Three more years of Culture Within Newham!
Written by Lalah-Simone Springer
We’re excited to share some brilliant news: Culture Within Newham has been awarded three more years of funding from Arts Council England!
This support will keep our programme running until March 2029, so that we can work with even more local people to shape the kinds of creative activity they want to see and experience right here in Newham.
Over the next few years, we’ll be increasing our focus on:
North East Newham, where cultural opportunities are limited,
uplifting young voices,
spotlighting the talents of disabled communities, and
supporting Black, Eastern European, and South Asian communities.
Building on strong foundations
Culture Within Newham is part of Arts Council England’s Creative People and Places programme, which invests in areas where involvement in arts and culture is lower than average. Since we were founded by Creative Newham in 2023, we’ve engaged over 46,500 people in arts and culture locally, and worked with 5,300 community co-creators who help shape our projects.
Through our resident-led Community Voices Panel and our Children’s Board (made up of 8–11 year-olds), we’ve also been able to share decision-making power. Together, they’ve allocated £315,000 to 41 community-led commissions so far.
“We’re delighted that Arts Council England sees the benefit of our work at Culture Within Newham, and grateful for the support of our consortium members in connecting us with the artists, communities and organisations that are Newham’s creative pulse.
Since our programme began we’ve seen so many people discover their creativity, participate regularly, and then step up to lead creative projects, or join our Community Voices Panel. We’re proud to create impactful ways for residents to take ownership of their local culture.”
Local creativity in action
Some of the exciting projects that have come to life include:
PictureEast Film Festival by The New Black Film Collective in collaboration with Film London
The Sound Hive, an interactive play-table by RiceBox Studio
Jamboree in the Park, a free community event produced by Learning Stages as part of the Summer of Sustainability.
These projects are just the start. We’ve already seen people across Newham not only take part, but also step up to lead their own creative ideas.
Explore the rest of our programme so far on the Project page.
Next steps
This new funding is an exciting next step, but it builds on everything we’ve already achieved together with Newham’s residents, artists and partners.
If you’d like the full picture, download our Impact Report using the button below.