Do you love anything creative? We have teamed up with another Black Country organisation to help support and inspire creativity across the region 🌟

 

We’ve donated £20,000 to Creative Black Country, which has been used to support 17 projects as part of the ‘Creative Connections’ – a strand of work aimed at bringing joy to communities during the pandemic 🧡

 

The social-distance inspired projects will take place across Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall and range from outdoor photography exhibitions and tapestry quilting to beatboxing and seed planting 😊

 

The projects were chosen by a community panel that included Stephen Burton-Pye, our Corporate Account Manager, who helped to decide which of the 56 applicants would receive a commission.

 

Stephen has a passion for the arts: he has performed in musicals, pantomimes and cabaret shows for over 25 years; trodden the boards at Wolverhampton’s Grand Theatre; and sits on both the youth and adult committees of Bilston Operatic Society.

 

He said:

 

“The Paycare team and I are so excited by this partnership. Joining a panel of four other professionals was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. It was great to see the kinds of community projects that people had thought of to raise people’s spirits during these challenging times. 

 

“I can’t wait to go out and see the finished projects later on this year and to feel the impact this injection of creativity has on the community, as a whole.” 

 

Creative Black Country launched six years ago and works with communities across the region, with award-winning projects such as the Funny Things festival of comedy, the 100 Masters campaign which identified people with extraordinary skills, and Desi Pubs which saw artists working with landlords to create new pieces of art.

 

Sajida Carr, their Director of Operations and Development, said during the Coronavirus pandemic they had focused on bringing much-needed creativity to people’s lives.

 

“We’ve asked people across the Black County to help us reach their neighbours and local communities with fun and engaging activities during lockdown. 

 

“So many really took up the challenge, which was great to see. They have come up with some really great ideas around connecting people safely. We were really happy that communities were still willing to be innovative, fun and engaging during these difficult times. 

 

“We are ecstatic about Paycare’s support as CBC is now able to help even more people, communities and creatives get involved with our projects. We knew that the Paycare team would be a great business to help us engage with Black Country residents, and as a result we have been able to commission 17 new projects which will be kicking off their activities this spring.” 

 

For more information about CBC, email info@creativeblackcountry.co.uk or visit www.creativeblackcountry.co.uk/creative-connections-2021 for more about the project 🙌

 

Photo credit: Fantabulosa perform at Funny Things 2019 in the Wulfrun Centre, Wolverhampton. Picture by Dee Patel.