What’s in store for 2025? Creative Medway priorities for the year ahead.

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To start the new year, we are announcing three new focus priorities for the year ahead. Keep reading for more detail of how we decided these priorities, what we will be focussing on and how you can get involved.

How we shaped our priorities for 2025
Every year we invite Medway’s cultural community to reflect on the past year and help set collective priorities for the year ahead.  It’s a chance to focus on the opportunities and challenges we face as a sector and as a community, to bring ideas to the table and suggest practical actions.  

In September 2024 we invited everyone with an interest in culture and creativity in Medway to join us for our Big Cultural Community Get Together at MidKent College.  The theme for the day was ‘The Role Culture Plays in Thriving Communities’.  The event was attended over 80 people from across Medway’s cultural community as well as representatives of the health, education, voluntary and public sectors.  As part of the day we heard updates about what had been achieved in response to last year’s priorities.

Attendees were invited to put forward topics for discussion as part of an ‘open space’ session.  Eight conversations took place around opportunities for the sector, barriers we face and ideas for how we could collectively support thriving communities in Medway. We spoke about:

• Engaging young people in the work of Creative Medway and the wider sector
• Supporting cultural sector diversity in Medway
• Let’s talk money: economic sustainability and business models across the creative sector
• Arts and heritage collaboration
• Promotional support for cultural events beyond Medway Culture Fest 24
• How to support our own health and wellbeing as practitioners
• Support for organisations to do the work around improving access
• Connecting small scale cultural organisations.

Our focusses for 2025
Following the day the Creative Medway Compact identified the following three areas where we can collectively have the most impact in the year ahead:

• Let’s talk money: economic sustainability and business models across the creative sector
• Engaging young people in the work of Creative Medway and the wider creative community
• Supporting cultural sector diversity in Medway.

What next?
Creative Medway will support  small working groups to scope and carry out actions in relation to each of the three priorities between January and September 2025.  

We will  also advocate with external organisations around issues outside of our direct control.  In addition, Creative Medway will work with our Health, Voluntary, Business, Education and Public Sector Champions, as well as with our Youth and Diverse Communities Champions to identify actions they can take using their networks and spheres of influence in relation to our 2025 priorities and the other issues raised.

Keep and eye on our social media and newsletter for updates throughout the year, and for details of in-person events where you can hear from some of those involved.

Want to get involved?

If you have relevant skills, ideas, contacts, experience or a particular interest in any of our three priorities for 2025, we would love to hear from you!  Perhaps you can take part in or advise a working group or know someone who can?  Maybe you are directly affected by the issues we are looking to address or have an idea for a project?   

We are looking for people at all stages of their careers, from all parts of the sector as well as community members and those from other relevant sectors.  Stipends are available to support anyone unwaged, freelance or on a low income who would otherwise find it difficult to get involved. 

2025 marks the mid-way point of the Creative Medway Cultural Strategy.  We’ve come a long way since five years ago we decided that our vision was that ‘Medway will be internationally recognised for its creativity and culture, exemplifying the positive impacts culture has on everyone’s lives.  Diverse, inclusive, collaborative and engaged, we will celebrate the strength and creativity of all our residents’.  We look forward together, to achieving even more in the year ahead.