Organisations united in flying flag for Calderdale
SMALL but mighty, certainly punching above its weight and with a strong sense of place – that’s Calderdale, those attending a showcase for the borough heard.
We Are Calderdale 2020 was the third in a series of annual events hosted by Calderdale College by the council and partner organisations, with leading television writer, producer and director Sally Wainwright giving a keynote speech on how it had a strong sense of place, based in memory and now informing modern Calderdale, that surfaced regularly in her writing.
Another key theme was Calderdale’s place in the world, with sections devoted to industry and tourism, both drivers of Calderdale’s economy as it approaches its 50th birthday in four years’ time.
Calderdale Council chief executive Robin Tuddenham, outlining some key themes for the year ahead said Vision 2024 was not just a council term, it applied to the whole of Calderdale.
The vision has themes of kindness, resilience, distinctiveness, enterprise and talent were a thread running through all the presentations. It said how:
The council was now one of the top ten most productive councils in the country with independent analyst IMPOWER placing it in the top four and shortlisted for council of the year at a blue ribbon event.
It was planning for the future, shown in its Future Leaders project with hosts Calderdale College and students punctuated the morning with a number of contributions.
In the coming year tackling climate change, bringing improvements to the borough towns Halifax, Todmorden, Brighouse, Sowerby Bridge and Elland, planning use of devolution benefits and budgets and progressing initiatives began to benefit people at all stages of life, from social isolation among older people to 50 things to do before you were five, would all be high on the agenda while the authority also prepared to deal with coronavirus.
“We are building on a sense of community, watching out for each other, because we are one place, one borough,” said Mr Tuddenham.
Throughout the morning Laura Evans of Nifty Fox Creative produced visual summaries of each section of discussion and these can be seen at https://niftyfoxcreative.pixieset. com/wearecalderdale2020/
Sally Wainwright said from the moment her first televised series, At Home With The Braithwaites, was set in Yorkshire most of her work had come home, or close to it.
In terms of Halifax, author Jill Liddington’s 1998 book about the dynamic Anne Lister made her look at the town in a different way to how she saw it growing up in nearby Sowerby Bridge.
It was only now the 19th century Shibden Hall owner was receiving her due and the borough should embrace her, said Sally.
“Historically, Calderdale and Halifax has a lot to be proud of but for me Anne Lister and her diaries are the jewel in Calderdale’s crown,” she said.
Babyballet’s Claire O’Connor hosted a section on the future of work in Calderdale with panel participants debating the importance of training for the future, smaller, democratically owned companies, exporting and that sense of place – Calderdale’s role as a bridge between two great northern cities, Manchester and Leeds.
Chairman and Managing Director of Dean Clough Jeremy Hall spoke about the industrial complex’s major role in Halifax’s history, where Crossley Carpets exported all over the world, and its gradual regeneration after closure in 1982 – it is now home to 150 businesses from oneperson operations to multi-national firms and with the arts an important part of a rich mix.
Following an introduction from Calderdale Youth Council members Madeleine Partland and William Soloman on what young people believed was a key issue, Calderdale Council’s Cabinet member for Climate Change, Coun Scott Patient (Lab, Luddenden Foot) chaired a panel on climate change, in particular the way small personal decisions could make a big difference.