who wish to work in bedrock of Warrington’s cultural offer they are about developing our creative the creative industries will have clear as a New City. This means that we will economy, growing jobs and skills pathways to develop their talent, have fundamentally re-positioned culture opportunities and changing the way including a Performing Arts Academy within our priorities and decision-making our new city will feel. A successful 2021 with targets for drawing students from processes, in support of Step Change 1 bid will be the ‘rocket fuel’ we need to areas of multiple deprivation, and (placing the Creative Economy in the heart deliver this at pace and to fully exploit the creation of community venue for of planning and decision-making). all of the opportuities open to us. evening performances and recordings. We will go about this by: • Bringing economic and cultural/ • We will establish pathways for public sector drivers into harmony, • Establishing, testing and integrating volunteers not only into 2021 building on the principles for the new our governance structures for cultural (from our existing programmes) city and linking entrepreneurs with strategy and delivery. but beyond 2021. infrastructure to provide a dynamic • Our wellbeing programme, building on • Providing significant new investment cultural scene. Creative Remedies, will be an everyday into culture in Warrington. The main elements of our legacy will be: part of our health offer to residents in • Linking our commitments to sustainable Warrington. • A significantly enhanced cultural strategic partnerships, for example offer, including a major Contemporary • Tourists will know where Warrington is, with Arts Council England and the Arts Festival, combined programming and events like the Contemporary Arts Land Trust. such as the planned new three-day Festival will be distinctively Warrington, • Enhancing our existing cultural festival bringing together RivFest as well as nationally and internationally offer over time and based on good and the Warrington Festival, and bold positioned and recognised. intelligence and feedback, to enabling and established programming in • Overall, there will be a change in the new audiences to become established, existing spaces. identity which Warringtonians feel, and developing our ambitious programming • New spaces, facilities and works of outsiders recognise, bringing increased in a managed way and ensuring that our pride and awareness. This will be a public art will be open to the public, offer remains unique to us. result of the profile which key events, and we will be programming for 2021 facilities and activities will bring, and and beyond. also from our tourism and cultural

branding and marketing.

24 Legacy

RETAINING AND RE-USING OUR and voice, and to be empowered by their Even through our bidding process, we are providers, to build an offer for which 2021 2021 EXPERTISE experiences in 2021 to determine the already engaging with potential delivery will just be the start. direction and ambition of their practice. partners in different ways, looking at the Our approach to developing our offer The ongoing development of Warrington, assets which we have to explore what can and infrastructure in the lead up to • The intelligence which will underpin through Warrington & Co and our be done differently and where we can be 2021 is about developing meaningful our Cultural Investment Programme partnerships with developers and more ambitious. Structures like our partnerships, locally, regionally, nationally will continue, and underpin significantly funders such as HCA and The Land Trust place-based marketing network will and internationally, which support our improved media and tourism marketing will embed cultural and environmental provide a long-term route for engaging local talent and organisations to raise their and services. Our place-based facilities in planning and delivery in the with tourism partners, including ambition and build experience, expertise marketing network will be key in taking medium term. attractions, hotels and transport and capacity. Taking this approach, we will: the responsibility for these activities beyond 2021. • Develop the future governance and wider strategic support for culture MAINTAINING AND DEVELOPING through the leadership and decision- FUNDING PARTNERSHIPS making structures for culture across our Warrington Borough Council will partnerships - including within the local be leading the way in terms of its authority, and the positioning of culture commitments for culture in the long-term; in our broader strategies and vision for however, we want to begin engaging with Warrington. This approach will develop funding and delivery partners in advance champions for culture not just for 2021, of 2021. The more strategic positioning but for the long-term. of culture within the leadership of the city • Build on the significant long term is our first signal to the Arts Council and investments we have already identified, other key partners that we are serious: understanding that we have more whilst we want to work towards an work to do in defining the detail. Our incredible year in 2021. To achieve this, overall approach is to avoid parachuting what we want are long-term, strategic in creative talent which will then relationships. leave – we want to develop creative Our target of seeking an NPO by 2021 talent which is already in the city, and is one indicator of how these funding support an infrastructure and ambitious relationships are not just about one year, programming beyond 2021 which but about the future of Warrington and attracts new talent to stay and commit culture in our city. We are already in a to our new city. range of discussions about plans for new • Support creative practitioners. We are cultural spaces and offers which will planning to develop networks which require long-term commitment. will contribute significantly to our UK City of Culture programme, but exist independently of it. We need to encourage them to develop their agenda 25 Learning and evaluation

