£1million Arts Council funding granted to Rochdale Borough
We are delighted to announce that Your Trust, along with other Consortium members, won a £1million grant from Arts Council England to fund community-led cultural programmes over a three-year period.
The Culture Co-op consortium, led by local charity Action Together and including Rochdale Borough Council, Rochdale Boroughwide Housing, The Co-operative Group, and charity Your Trust, successfully bid for the funding from the Creative People and Places fund. The Culture Co-op is based on the original 1844 Rochdale Co-operative principles, creating cultural opportunities around neighbourhoods and across communities.
The consortium aims to build on the recent success of cultural projects like Gaia, the stunning replica of planet Earth at Number One Riverside, The Walk of Little Amal, and the Radical Kindness mural on Baillie Street by developing more public artworks and opportunities for local cultural engagement.
Liz Windsor-Welsh, CEO of Action Together and consortium Chair, said, “We are thrilled about this opportunity for Rochdale, and the creativity and connection it will bring for communities across the Borough, co-operating with the voluntary sector and partners.”
The Arts Council England funding is aimed at bringing together community, grassroots, and cultural organisations as partners to take the lead in choosing, creating, and taking part in arts and cultural activities that their local communities want and need.
Darren Henley, Chief Executive of Arts Council England, said, “These projects change villages, towns and cities for the better, helping people to lead happier, healthier lives.”
The Rochdale Borough project will be one of 39 Creative People and Places programmes taking place nationally.
“Today’s announcement is a really exciting moment for all of us involved in developing the bid”, said Darren Grice, Deputy CEO of Your Trust and consortium member. “This investment will ensure that thousands of local people are able to watch, create and volunteer as part of exciting new creative activities taking place across the Borough over the next three years.”
Rochdale Borough Councillor Susan Smith said, “As Cabinet Member for Communities and Co-operation I am delighted that Rochdale Borough will join places the length and breadth of the country to deliver Creative People and Places. I am really passionate about this project as it will invite our communities to be at the very heart of shaping new creative programmes and activities, inspired by our unique heritage of co-operation.”
We will keep you updated on the arts funding and progress as soon as we have more details on upcoming projects.