The community, the festival and the arts charity

A multi-disciplinary community arts project exploring foraging, cooking, drawing and dance encouraging the local residents of Kirkley to explore their local area and connect with one another.

How did the collaboration come about?

Following the huge success of the inaugural First Light Festival (FLF) on Lowestoft beach in 2019, the team behind the festival were keen to build closer links with the local community with the vision that future festivals would be for and of the town. The proposed collaboration between FLF and Suffolk Artlink offered FLF the opportunity to partner with an organisation of outstanding track record in relation to using the creative arts in a way that build self-confidence and social capital for some of the most marginalised members of society. The inclusion of the Kirkley Centre and the Kirkley Pantry was crucial to the project’s ambition to directly reach local people, to ensure their voice was heard and to deliver real and tangible impact for members of the community. The partnership project was supported both financially and strategically by Take Note and the ft’work trust.

Will the project continue beyond COVID-19 lockdown?

How was the project funded

The project was funded by the ft’work trust with strategic support from Take Note

Any other comments?

In order of importance, please choose the relevant factors that contributed to the success of this project?

Response to need
Response to COVID-19
The 'big' idea
Social impact
Delivery of Project
Combination of skill sets
Combination of participants
Volunteer support
Existing relationships
Available funding