Latest news with #BradfordCultureCompany
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bradford gains special Cultural City of Sanctuary designation
Bradford has been named the first-ever Cultural City of Sanctuary. The special title, delivered by the Bradford Culture Company, is intended to reflect the role that people seeking sanctuary - refugees and asylum seekers, as well as people seeking other forms of protection - play in Bradford's culture. The accolade was announced at an event with Bradford Friendship Choir, many of whose singers are refugees and sanctuary seekers from countries in the Middle East, Africa, and elsewhere. The choir was a key part of the Bradford 2025 opening event, RISE, in January. Bradford 2025 has also announced a formal partnership with Stand & Be Counted, billed as the UK's first Theatre Company of Sanctuary. Planned initiatives include creation of routes into volunteering; distribution of tickets; weekly creative sessions for people seeking sanctuary; developing "creative engagement activity to work alongside Basel Zaraa's artwork inspired by The Moomins and the Great Flood"; and working with Displace Yourself Theatre on providing trauma-informed practice training for team members. Rhiannon Hannon, director of creative engagement at Bradford 2025, said: "Our ambition for the City of Culture is not just to celebrate Bradford's creativity but also to ensure that people seeking sanctuary have equal access to the programme's opportunities, and this designation highlights that. "Furthermore, we are pleased to partner with Stand & Be Counted, who bring expertise in working with people seeking sanctuary and can guide us in making sure the year's programme and activities are a truly inclusive celebration of our district." Rosie MacPherson, artistic director and joint CEO of Stand & Be Counted, added: "We're so thrilled that Bradford will be the first Cultural City of Sanctuary. "It's an important moment to stand with people seeking sanctuary, and it's a great symbol of positivity and welcome. "Stand & Be Counted have been working in Bradford for many years, and we know this milestone and work across lots of incredible organisations will have a huge impact on people seeking sanctuary being seen, supported, and involved in all of the incredible productions and programmes in Bradford across 2025 and beyond." With the announcement of Bradford's status as Cultural City of Sanctuary, Bradford 2025 has released a film which contains testimonials from groups including Bradford Friendship Choir, HALE (Health Action Local Engagement), and The Peace Museum; it is the first of a planned series of films spotlighting distinct aspects of Bradford culture and identity, to be released throughout the year.
BBC News
11-02-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
City of Culture arts trail in Haworth approved
Plans to create an arts trail in a Bradford beauty spot have been given the green light. Penistone Hill Country Park, near Haworth, will host the Wild Uplands Project from this spring. The trail is one of several arts events being held as part of City of Culture in will feature works by four different artists, and will include a collection of 75 sculpted butterflies and a tower clad in sheep's wool as a nod to Bradford's industrial past. Commissioned by the Bradford Culture Company – the group set up to run Bradford 2025 – the trail will be based in the park on a temporary works are expected to be installed in May, and be removed in October, the Local Democracy Reporting Service.A planning application for the sculpture trail was submitted by Bradford Culture Company late last year, and has now been approved by Bradford had been one objection from someone who feared the artwork might be vandalised. 'Well used area' But planners said one individual fearing potential vandalism was not a valid reason to block a major part of Bradford's City of Culture sculptures would reflect the flora of the district's moorland and "mysterious beings from theology".Planners said: "The area is a popular, well-used area by walkers and visitors to the surrounding area."The artworks would be sited within a public upland park and are for public benefit as part of the City of Culture celebrations."Council officers added that the trail's "temporary nature" would ensure that the impact on openness on the land, which is in the Green Belt, would only be for a "short period". Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.
