News: £1m arts funding secured for Rotherham

Flux Rotherham has been awarded £1m by the Arts Council to deliver more grassroots-led cultural experiences.

Having secured £2m in 2019, Flux has been part of the Creative People and Places programme and co-creates community art projects and events across the borough.

The latest funding will cover the next three years of the programme that aims to bring together community, grassroots and cultural organisations as partners to take the lead in choosing, creating and taking part in creative and cultural activities. They empower local people to pursue the art they want, where they live.

Helen Jones, Programme Director at Flux Rotherham, said: "At Flux Rotherham, we’re aiming to craft programmes and approaches where art is within everyone’s reach. Deeply rooted in Rotherham’s community spirit, we’re using the power of the arts to co-create a cultural movement that celebrates diversity, nurtures personal growth, and builds lasting connections between people.

"I want to say a huge thank you to our communities, partners, artists, Community Steering Panel, and consortium for their creativity and generosity. Their collaboration and commitment make everything we do possible, and we’re looking forward to continuing the journey and shaping something truly special for Rotherham over the next three years."

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Flux has been involved with town centre events such as the Museum of the Moon and the Otherham light festival, the WE Wonder Festival at Wentworth Woodhouse and exhibitions at Clifton Park Museum, as well as being key attendees at the Rotherham Show.

The funding is made possible thanks to National Lottery players. Every National Lottery ticket purchased generates money for good causes and enables people in villages, towns, and cities up and down the country to get access to cultural experiences where they live.

Auriel Majumdar, Independent Chairperson at Flux Rotherham, said: "This is brilliant news for Rotherham. Over the last three years we’ve seen incredible creativity from people of all ages and backgrounds, and this new investment means we can continue to make culture part of everyday life across our communities.”

Rebecca Ball, Area Director, North, Arts Council England, added: “The Creative People and Places programme empowers our communities across the North to design and shape the cultural offer on their doorstep. Since 2012 we have seen the transformative impact of these projects on the people and places. I’m so happy that we are able to continue to fund this remarkable programme and I am delighted that from 2026 we will be welcoming four new projects in the North to the programme.

"I can’t wait to see how this investment will continue to inspire and engage. This programme would not be possible without the support of all the people who play the National Lottery, as it is thanks to them that we are able to fund this life changing work.”

Flux Rotherham website

Images: Flux Rotherham

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News: Funding boost for Rotherham's art and culture sector

Organisations bringing creativity and culture to Rotherham have secured a funding boost from Arts Council England.

The national organisation that champions and develops art and culture across the country has revealed details of its new national portfolio of funded organisations for 2023-26.

In Rotherham, literacy charity, Grimm & Co has extended its status as a “National Portfolio Organisation” for another three years, with £247,116 per year up to 2026.

ROAR (Rotherham Open Arts Renaissance) is also continuing as a portfolio organisation and has secured £71,735 annually for the same period, while Rotherham Museums, Arts and Heritage has been awarded £250,000 per year and joins the portfolio for the first time.

Grimm & Co, which is currently working on new premises in Rotherham town centre, said that the support provides core funding, critical support, partnership and much more for the next three years. It should enable them to maintain, develop and grow its programmes with children, young people and families across Yorkshire and the Humber.

This funding will support the core of the organisation which will enable the delivery of arts-based creative programmes provided to young people aged 0-18, from early years story-based sensory play to community outreach workshops to Arts Award training with older teenagers, and more recently, teachers’ creative delivery activities and programmes.

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Founding Director, Deborah Bullivant, said: "Grimm & Co have been fortunate to secure National Portfolio status and core funding for four years and this has enabled us to plan, develop and deliver an exciting and innovative programme for communities. We are overjoyed to hear that our recent application is successful, securing our core at a pivotal time for this charity, hurtling towards opening our new, enchanting story destination in 2023."

Chair of the Board, Sarah Dunwell, said: “We are elated to hear that our application to the Arts Council was successful. This enables us to continue to build our programmes, reach and engage communities and to secure our presence as the region’s one and only Emporium of Stories in Rotherham town centre at such a critical time for us.”

ROAR, which is also based in the town centre, said that the new funding "enables us to develop and deliver our unique programme of innovative and inclusive grass roots projects, transforming the town’s unique cultural life through creative practice."

Rotherham Council's Museums, Arts and Heritage service said that the funding "will enable us to continue our work using our collections, venues and spaces to engage with communities across Rotherham."

Arts Council England Chair, Sir Nicholas Serota, said: “As well as continuing our commitment to our many established and renowned cultural organisations, I am deeply proud of the support we will be giving to those new organisations which will help ignite creativity across the country. We are facing economic pressures at present but this funding is about an investment in our future. This portfolio will support the next generation of visionary inventors, makers, performers and artists. In particular, the growth of our funding for organisations that support and develop work for children represents a profoundly important long-term investment in our country’s talent.”

Grimm & Co website
ROAR website

Images: Grimm & Co

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News: Night at the Museum for Signs Express

Rotherham-based sign company, Signs Express, has brought life to the exhibitions at Weston Park in a lengthy project for Museums Sheffield.

The Signs Express centre has enjoyed a lasting relationship with Museums Sheffield, the charity responsible for three of Sheffield's museums and galleries: Millennium Gallery, Weston Park Museum and Graves Gallery. Museums Sheffield relies on the team to create and install displays that connect effectively with visitors as well as creating graphics that push the boundaries between signs and art.

