The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
The Courier is supporting the Fair City’s bid to be UK City of Culture.
Perth out to prove the region really needs City of Culture crown to bring about lasting benefits
It’s now five years since Perth led a successful battle to reclaim its city status.
Scotland’s ancient capital fought off tough competition from 26 towns up and down the country to secure official recognition from the Queen, as part of her Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
Since then, the Fair City’s confidence has grown from strength to strength thanks to a series of extraordinary events including the Ryder Cup and the burgeoning Winter Festival.
Now Perth is ready for a new fight – to become the first Scottish UK City of Culture in 2021.
Perth may already have proved it is more than capable of hosting large-scale events, bringing in thousands upon thousands of people from across the world. But the real challenge for the team behind the Perth2021 campaign is proving that the region also needs the City of Culture crown.
The judging panel must be satisfied that Perth can use its status not just to throw a great, year-long party, but also to bring in huge, lasting benefits to the area and its people.
Today, The Courier is throwing its weight behind Perth’s campaign and over the coming days, we will explore the bid in detail and look at how it could shape the region’s future.
Council bosses say it will cost at least £15 million to host the 2021 programme.
The local authority has pledged £3m of public money, with the rest expected to come from partners, businesses and other funding avenues.
In comparison, 2017 City of Culture Hull set a target of £18m, but ended up making about £32m from private firms and donations.
Perth’s £15m investment may sound like a lot, but a successful 2021 programme would easily make that money back – and then some.
Experts say that for every £1 invested in culture, there will be a £4 return.
Hull has estimated its 2017 line-up will bring in about £60m, and – if successful – Perth stands to make a similar splash.
Fiona Robertson, who is leading the 2021 bid, said: “If we win, we would expect the programme to attract just over a million additional visitors.
“We are looking at ‘stop the city’ and once-in-a-lifetime events.”
As part of its application, the team of about six people had to face up to some uncomfortable truths and shine a light on areas where the bid could make real, life-changing improvements.
The bid talks about a “quiet crisis” where many people in the region feel alienated, where areas of rural beauty mask pockets of poverty and social isolation.
The big challenges facing the area include a dependency on tourism, hospitality and agriculture which means low wages, some 9% below the Scottish average.
Ms Robertson said: “One of the most important things that Perth and Kinross could achieve is a sense of collective identity and belonging.
“One of the issues we uncovered as part of our bid is that people who live outside the city don’t really feel connected to Perth.
“We know from our research that nearly half the people living in the wider hinterland don’t really come to the city at night. They don’t really come to take advantage of some of the amazing things that are going on here.
“To create that sense of being part of something really big, something unique to Perth and Kinross, that would be one of the biggest benefits that winning would deliver for us.”
She said one of the main aims was to support local creative industries and stop them moving outside the area, to the central belt or further afield.
It would be hard to over-estimate the benefits the City of Culture title would bring to Perth. From the outside, it may seem Scotland’s newest city has relatively little to gain.
Enjoying an ideal setting on the banks of the Tay, it already has a vibrant arts scene, a top flight football team and a wide range of independent retailers.
Scratch beneath the surface, however, and it is clear the Fair City has been far from immune to the ravages of the economic downturn which has wrought such havoc in settlements all over the country.
There are too many empty retails units and stubborn pockets of deprivation remain.
The night-time economy falls short of what one might expect in a modern, vibrant city.
These are things that a city of culture title may well help to address.
One need look no further than Hull to see just how beneficial victory for Perth could be.
The 2017 recipient of the culture crown is in the midst of a busy year of events and festivities, none of which would have been possible without the impetus provided by the title.
The prize is a glittering one and we are more than happy to lend our support.
It is now down to everyone with Perth’s best interests at heart to do their bit.