The purpose of the forum is to bring together local arts and community organisations to discuss and help shape the initial ideas developed by the Steering Committee of the Cultural Consortium. It will focus on four high-profile cultural events in Stratford for 2009.

Some of those events will build on and enhance existing events in the town; some will be brand new initiatives. All of them will, we hope, help raise the town's profile regionally, nationally and internationally and contribute to making Stratford a vibrant place for the community and visitors for the 21st Century.   

Local Artists and Community Forum

17th September 2008

Present: 

Angela McSherry (facilitator)

Amanda Laidler
Andrew Holtom
Annie Ashworth
Brian Midgley
David Curtis
David Troughton
Deborah Shaw  - Cultural Consortium (CC) Steering Committee
Diana Owen  - CC Steering Committee
Eric Smith
Fiona Rae  - CC Coordinator
Gary Barnes

Harry Ratcliffe
Helen Robson
Hilary Newman

Jackie Lines
Jenny Fradgely
Jonathan Birkett

Jonathan Field

Julie Field
Julie de Freston
Karen Gaymond
Karen Jones
Kate McLuskie
Katie Beswick
Lynda Ross
Marion Morgan
Mark Ball  - CC Steering Committee
Natasha Roderick-Jones
Nigel Phillips
Pamela Hickson
Paul Ogden

Prunella Webb
Richard Taylor
Rita Mansfield
Robin Wade
Rosemary Keep
Sarah Barker-Doherty
Sarah Summers
Steve Newman
Sue Stevenson
Susan Walton

Wendy Freeman

Note: List to be completed 2 October

 Organisations represented:

Visual Arts Forum; Business Improvement District BID; Carpe Diem; Chamber Music Society; Escape Community Art in Action; In2theatresStratford; White Swan Jazz; King Edwards School; Orchestra of the Swan; Phoenix Players; Royal Shakespeare Company; Shakespeare Birthplace Trust; Shakespeare Institute; Shipston Proms; Stratford Arts Society; Stratford College; Stratford Festival; Stratford International Literary Festival; Stratford Literary Festival; Stratford Music Festival; Stratford Operatics; Stratford Symphony Orchestra; Stratford Town Council; Stratford Town Management Partnership; Stratford Voice; Stratford District Council; Warwick County Council; Warwickshire Arts Week; World Class Stratford and individual artists and musicians.   

Structure:

A facilitated session, focusing on the four proposed pilot projects for 2009:

• Enhanced/expanded Birthday Weekend celebrations;
• Summer Festival based around the river;
• Winter Festival and
• Stratford Stories – unlocking the stories of the town and its community and visitors.

Introduction:

Angela McSherry welcomed the attenders and everyone introduced themselves.

Deborah Shaw gave a quick summary of the context of the meeting and explained to the group that the main impetus for the Cultural Consortium is to help address the decline in visitor numbers to Stratford-upon-Avon and the current and potential impact on the local economy of such a decline, through a pro-active exploration and development of the unique Stratford cultural offer.

• The RSC had been tasked by Advantage West Midlands (AWM) and World Class Stratford (WCS) to set up a Cultural Consortium. The consortium’s brief is to develop the proposals set out in the Festival and Events Indicative Plan prepared by consultants, CultureWorks UK (This report had been commissioned earlier in the year by the Town Management Partnership on behalf of Advantage West Midlands).  

• The Cultural Consortium sits as a sub-committee of World Class Stratford and is made up of two parts; the Steering Committee (which has met once) and the Local Artists and Community Forum (LACF).

• The Steering Committee decided to hold this first meeting of the LACF as an independently-facilitated ideas session that would give everyone a voice, allow people to get to know each other and to brainstorm ideas around the pilot projects.

• Ideas from tonight’s meeting would be fed into the Cultural Consortium Steering Committee meeting on 23rd September and would help shape the outline funding proposal being prepared by the Steering Committee, which would go to AWM in mid-October.

1. Exercise

In pairs, attenders described a cultural experience that had ‘made their heart sing’.
Descriptive language collected:

‘Energising, happy, bass profundo, totally uplifting, smiles, inclusive, happy, full house, excitement, something for all ages, an experience that stays with you, gives you a sense of pride, insightful, life-changing, sensual, animated, doesn’t have to be big to be effective, something that is shared.’

Angela reminded everyone that in discussing cultural plans for Stratford, our collective aim is to ensure that our audiences have that kind of experience.

2. Ideas session

Mark Ball and Diana Owen summarised the thinking so far on the four proposed pilot projects and 60 minutes were spent brainstorming on each project in smaller groups, with a final session in which key points were drawn together by Angela McSherry.

The exercise prompted a wealth of ideas and a generosity of spirit around initiatives that could provide umbrella opportunities for ongoing events.

Like to see the ideas from the session? - click here

3. Points raised

• That co-ordination of Events and Festivals in the town was of paramount importance, so that opportunities for programming, audience development and publicity/marketing could be maximized

• That a central, up-to-date web portal for visitors to access the cultural offer is vital

• That the pilot projects should also be about helping to define and celebrate the lives of residents. They should be a catalyst for involving communities in outlying areas and new housing developments

• That the pilot projects should focus on opportunities for young people to get involved. (What about a Youth Forum?)

• That the pilot projects provide an opportunity to attract new and ethnic minority audiences

• That the mechanism for the delivery of the pilot projects and the relationship between the Steering Committee and the LACF should be clarified

• The Stratford Music Festival is in the autumn, which is not a focus of the pilot projects. How will we ensure that existing events are not overshadowed but can rather benefit from the increased activity and profile?

• That such a large group as the LACF, representing the arts on all scales could develop an important advocacy/lobbying role in Stratford

• The lack of an Arts Officer in Stratford

• The lack of an Arts Centre in Stratford

• That ideas are all very well, but some people felt there had been similar gatherings in the past and what was needed was a focus on the structures for delivery

• That, on the contrary, an ideas meeting was a good place to start and some people felt this had been a welcome opportunity to engage with each other for the first time.

Next Steps

23rd September:  Deborah Shaw, Mark Ball, Diana Owen and Fiona Rae to report back to the Steering Committee

Date of next meeting: November 2008 – date to be agreed

Agenda to include:

• Feedback on the funding application
• Delivery structures
• Discussion focusing on audiences

If you would like to see minutes of the Cultural Consortium Steering Committee meetings of July 9th and September 23rd click here