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT • Reflect our polycentric nature in our model, to draw links to significant some basic media analytics. AND INCLUSION 2021 programme by engaging with what heritage and cultural settings such as the • Engaging with Arts Council England happens in communities, through the Manchester Ship Canal and River Mersey. Through our Cultural Investment regarding the new local authority level spaces owned by those communities Programme, we want to develop our more • There are already discussions taking participation data (Active Lives Survey), – and we want to continue developing ambitious cultural offer with our residents. place regarding other potential taking the baseline which will be activities with those communities, in We know that we need to understand opportunities, such as Arriva buses provided in Autumn 2017. their spaces, beyond 2021. We will do more about how they engage with culture, supporting travelling recording studios this by supporting co-production groups • Identifying key activities and and how they don’t. We also know that linking the Performing Arts Academy in our communities, building on programmes (e.g. Contemporary Arts there will be important things about the and local venues, offering opportunities current successful community hub Festival, our volunteering programmes) way that we choose to do things in 2021, in hard-to-reach communities. volunteer groups. where an enhanced level of audience and the lead-up to it, that can set the tone intelligence will be crucial to informing for cultural participation in Warrington in • Have strong, community-led festivals EVALUATING OUR OVERALL IMPACT our cultural offer development in the the long-term. We are planning to: and activities already in Warrington. We next few years. want to support those communities to As part of the Investment programme • Commit to long-term, targeted enhance and raise the ambition of those from 2017 to 2021 we have already Taking this approach, we will be refining outreach activities that build upon good activities, such as the Mela, and we want identified a range of intelligence which we our baselines early on in our journey, practice (including our own existing to continue doing that after 2021. need to produce to inform our baselines and establishing key data/survey design, programmes) rather than reinventing and support meaningful development of mechanisms for data collection and the wheel every time. Developing • The moments that will bring Warrington our cultural offer. These will include, potential partners significantly in advance models like Creative Remedies is one together in 2021 will be our test cases but not be limited to, the following: of 2021. We anticipate beginning some of the ways we’ll do this. for major events in the future, drawing of this work ourselves, either through lessons from the successful Liverpool •  Mapping the cultural sector and existing intelligence mechanisms (e.g. creative industries thoroughly, our Business Intelligence Team); and identifying gaps and areas of strength. then working with expert partners to •  Mapping the current tourism offer identify sustainable research design and and infrastructure thoroughly. collection processes which will take us through to 2021 and beyond. We are • Updating our overall intelligence on fortunate to be in the North West with visitors (volume, type, spend), and both the Institute of Cultural Capital (in adding a significant level of detail: Liverpool) and the Institute for Cultural exploring visitors motivations, their Practices (Manchester), on our doorstep, perceptions of Warrington, what they both of which have a wealth of experience do when they come, and the things that evaluating cultural events, and we would they do when they come. anticipate engaging with both these • Building detailed baselines about potential partners to explore what kind Warrington and its identity, through of role higher education might take in public polling (to understand external supporting our evaluation. and potential visitor perceptions), The newly re-established local authority through residents survey, and through level data for cultural participation which

26 Evaluation the Arts Council invests in (Active Lives SHARING OUR LEARNING Survey) will provide us with an excellent We will: baseline and approach to tracking overall participation across all groups and • Engage with potential higher education communities in Warrington. Learning the (HE) partners, research providers and lessons from previous evaluations, we other intelligence agencies/functions would also like to explore enhancing this to understand best practice, share our overview in the following ways: findings and develop our thinking. This may include conference, networks • For London 2012, a bumper sample and perhaps (depending on an HE for the six London Boroughs included partner) the opportunity to set up a a range of more detailed questions learning network via an AHRC grant regarding the Olympics. We would or similar. aim to explore whether the Arts Council would work with us, using the • Work with our funding partners and Active Lives Survey, to create a similar national agencies, particularly where approach to understanding the potential we may be able to add to existing data impacts of the UK City of Culture sets (e.g. the Active Lives Survey), and on the lives of residents in the share with them the experiences of Warrington area. using and applying the learning from those sources. • Alongside this we would also like to explore how we can better understand • Host networks and conferences in the experiences of residents in Warrington, whether for part of or all Warrington from different areas and of an event to provide both real-time groups. We do have the capacity to reflections on our experiences and undertake residents’ surveys, but opportunities to share data as would also potentially consider a it emerges. methodology like the Neighbourhood Surveys undertaken for Liverpool 2008 European Capital of Culture, which allows a more in-depth comparison of different experiences from residents in different neighbourhoods. We would aim to emulate the longitudinal approach undertaken by Liverpool, gathering data both before and after the year.

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