Weston Park underwent an extensive refurbishment throughout 2016 that involved opening new exhibitions, renovating existing ones and improving the overall visitor journey. It was the museum's biggest refurbishment since its grand renovation in 2006. A grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) of £697,000 supported "Weston Park Museum: A Bright Future", a major £1m plan to transform several of the museum's public areas.

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Signs Express supplied creative partitions to block off the areas undergoing work, Then, as the refurb of each area neared its end, the team worked closely with curators to create numerous signs and graphics, including wall graphics, floor graphics, ultraviolet window panels, informational displays, wayfinding signs and more.

Carol Morris, co-owner of Signs Express, said: "We have been working extensively on projects that involve huge amounts of creativity; thinking outside the box has become the norm and I am so proud of my team who always find a way to execute projects that other companies wouldn't cope with.

"We love working with local attractions and organisations like Museums Sheffield and making visitor experiences enjoyable and we hope to continue working with them on any new projects they have."

In February 2004, Steve and Carol Morris opened their fully equipped sign making centre in Rotherham, since then, they have expanded their territory to include all of Sheffield. Based at Templeborough, Signs Express pride themselves on their expertise and innovative solutions to help businesses come up with perfect signage solutions, tailored specifically to their requirements.

The major new exhibition at Weston Park is called "Beneath Your Feet" - highlighting the archaeological past of Sheffield and the Peak District. As the whole of the previous gallery, "History Lab," was being dismantled the curators were able to start with a blank canvas in planning the display.

Signs Express website

Images: Signs Express

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News: Making the Man of Steel

The iconic Yorkshire Man of Steel project has its own new exhibition being hosted at Rotherham's Clifton Park Museum.

The iconic piece of art is designed to be a landmark gateway sculpture close to the M1 that "will recognise the history of steel and coal in the region, and preside over a new age of technology and specialised steel production."

Recently resubmitted, plans were approved conditionally in 2012 for the 27.3m high art installation based on work by local sculptor Steve Mehdi, on a former land fill site at Kimberworth in Rotherham.

The sculpture alone will weigh over 100 tonnes, and be 50% bigger than the Angel of the North.

"Making the Man of Steel" explores the inspiration and innovation behind the Yorkshire Man of Steel project, its link to Rotherham's steel and coal heritage and the new technologies that will play a part in the creation of this sculpture.

A number of local companies are sponsoring the exhibition, led by Rotherham manufacturing specialist, MTL Advanced and supported by Pro Co Print and We Are Branding.

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Cllr. Taiba Yasseen, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhood Working and Cultural Services at Rotherham Council, said: "The objects within the exhibition focus around both historic and current innovation in Rotherham, exploring the region’s coal and steel heritage as well as new technology.

"The themes of the past, present and future are represented in the exhibition's exploration of our industrial traditions, and you can find out what inspired the Yorkshire Man of Steel. With its links to Rotherham's industrial heritage, Clifton Park Museum is the perfect setting for this new exhibition."

The Museum's collections team sourced and put together the "past" side to the exhibition and the Man of Steel project sourced and put together the "present" and "future" objects and labels.

Until recently the landmark project been supported entirely by the private sector as it edges closer to its overall funding target of £4.2m.

A not-for-profit charitable company, Yorkshire Icon Limited, has been created which will work with the Rotherham Council, stakeholder partners, and other trustees to manage the project and deliver a lasting legacy that includes education and apprenticeships.

Earlier this year, the project secured backing from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), the body which distributes a share of the income from the National Lottery to projects aimed at preserving and making accessible the nation's heritage. The round one funding of £106,000 will enable a team to work to secure the funds needed for a visitor centre on the former land fill site at Kimberworth in Rotherham.

The exhibition runs until May 21 2017.

Man of Steel website

Images: Yorkshire Man of Steel / AXIS Architecture

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News: New additions at Clifton Park Museum

Rotherham's Clifton Park Museum is set for two more additions with the Rotherham Archives and Local Studies Service and the York & Lancaster Regimental Museum moving across Rotherham town centre.

The two services are relocating from the Library and Arts Centre at Walker Place as the site is planned to be sold and redeveloped for a 10,000 sq m Tesco Extra store.

The services were originally planned to be re-homed in Bailey House but now the council has decided that the Museum would be a far more fitting home for both Archives and much-loved York & Lancs Regimental Museum, making Clifton Park Museum a "one stop shop" for Rotherham's history.

Clifton Park Museum highlights the history of the borough in a way that appeals to all ages and helps to bring both our lives, and those of our ancestors, into sharp focus with the latest in high tech displays and interactive exhibits.

The Yorks & Lancaster Museum brings the regiment's story vividly to life using a unique collection of military objects and personal memorabilia.

The Archives and Local Studies Service collects, preserves and makes available documents and publications covering all aspects of life in the borough from the earliest times to the present day.

Councillor Amy Rushforth, cabinet member for Lifelong Learning and Culture, said: "Tens of thousands of people have enjoyed Clifton Park Museum since it's re-opening in 2006 and, with the two important additions, it is hoped that visitors will enjoy and get more out of the museum than ever before.

"Having both Archives and Local Studies and the York & Lancs Regimental Museum is a massive boost to Clifton Park Museum. It's hoped that both services will set up home here within the near future and offer more comprehensive, entertaining and informative service than ever before.

"We'd like to thank everyone for their patience during this move phase and promise that, once they're both in the museum and normal service is resumed, the same standard of excellent service is guaranteed."

Clifton Park Museum website

Images: rotherham.gov.uk

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