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Flintshire County Council shortlisted for Hearts for the Arts Awards 2021
Published: 14/01/2021
The shortlist has been announced for the National Campaign for the Arts' (NCA) Hearts For The Arts Awards 2021. The awards celebrate the unsung heroes of Local Authorities who are championing the arts against all odds.
Flintshire County Council has been nominated for Best Arts Project for the Summer Hubs – a fun and creative programme developed by Flintshire County Council and Theatr Clwyd for young people who needed additional support due to the impact of lockdown.
This year’s winners will be selected from the shortlist by a judging panel of key arts industry experts and practitioners, including:
Le Gateau Chocolat, Drag artiste and cabaret performer
Paul Hartnoll, musician, composer, founder member of Orbital
Adrian Lester CBE, actor and director
Petra Roberts, Cultural Development Manager, Hackney Council (2020 winners for the Windrush Generations Festival)
Samuel West, actor, director, Chair of the National Campaign for the Arts
Despite the incredible hardships faced by Local Authorities in 2020, this year's awards have seen the NCA receive a record-breaking number of nominations, as local communities turned to the arts for solace, strength and connectivity during the pandemic.
Nominations were received from across the UK for each of the three award categories: Best Arts Project; Best Arts Champion - Local Authority or Cultural Trust Worker; and Best Arts Champion – Councillor.
The shortlist was judged by representatives from some of this year’s partners in the awards: Culture Counts; Wales Council for Voluntary Action; Local Government Association; National Campaign for the Arts; and Voluntary Arts Wales.
Discussing Flintshire’s nomination, the Hearts for the Arts Award partners said about the Summer Hubs:
“A brilliant council and theatr partnership supporting the well-being of young people, which should be used as a model for others. An important project targeted at vulnerable children and providing them with much needed support and creative activities during the difficult days of lockdown. A reminder that not all engagement activity during COVID-19 was virtual: it is impressive that this project managed to deliver such a comprehensive programme of activity with social distancing measures in place.”
Flintshire County Council’s Leader and Cabinet Member for Education and Youth, Councillor Ian Roberts, said:
“Working with Theatr Clwyd was incredibly helpful in providing respite for some of the families we work with in Flintshire – it made a massive difference working with a creative organisation and learning from each other – it’s something we’re definitely going to continue in helping our communities.”
Theatr Clwyd’s Executive Director, Liam Evans-Ford, said:
“Working with Flintshire Social Services to deliver creative respite for vulnerable children during the pandemic has been transformational in a number of ways. Most importantly the young people told us directly what a difference it made ("this is my happy place" said one), as did the professionals. Due to this work we are already developing our collective practice to deliver new and creative ways of supporting the most vulnerable in our communities - work that we expect will make a real difference into the future.”
The winners of the Hearts for the Arts Awards 2021 will be announced on Valentine’s Day, 14 February.
The National Campaign for the Arts present the Hearts for the Arts Awards each year. The awards are delivered by the NCA, in partnership with Culture Counts; the Local Government Association; Thrive; UK Theatre; Voluntary Arts Wales, Wales Council for Voluntary Action.
For more information on the shortlisted nominees visit forthearts.org.uk/campaigns/hearts-for-the-arts/.
