Information about the cultural and heritage strategy for King's Lynn
Culture & Heritage Strategy for King’s Lynn
We are working in partnership with Arts Council England to prepare a new ten-year Culture & Heritage Strategy for King’s Lynn. The creation of a Culture & Heritage Strategy is needed to bring together our array of creative partners, residents and businesses on the priorities to support the development of Creative Industries in the town.
A Culture & Heritage Strategy is key to align and bring together currently disparate activity to create a sector leading strategy which will enable the leverage of further investment to enable the cultural sector to grow and flourish further. Leading arts and cultural organisation, Art Reach, were commissioning in early 2024 to lead the development of the strategy. It’s aim is to strengthen joint approaches, attract investment and bring the most exciting opportunities to King’s Lynn to develop culture for all.
Consultation and engagement
We have conducted consultations with local people and cultural sector workers alike, through workshops, interviews and surveys. Each have shared their valuable and unique insight into King’s Lynn, it’s strengths and weaknesses for culture and heritage, and their hopes for its future.
- Initial 1-2-1 interviews were undertaken with a cross section of stakeholders at the beginning of the study.
- We held initial workshops in July 2024 to gather your feedback, views and ideas on the cultural and heritage opportunities for King’s Lynn.
- A survey and extensive engagement was undertaken by the Town Board in July 2024 to further understand local people’s aspirations for King’s Lynn which will form a new set of priorities for future investment in the town.
- Follow up workshops were held in September and a follow up in November 2024 to reflect on the feedback we have received so far on heritage, culture and creativity in King’s Lynn.
- A survey was undertaken in October - November 2024 to test the emerging themes of the strategy.
- Stakeholder engagement on the draft strategy in February 2025.
Key themes
The co-created vision and key actions for four priority themes that have emerged:
- Young People as Makers, Creators and Producers - the vision is to create an environment where young people in King’s Lynn are inspired and empowered to explore their creative potential, equipped with the skills and opportunities to become makers, creators and producers.
- Animating King’s Lynn heritage – the vision is to transform King’s Lynn into a dynamic, innovative and interactive heritage centre. By animating our rich history through modern storytelling methods, interactive experiences and year-round programming, we aim to make heritage accessible, engaging and relevant to all, especially young people.
- Collaborative working for resilience - the vision is that there is a resilient and thriving cultural sector in King’s Lynn because of collaboration amongst a range of people and organisations operating in the heritage and culture sector. Under a shared vision and mission, organisations will be better at demonstrating their impact, have more financial stability and be creating a vibrant cultural landscape that benefits all.
- Embedding sustainability, inclusivity and diverse voice in King’s Lynn Culture and Heritage - the vision is a vibrant, inclusive cultural scene in King’s Lynn that amplifies diverse voices and celebrates the rich cultural contributions of all local communities. We want every resident and visitor to feel represented, valued and inspired to participate in and contribute to King’s Lynn’s heritage and culture.
Through this vision and strategy, we want to achieve the following outcomes;
- Increased engagement with culture and heritage by diverse communities
- King’s Lynn is viewed as outward-looking and internationally connected
- A Culture and heritage sector that is resilient and thriving.
- Everyone feels a sense of pride in King’s Lynn’s culture and heritage and identifies a part of it that is relevant to, and inclusive of them.
Engagement with culture and heritage is recognised as an impactful way to reduce inequalities and improve well-being in King’s Lynn.
Recommendations for delivering the strategy
Art Reach propose that a Culture Steering Group be formed to oversee the driving of the Culture & Heritage Strategy delivery, and to set up Task Groups which bring together organisations and individuals to deliver specific projects. Part of this could be for Task Groups to secure funding for projects.
The King’s Lynn Culture Steering Group will replace the former Culture Board and have a maximum of 10 people recruited from the local community and cultural sector. Criteria for the range of people needed on the Steering Group will be decided, and 10 people recruited to fill these positions. The group is supported by but not necessarily led by the Borough Council.
Next steps
We are asking the stakeholders engaged in the development of the strategy to confirm their support for the final strategy by 28 February 2025, ahead of the Borough Council’s cabinet decision to endorse the strategy at its meeting on 4 March 2025.
A copy of the cabinet report and final strategy can be found on the Environment and Community Panel agenda.
For all enquiries please email culture@west-norfolk.gov.uk.