Creative Medway priorities 2024 – what we achieved!

Blog

Every year Creative Medway sets new priorities based on challenges and opportunities suggested by Medway’s cultural community.  Our priorities are shaped at an annual event where we invite everyone with an interest in culture in Medway to put forward hot topics, issues and ideas as part of an ‘open space’ session.

Those who joined us for our Big Cultural Get Together earlier this Autumn heard from people involved in the working groups delivering the 2024 Creative Medway Priorities:

• Access and Inclusion: less talk, more doing!
• Media and Messaging: improving what’s on listings and media coverage
• Cross-Sector Working:  breaking down sector silos
• Environmental Sustainability: supporting action

As 2024 draws to a close and we prepare to announce our priorities for 2025, we invited each working group to update on what they have achieved on behalf of all of us over the last year.

Access and Inclusion: less talk, more doing!

“Over the last year,  we worked with the Inclusivity Network Kent & Medway (INK&M) to run an event to hear from disabled artists. In response, we created easy read information about Creative Medway and an easy read version of The Creative Medway Cultural Strategy.

We also worked in partnership with national organisation Attitude is Everything to create and launch a Venues and Events Accessibility checklist with supporting accessibility toolkits. The checklist helps you review your current access provision and plan how to increase your future access provision.  It also acts as a checklist for the information that you need to make available to the public ahead of your events.

 We would like to challenge everyone to join us in making Medway’s creative spaces and events more accessible for people who are Deaf, disabled, neurodivergent or have a long-term physical or mental health conditions.”

Beth James
Creative Medway Diverse Communities Champion and working group Chair

Media and Messaging: improving what’s on coverage and media coverage 

“At the Big Cultural Get Together in 2023, we discussed how hard it is getting our work reviewed or picked up by local press and how the lack of a central ‘what’s on guide’ for Medway makes it difficult to promote our work.

This year we focussed on professional development for the sector. We partnered with ITV Meridian and the Medway Council Comms team to run online masterclasses for over 50 people focussed on writing effective press releases, media skills and how to talk about your work to the press. 

We listed and promoted over 250 events as part of Medway Culture Fest 24 supported by paid, targeted social media ads, roadside banners and a flier home in every Medway primary school child’s book bag. Our press releases promoting Medway cultural activity have been picked up by BBC Online, ITV Meridian, ITV Breakfast,  Radio Kent and Kent Online. We will be exploring opportunities and funding to to continue this work beyond 2024”

Simone Mardell
Working group member

Cross-Sector Working:  breaking down sector silos

“Last year saw lots of conversations about how the creative sector could work in partnership with other sectors to improve the lives of people and communities in Medway. Our group focussed mainly on join ups with the health sector.

We started by surveying Medway’s creative community to understand what is known about local health priorities and how confident the sector feels around leading work with a health and wellbeing focus. The results informed a successful bid to Arts Council’s Place Partnership Fund for over £400,000 to practically and strategically connect the work of the creative and health sectors in Medway.

This nationally significant programme will see health and wellbeing focussed programmes delivered across communities, a new strategic agreement between the health and creative sectors and professional development workshops, mentoring and funding opportunities.”

Kelly Webb
Creative Medway Health Sector Champion and working group member

Environmental Sustainability 

“In early 2023 Creative Medway ran an away day with Creative Kent to look at how we could take collective action around the climate crisis as a sector.  The day showed us that that smaller-scale organisations and freelancers felt that whatever action they took seemed insignificant, that there was a lack of affordable sector-specific training, and that people were unsure what action they could and should be taking. 

In the summer we launched the Kent and Medway Environmental Sustainability Pledge to provide accountability and demonstrate our collective impact.  We encourage you to sign up to the pledge and make your environmental commitments public.

To support the pledge we published an extensive list of resources to support you to take action, and ran a pilot affordable sector-specific 1 day carbon literacy training course aimed at small-scale orgs and freelancers. Finally, Creative Estuary started an informal group bringing together people leading on sustainability strategies for their organisations.  The rest is down to you and to us all to make change, and commit to taking action.”

Alex Cameron and Jane Pitt
Working group members

A huge thanks to all the working group members who shaped and delivered work on behalf of Medway’s creative community this year. To be the first to hear about Creative Medway’s priorities for 2025, and for opportunities to get involved in our 2025 working groups, make sure you are signed up to our newsletter and are following us on social media.