Five year plan for creativity

BETWEEN four and seven key ideas will be presented to members at the February Council meeting as the basis for Sligo County Council’s Draft Five Year Culture and Creativity Plan.

“No fewer than four, no more than seven,” Director of Services Dorothy Clarke told Councillor Paul Taylor at last week’s Council meeting, the first of 2018.

“If we can come up with four or five strategic strengths Sligo has in the cultural arena and fully develop them over five years,” she said after giving a progress report on the preparation of the Sligo Cultural and Creativity Strategy 2018-2022.

It’s part of the Government’s legacy programme following the success of the 2016 commemorations and is a five year initiative called Creative Ireland.

Each Local Authority now has to prepare a five year plan to enable creativity in every community.

Members of Sligo County Council heard that this will involve an audit mapping of culture and creativity around Sligo, “extensive deliberations” to find strategic priorities and local consultations, which have already been carried out with stakeholders and the public in Sligo and Tubbercurry.

Some of the areas Sligo County Council could make a priority include working with youth organisations, connecting artists to the community, fostering cultural innovation, a major focus on Literature/Drama/Media Arts/Choirs and singing/Dance/Coding/Creative Play/Visual Arts/Active Heritage/Design and Craft - or any combination of the above.

Other ideas include creating links with creative industries, developing Early-Years creativity, enhancing the built environment and working with minority, excluded groups.

Cllr Joe Queenan asked if they included Festivals, to which Dorothy Clarke said “it included everything that involves culture.” The draft plan will be ready by February.