Luton groups given cash boost to celebrate Queen's Jubilee

Arts Council England and UK Community Foundations is giving £457,142 for 70 voluntary and community organisations to put creativity at the heart of their celebrations for the Jubilee in June 2022.

The Let’s Create Jubilee Fund will ensure that thousands of people from communities all across England will have the opportunity to take part in exciting creative events – all in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee.

From puppetry and story creation, through to making crowns, carnival and art trails, there will be a huge range of exciting activities for people of all ages and backgrounds to get involved in.

The grants include £5,500 for Nine Red Presents… CIC Luton, which will create a community festival comprising of workshops, performances, and exhibitions, giving the local community access to a range of cultural and creative activities. Arts and creative demonstrations will be given by local community members, groups and schools, and the local carnival community, with the aim of encouraging people to engage in conversation. Women's Aid In Luton has been given £5,000 to work with Full House Theatre to develop a programme of inspiring creative workshops for children in Luton who have experienced domestic abuse.

The project involves a series of workshops, aimed at young people and delivered by professional artists and applied theatre specialists.

Each creative session will engage the participants in playful and fun activities which will provoke conversation and stimulate creative expression.

The project aims to be the start of a longer-term project to create an artistic output to take to schools, highlighting to children and adults the key signs of domestic abuse in the home and how they can ask for help.

Gordon Davis, Co-Founder and Director, Nine Red Presents… (CIC), said: “This funding enables the grassroots artists and community to produce a community-led jubilee festival on Leagrave Park in the North of Luton where very few arts, culture, heritage or well-being events occur, celebrating not just the Jubilee but all that Luton has to offer.”

Gaby Price, Interim CEO, Women’s Aid, said: “This is a really exciting opportunity for us to collaborate with an arts organisation. We can’t wait for the children to get started with Full House Theatre and to have the chance to tell their stories.”

Harriet Hardie, Creative Director, Full House Theatre, said: “When Gaby from Women’s Aid in Luton got in touch we knew we had to say yes! This project is a unique opportunity for Full House to amplify the voices of seldom heard children and we can’t wait to get started.”

Hazel Edwards, Area Director, South East, Arts Council England, said: “From a community-focused festival for the whole family in Bungay through to inspiring creative workshops for children in Luton that have experienced domestic abuse, there will be a huge range of activities to bring communities together – sharing their own stories and learning about others’ experiences.”

Oher local grants include £2,760 to Headway Luton, £4890 to Luton Sixth Form and £5404 to Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS charity on behalf of Take HeART.