Two Lancashire councils awarded £80,000 each for cultural high street projects

Blackpool Council and West Lancashire Borough Council announced this week that they have each been awarded a grant from Historic England as part of the High Streets Heritage Action Zone (HSHAZ) and Community Cultural Programme.

The councils' HSHAZs are two of more than 60 high streets in the country to receive a share of £6million for their proposed community cultural programme which is aimed at delivering events to re-engage local communities within the high street.

The cultural programme aims to make the country's high streets more attractive, engaging and vibrant places for people to live, work and spend time, with grants of up to £120,000 awarded to local arts organisations for cultural activity on each high street.

The funding is part of the four-year-long High Streets Heritage Action Zones’ Community Cultural Programme, led by Historic England, in partnership with Arts Council England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

All activity will include elements that specifically seek to engage communities on how they see the future of their high street and their place in it as part of a Heritage Action Zone.

Activities in Blackpool will be focused around St John’s Square and potentially the wider town centre. 

The delivery plan for the programme for Blackpool has been developed by Blackpool Council in partnership with the Winter Gardens Trust, Blackpool Civic Trust and the Friends of the Grand.

There will be four main activity strands and themes developed for years 1 and 2 (to allow for coronavirus restrictions) which will include Theatre & Performance, Creative, Film and Heritage.

Ideas that are being developed (with specific details being announced later when available) are:

• Encouraging theatre productions into the street to engage and promote productions to a wider audience
• Promote Blackpool’s vibrant community of artists and crafts people to showcase their talents and encourage greater participation through workshops
• To develop film offerings within Blackpool’s venues for diverse audiences including families, dementia friendly groups and other community screening events
• Delivery of tour and talks on the architectural and social heritage of Blackpool

Blackpool Council leader and cabinet member for tourism and culture, Cllr Lynn Williams, said: “We are delighted to receive this funding and to be working in partnership with three of our local heritage charities to deliver this programme.

“The cultural programme and funding offers very clear opportunities to engage local communities in a number of different ways and on a number of levels with both Blackpool’s heritage and its dynamic and exciting artistic community.

"We will be revealing more details about the programme as soon as we can.

“It’s also important that communities are allowed to shape the cultural programme moving forward.

"The themes that have been proposed are intended to be reviewed at the end of the first year through continuous feedback on individual events.

"There will also be a year-end review workshop, where communities will be invited to bring forward suggestions for additional or alternative activities or to confirm their support for the continuation of the existing programme into the following year.”

Chair of the Winter Gardens Trust, Cllr David Owen, commented: “We’re delighted to have been awarded this money and it will be good to be working with our partners at the Civic Trust and Friends of the Grand on a project which we all have a real interest in, particularly as the main Heritage Action Zone project is focused on the Winter Gardens and other significant buildings in the conservation area.”

Ormskirk

Over in Ormskirk, which has a rich and varied history, the programme will draw on that history by working with creative professionals who can connect with the community, bring heritage alive and animate the high street.

It will play an integral part in revitalising the high street following an extremely difficult year of lockdowns and restrictions.

The award will help West Lancashire Borough Council develop a series of events that will create a legacy in both people’s memories and the community by delivering a programme of artist residencies and events on the high street.

It will be an inclusive programme of engagement involving schools, the community and individuals, promoting heritage, increasing skills and creativity while providing health and well-being outcomes.

This programme of work with be overseen by the Cultural Consortia and will be planned to support cultural facilities, improving cultural networks whilst developing cultural volunteering opportunities. The aim is to ensure long-term sustainability through volunteering and the development of income streams, so a cultural programme can be sustained beyond this programme of work.

Leader of West Lancashire Borough Council, Councillor Ian Moran, said: "This funding will allow us to put on some fantastic events in the historic setting of Ormskirk town centre for everyone in the borough to get involved in and enjoy.

"The pandemic has been especially unkind to our high streets and as long as we can keep working towards step four of the roadmap, this initiative will help breathe life back into the heart of the town centre, while providing a chance for our communities to get creative and have some fun."

Chief Executive at Historic England, Duncan Wilson, said: “The high street cultural programme is a step change in the way we think about bringing high streets back from the brink.

"As we start to see these important historic spaces become regenerated through building work, it is the community-led cultural work that helps people to enjoy their high street again and also have a say in what the future of their high street might be.”