BBC Wiltshire political reporter
More than 100 local organisations have formed a new collective that will manage a £1.3m arts and culture project.
The Swindon Culture Collective is a not-for-profit community interest company aiming to establish Swindon as a festival town, create new spaces for arts and culture and map out pathways for people keen to develop their own creativity.
Director Rod Hebden said the money would “turbo boost what Swindon already has”.
The Arts Council England’s National Lottery Place Partnership Fund has committed £600,000 to the programme, which Dr Hebden described as “daunting, overwhelming but incredibly exciting”.
Combined with additional donations from central government and local organisations the £1.3m budget will be spent over two years.
The latest grant will be used to establish the project’s goals and collaborative working within the town, which Dr Hebden said would be the “legacy” of the project.
He said this would ensure the future of Swindon’s arts and culture scene would continue to “rocket”.
“It’s incredible to see how the sector, who were all working in silos, now feel like a family,” he added.
Dr Hebden suggested turning empty shops into spaces for the creative community to “show off what they do”.
He added: “It can be done, we’ve seen it in other places, so why not use what we’ve got in the town centre and bring [art and culture] to where people are?
“There’s artists crying out for places to display their work or to perform or to rehearse.”
Former secondary school teacher turned member of Prime Theatre Nyree Hale said: “If you’re from London, Bristol or Bath there’s an outcry if you can’t find the things you want to do. If you go there’s an expectation.
“I think [the project] is going to raise that expectation.
“It’s about having a passion, finding that passion and then – what I always say to young people I work with – your job is to make me love what you love – and who doesn’t want to do that?”
‘Self-confidence and swagger’
As part of the project, Swindon Borough Council has hired Kate Wyatt as its head of culture, heritage, arts and special events, which councillor Marina Strinkovsky called “so exciting”.
She hopes the Swindon Culture Collective and the £1.3m of cash into the sector will help the town” develop more of an identity around our cultural offer” and show its “self-confidence and swagger”.
Phil Gibby, Arts Council England’s area director for the South West, said they were proud to award the funding, adding that it marked “a pivotal moment in the town’s cultural journey”.
He said: “This investment reflects the shared ambition of local artists, organisations and communities to build an inclusive, creative offer and I’m especially pleased to see the council appoint a new head of culture – sure to galvanise the local sector and further establish Swindon as one of the country’s leading centres for innovation and inclusion.”