The next steps for Birkenhead's Town of Culture hopes have been set out. The Wirral town beat almost 400 others to be named in the shortlist for the inaugural £3m award.
The award seeks to widen participation in cultural activity and support regeneration and the winner will receive £3m to deliver a cultural programme in 2028. Not only is Birkenhead the only town in the Liverpool City Region to be shortlisted, but it is also the only town in the North West of England to have reached the last 15.
Bid Leadership and Update
The town's bid was convened by Future Yard, a music venue in Argyle Street. Craig Pennington, the co-founder and chief executive of the venue, is leading on the Birkenhead Town of Culture bid. He spoke at Wirral Council's Tourism, Communities, Culture, and Leisure Committee on July 22, on behalf of the Birkenhead Culture Partnership, providing councillors an update on the process and setting out the next stages.
From across the UK, 398 towns submitted Expressions of Interest for the award, from which the shortlist was shaped. Mr Pennington told the committee the view of Birkenhead offered in the Expression of Interest was "unapologetically optimistic." He added: "We are after all the other place, the town on the left bank, the dark side, and the place where interesting things happen."
Headline Themes
Mr Pennington explained that four "headline themes" are being used to shape the vision for how 2028 could look if Birkenhead does become the Town of Culture:
- 'The big weird outdoors' - A focus on large scale outdoor events which would likely take place in Birkenhead Park and other civic spaces around the town.
- 'Making it ours' - Encouraging participation in cultural events and promoting civic pride and a sense of identity.
- 'The left bank after dark' - Boosting the night time economy in Birkenhead.
- 'The house that shouldn't exist' - Celebrating Birkenhead's role as a national leader in 'outsider art', with Ron's Place as an example.
The UK Town of Culture has been set up to replicate the UK City of Culture award, which was itself established following the success of Liverpool's time as the European Capital of Culture in 2008. As this will be the first ever Town of Culture award, Mr Pennington suggested it is useful to look at Derry/Londonderry which was named the first UK City of Culture in 2013 for reference. He said that whilst the two awards are different, 2013 "provides an interesting benchmark of opportunity."
Derry/Londonderry Benchmark
Discussing with Northern Irish city, Mr Pennington added: "It's got a similar population to Birkenhead. It's certainly somewhere that's got a particular story that's been told about it in the past. It's a place that may already have a perception of itself, and people from the outside have a perception of it." He went onto explain that 2013 generated £97m for the city and 81% of residents engaged in the cultural activities on offer during the year. Even after its year in the spotlight, Derry/Londonderry saw a 19% increase in tourism, Mr Pennington told the committee.
Next Steps
With Birkenhead having been named on the shortlist, Wirral Council is set to receive £60k from the Government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to develop the Expression of Interest into a full bid. The bids will be submitted in the Autumn, with a winner expected to the announced early next year. The Birkenhead Culture Partnership will now form a board which will oversee the development of the bid. The board will decide how to best use the £60k to develop the bid.
