Culture plays a huge role in the life of Ilfracombe in many different ways. It brings entertainment and joy, whether that be live performances at the Landmark or a night of music at the George & Dragon. It helps express who we are, from our amazing visual arts highlighted every year at Ilfracombe Art Trail to community theatre shows at the SPACE. It reminds us of where we come from through our broad range of historic buildings and Ilfracombe Museum. It helps drive and diversify our tourism economy through attractions like Verity and festivals like the Sea Ilfracombe Maritime Festival, as well as our wider economy through the creative industries. Most importantly, it supports our development and wellbeing, inspiring young people to explore their curiosity and potential, connecting people to the amazing nature that surrounds us and bringing people together who may be at risk of loneliness or isolation.
Culture can achieve many things, but it requires investment and collaboration to sustain it and allow it to flourish. It is for this reason that the Ilfracombe CulturalPlan has been commissioned. Building on the Northern Devon Cultural Strategy and developed in collaboration with 35 cultural and community partners, it identifies key themes that underpin the cultural life and identity of Ilfracombe, the opportunities for how culture can address important needs of our town and communities, and the barriers that need to be addressed to achieve this. It turns these into a vision for culture in Ilfracombe and a spatial plan of projects across the town with defined actions for achieving them in the coming years that can focus investment, partnership-working and community action.
The Ilfracombe Cultural Plan contains an action plan and the 2nd action in this plan is to:
Form an Ilfracombe Town Team for Culture action group, bringing together a wide range of stakeholders including cultural, creative industries, education, community, 18 hour economy and environmental partners.
The Ilfracombe Culture Team are now up and running and this page will host all the meeting notes and any relevant documentation.
Culture Team Meeting Notes – 2nd December 2024
Culture Team Meeting Notes – 4th November 2024