The Southend West MP met with Metal in Chalkwell Hall to discuss the city’s thriving cultural sector following the recent Key Cities report on the importance of local council’s investing in the arts for growth.
Metal has been in Southend since 2007, working from the iconic Chalkwell Hall building which has been completely transformed by the organisation which aims to build stronger and happier communities through the arts.
Most recently, as a consequence of their pioneering work, Metal was awarded £191,927 per annum between 2023 and 2026 by Arts Council England to continue key community projects in the area.
Anna Firth MP called for the meeting with Metal and new CEO, Susie Thornberry, to discuss her ambitions for Southend to secure the City of Culture title despite the reluctance of the City Council’s current leadership.
During the conversations, Anna highlighted how other councils in the UK had seen major inwards investment from pursuing the title, with Arts Council England finding that for every £1 of salary paid by the arts and culture industry, an additional £2.01 is generated in the wider economy.
Metal agreed with her person belief that Southend was uniquely placed to achieve such titles, backed by a thriving cultural industry which recently celebrated its international Light Festival, LuminoCity with installations from across the globe.
Anna and Metal will work together more closely in their shared ambitions, including inviting the Secretary of State for the brand-new Government Department for Culture, Media and Support down to Southend in the near future.
Anna Firth said,
“We are so blessed to have Metal in Southend, acting as a fantastic catalyst for cultural conversations in our amazing city.”
“The arts sector in the local area is thriving, so it was a delight to see how Metal are supporting this and appreciating our joint vision in Southend being a key cultural destination on the national map, despite the council’s lack of ambition for City of Culture.”
Andrea Cunningham, Metal,
“Southend has historically had a wonderfully rich creative and cultural ecosystem. It seems everyone here is engaged in creative activity of some description.”
“Culture is vitally important to people’s lives & wellbeing besides being critical to the growth of the economy in this region. We need to have sustained funding for our sector and ongoing investment in what is already here.”
