Legacy

For the benefit of everyone in North East Lincolnshire

The Legacy of Grimsby Creates

In 2019, North East Lincolnshire Council secured £2.2m of funding from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, administered by Arts Council England via the Cultural Development Fund programme to support and grow Grimsby’s creative sector. In addition, £1m was made available for the Kasbah Grant Repair Scheme by Historic England and North East Lincolnshire Council.

The programme, known as Grimsby Creates was delivered in 4 ways:

Creative Programme – a major programme of new activities with international links, engaging new audiences/visitors and attracting investment. 
Business Development – supporting local creative businesses and individuals wanting to start their venture to unlock growth and build sustainability.
Creative Workspace alongside the Kasbah Grant Repair Scheme – act as a catalyst for the regeneration of the historic Kasbah area. 
St James Square – redeveloping an outdoor public space where cultural events can take place.

The creative programme has delivered a broad range of high-quality ambitious cultural events, including two Festivals of the Sea (2021 and 2022), Grimsby Creates Noise, #MyFishGY, Edible Grimsby, Our Future Starts Here, Paint the Town Proud, People Power Partnership and temporary installations including The Museum of the Moon, Gaia and Walk This Way. These events attracted a total audience of over 64,000 and increased footfall on event days by an average of 13.7% in Grimsby town centre.

A projection of colourful fish on a building

A man stood above a footpath with a church in the background

Building with a boat and trawlermen painted on

A public square with tents and stalls and a church in the background

Male with arms outstretched in an open space with digital board in the background.

A dance performance with a colourful backdrop

A woman and child looking at a large exhibit of the Earth in a church

A performer spinning around in a hula hoop

Female stood in front of artwork on a wall.

The core of the Business Development programme was Spark Grimsby, which offered free support to existing and pre-start up creative businesses and artists. 120 businesses, individuals and organisations have been supported, with funding, sales and marketing and business strategy advice and guidance. Bi monthly networking events and workshops were provided to bring creatives together to connect, collaborate and create new partnerships.

Other elements of the Business Development programme included an Artist Development Programme, a Development Fund to help develop creative practices of individuals, a local Crowdfunding platform to support new and diverse projects, a Trainee Producer development programme and bursaries to participate in the National Arts Fundraising School. Go and see visits were also arranged for local creatives to connect with other places such as Sheffield, Scarborough and Bradford.

The refurbishment of St James’ Square, at the heart of Grimsby town centre, partly funded by the Cultural Development Fund alongside a Humber LEP grant, supported public art commissioning. International contemporary artist Annabel McCourt from Grimsby and national designer-artist Adrian Riley, based in Scarborough were chosen to collaborate with each other developing individual yet complementary pieces ‘Murmuration‘ and ‘Come Follow Me‘. St James’ Square is a significant cultural infrastructure for the town and has staged much of the activity supported by the Creative Programme. This included Festival of the Sea in 2021, Grimsby Creates Noise, Walk This Way and Edible Grimsby in 2022.

After 3 successful years as Grimsby Creates administrating the Cultural Development Fund (CDF) programme for Grimsby, it was time to move onto the next phase for creative and heritage activity in North East Lincolnshire. Launched in September 2023, Create North East Lincolnshire promotes and encourages creativity whilst showcasing the wealth of talent in Grimsby, Cleethorpes, Immingham, and the Wolds.

01 - January 2020 - Grimsby Creates was funded by the Cultural Development Fund programme.
02 - November 2020- Spark Grimsby, creative business support programme funded by Grimsby Creates launched.
03 - September 2021- Heritage Starter Fund Project launched
04 - March 2022 - The Creativity Strategy was approved.
05 - May 2022- Following an open call recruitment process the Creativity Board was formed.
06- September 2023 - Grimsby Creates became Create North East Lincolnshire

Summary of creative development in North East Lincolnshire since 2020

Central to the Creativity Strategy is a sustainable focus on landscape and connection to nature.

We will continue to deliver activity in parks, open spaces and other natural assets to highlight the world class natural heritage on our doorstep.