Arts Council England boss: ‘Why we believe in Blackburn’

Recently, we announced that Blackburn with Darwen will be one of 54 priority places across England, and one of 15 in the North, where we want to develop new opportunities for investment.

This exciting news is part of Let’s Create, our strategy for the next 10 years. Our vision is that creativity and culture can play a part in post-pandemic recovery and in levelling up the country.

Blackburn with Darwen has great potential to build on its distinctive cultural heritage, including its historical links to the textile industry. We’ve already seen the popularity of the yearly National Festival of Making which celebrates the borough’s manufacturing history and highlights Blackburn and Darwen as places of making and creating. When I visited the last festival I was struck by how it’s a brilliant example of the way arts activities can reignite town centres and bring people together.

Similarly, the recent British Textile Biennial, which animated spaces and venues across the borough, shone a spotlight on the region’s creativity and drew many visitors to its wide programme of events and workshops.

Blackburn with Darwen Council is committed to cultural development, with plans to invest in its libraries, theatres and outdoor spaces. This will provide opportunities for the area’s already-innovative cultural organisations, such as Super Slow Way and Prism Contemporary, to enhance their impact and evolve further.

Gary Aspden with the Adidas Blackburn Spezial trainer at The Cotton Exchange, part of the British Textile Biennial, 2019

On welcoming the announcement about Blackburn with Darwen being one of our priority places, Councillor Mohammed Khan commented how having high-quality cultural activity and making the most of the area’s creative talent is an essential ingredient for success in both the borough’s towns.

Blackburn Cathedral

Blackburn with Darwen is already an emerging hotbed of cultural activity. Blackburn Cathedral has served as a significant space for artists to practice and perform, ranging from cinematic installations during the Festival of Making to popular gigs. The Cotton Exchange has equally been a grand space, hosting a number of prominent cultural events including the British Textile Biennial. Both these spaces are truly great assets to the town’s growing cultural scene.

Elsewhere, the Bureau Centre for the Arts CIC has established itself as a fantastic space for artists to create work and engage with people. They host regular arts, health and social activities including community learning sessions, Dance for Parkinson’s, the Blackburn Folk Group and the Community Festival of Light. The centre was recently awarded funding through our Thriving Communities programme to create a social prescribing hub at the centre.

Other spots gathering increasing interest include the Blackburn Youth Zone – a dynamic space for young and disabled people to discover more about arts, dance, sport and music and Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery which has been doing fantastic work with the project Kick Down the Barriers which is using the arts to support community cohesion.

Darwen Live

In Darwen, the Library Theatre is a popular spot and often home to high-profile names in comedy as well as providing a cinema programme. The town’s historic market is also a great space for creative activities for local children and the town centre’s square has been the consistent setting for Darwen Live which has now been running for 21 years.

These activities I’ve highlighted here only scratch the surface of the borough’s ever-growing cultural landscape. Blackburn with Darwen continues to impress me by the way it creates opportunities for local artists and young people and by the vast selection of activities that have been created here for communities to enjoy and participate in.

The creative sector has a vital role to play in the country’s recovery from the pandemic. Although cultural venues had to suddenly close in 2020 due to Covid, The last 18 months have demonstrated a hunger and a greater understanding for what arts and culture contribute to everyday life.

Thankfully the Government’s unprecedented £2 billion investment in the shape of the Culture Recovery Fund has provided a lifeline for thousands of organisations and has protected many jobs.

In Blackburn with Darwen, we’ve invested over £2 million of Culture Recovery funding, including awards to Sunbird Records, The Making Rooms and Culturapedia. And that is on top of an additional £2 million of Arts Council funding for the borough over the last five years.

We need to continue to invest in places like Blackburn with Darwen and it is important everybody, no matter where they are in the borough, is given the opportunity to access arts and culture.