Watermans Awarded Almost A Million Pounds

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Arts Council England supports Creative People & Places

Watermans Arts Centre has been awarded £997,063 from Arts Council England to continue a programme of people-focused art and culture development in the area, announced on Thursday.

Creative People & Places is the Arts Council’s national investment in engaging new audiences in the arts, in areas where there is little or no access to arts and culture.

In Hounslow, people's involvement in the arts is significantly below the national average.

Since 2014 Creative People & Places Hounslow has worked from the grass roots up to create a confident, colourful and creative borough. Led by Watermans, activities have included launching the Hounslow Community Choir, developing arts hubs in the area, supporting small arts organisations with training and business support, and providing free, high-quality art and culture like the Winter Lights event and drop-in drama at Benson and Estridge estate.

This new award of £997,063 will secure the project’s future for another three years.

Joyce Wilson, London Area Director, Arts Council England, said:

“Creative People & Places is about more than just great art, it’s about supporting communities to shape their own arts and culture provision. This is what we’ve seen happening across Hounslow with the direction of Watermans. I’m pleased we are able to continue this project and see more impact in this community.”

Watermans leads the Creative People & Places Hounslow consortium, including community arts organisations, a community development trust, Hounslow Music Service and the local authority.

Jan Lennox, Director, Watermans, said:

“It’s been extraordinary working with so many local people who have brought so much to this programme, creating the kind of borough that they want: from Salisbury Café that was transformed into a gallery featuring the work of local artists, to the many participants from all backgrounds in the huge, annual Winter Lights festival. We’ve also seen so many people inspired by taking part in the arts in the range of groups springing up around the borough, from bhangra in the Beavers Estate to a brass band in Feltham.”

There are 21 independent Creative People & Places projects, each located in an area in England where people have traditionally had fewer opportunities to get involved with the arts, including Barking & Dagenham in East London. Projects have reached over 1.2 million people since 2015, 90% of whom do not regularly engage in the arts.

Read more about the Creative People & Places programme.

November 3, 2017