Liverpool Thrive programme – Final Report published
Liverpool Arts Regeneration Consortium has published the final report into the Liverpool Thrive Programme.
The Thrive programme started in 2007 prior to the launch of the Capital of Culture year in Liverpool, supported by Arts Council England’s Thrive! programme. It aimed to provide a systematic approach to helping cultural organisations gain the expertise needed to respond to and influence a rapidly changing environment. The Liverpool Thrive project was given £1.34 million – the largest award within the scheme – and tested out a new model for embedding the arts and cultural sectors in the processes of social and economic renewal.
The Liverpool Thrive programme final report in brief.
By building on individual organisational strengths the Thrive Programme has enabled the strength, durability and flexibility of relationships to be established, tested and adapted and has therefore supported the development of deeper relationships between organisations. Working collaboratively has been very effective in advocating on behalf of the sector and engaging with key stakeholders as it has allowed LARC to ‘speak with one voice’.
The fact that there has been sustained involvement by a consistent number of people has allowed strong networking, the sharing of information about programming aspirations and best practice which has supported the creation and articulation of not just a joint aspiration for the cultural direction of the city but also a shared vision and action plan – how it is to be delivered and who plays their part.
The Thrive programme has therefore supported the development of a strategic profile and voice for culture and the strengthening of the relationships and influence with non-cultural strategic partners (e.g. Liverpool City Council, Primary Care Trust, Universities) despite changing political contexts during the Thrive Programme provides one example of the success of this collaborative approach.
The Thrive programme has also provided the LARC partners with the resources to build a collective research and evidence base to demonstrate their collaborative and individual organisational activity, an evidence base that has given credibility to the arguments about the scope and impact of cultural activity within the City. The large scale research studies supported through the Thrive programme (e.g. economic and intrinsic impact) would not have been affordable or deliverable by a single LARC organisation and, perhaps more importantly, would not have been credible without the participation and involvement of a wide range of arts and cultural organisations in the City.
Download a PDF version of the final report.
