On 5th November, Culture Commons launched a report of findings and recommendations from a major four nations research and open policy development programme on cultural devolution in the UK.  

Creative Estuary was on the steering group as a sector partner meaning we could feed into this policy initiative at national level. It gave us the chance to share our extensive experience of working pan-regionally, and our experience of developing partnerships to support and sustain the creative and cultural industries across the Estuary and the South East.  

Culture Commons’ report findings fit into four key categories: local cultural decision making, cultural-led place shaping, local voice and funding. Recommendations included backing local authorities to maintain their essential role as ‘anchors’, facilitating decision making across wider geographies, and engaging the public in decision making at all tiers of governance to really embed culture locally. 

Creative Estuary played a crucial role in the evaluation of local cultural decision making. We had the opportunity to host a workshop exploring pan-regional working. This was delivered in partnership with speakers from Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (PEC) and The Royal Society of Arts (RSA). In addition, the recent Creative Corridors report from PEC and RSA, has many parallels and alignments with the Culture Commons report, and Creative Estuary has volunteered to support the implementation of both reports and to continue to share our learning in the Thames Estuary

As the relationships between local authorities change and power is further devolved locally, the creative sector has become excited about the possibility of renegotiating a place for the creative and cultural industries. Kent and Essex have both been exploring the devolution models and Creative Estuary are well placed to support that ambition through our deeply networked programmes. 

Our partners across the Thames Estuary have shared their continued commitment for working pan-regionally because they want to be part of something bigger. This helps partners to navigate the fluctuations in structures and political changes, as well as enabling the sharing of resources and intelligence. We’re stronger together. 

A great example of this is the Docking Station in Chatham. Creative Estuary invested in the feasibility which ignited and helped bring together key partners to try something together, they formed a joint vision and shared risk. Now, a strong partnership consisting of Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust, Medway Council and the University of Kent, are in the process of restoring a historic building at the Historic Dockyard Chatham into a unique digital and immersive hub for learning and creative entrepreneurship. This will provide industry-standard production technologies enabling local businesses, students and communities to develop new skills in immersive technologies and support the digital creative industries in Medway and the South East region.  

To launch the report, Culture Commons hosted a webinar with an audience of over 250 delegates. Creative Estuary’s Project Director Lorraine Cox was invited as a speaker in a workshop on local cultural decision making. The workshop sparked many interesting conversations not least about what ‘growth’ is. Is it just about money and buildings, what it means for partnerships, and for the sector.     

Lorraine shared her thoughts that “There are many different types of growth, there is growth of partnerships, growth of networks and growth of knowledge. The sharing of skills helps other people grow. There are many ways to grow, and the government is now making a real connection between health, wellbeing, housing and creativity. We should talk about growth in a sustainable, broader way.” 

Lorraine also discussed Creative Estuary’s examples of pan-regional work, including our Knowledge Exchange Partnership, which sees senior partners from local authorities across the Estuary coming together to share knowledge. 

Culture Commons’ report launch on devolution coincided with Creative PEC and RSA’s report called Creative Corridors. This report sets out one potential mechanism for harnessing growth: creative corridors. Corridors are a large geographic area of multiple creative clusters joined together through supply chains and networks. The two reports complement each other by building upon the idea that creative people work by networking and collaborating.   

Lorraine Cox commented, “We welcome both reports. Using both, we need to recognise that the creative sector is already there, we didn’t invent them. We must use these reports to inform how we make life easier for the sector, and Andy Burnham Mayor of Greater Manchester set out that sentiment at the Creative Corridors launch recently in Salford Quays. We need to help the creative sector to come together to share risk, to develop their creative practice, their creative entrepreneurship and contribute to the diverse communities and neighbourhoods they are integral to.    

“We have worked along the Thames Estuary since 2019, and we are keen to share our learning and our intel with others. We look forward to helping Culture Commons, PEC, and RSA, to implement the findings of these reports and the recommendations.”  

You can access Culture Commons report here, and the Creative Corridors report here.