Clay Cross: art connecting people and place
Residents from Smithybrook View assisted living complex, watch the Clay Cross light display. Image © Jane Wells
“This project is a great illustration of how to involve and empower people in their community and engage them with what's happening locally,” says Jane Wells, Project Coordinator at community arts charity, Junction Arts.
In Clay Cross, Derbyshire, North East Derbyshire District Council’s (NEDDC) economic development team are making use of visual arts and creativity to imagine the future of the Town with residents - and display their artworks in bright lights.
By teaming up with Junction Arts, and local artist Lucie Maycock, NEDDC were able to creatively involve both young and older people in sharing their perspectives on the Town Deal. The artworks created by residents during engagement workshops explore how Clay Cross might change in the future and were then incorporated into an immersive film and soundscape by artist Will Lindley. Over three evenings in September 2021, the artworks were projected onto a disused ventilation shaft in the middle of Clay Cross - a striking feature of the Town’s industrial heritage. The artworks created during the workshops offer a rich visual legacy co-created with residents, that will feed the Town’s visual branding and identity for the future.
Capturing the Town’s imagination
NEDDC’s project lead, Bryan Harrison, has every intention of continuing the artist-led approach to connecting the people of Clay Cross with their local community. “I think with this we've really captured people's imagination and we can continue to use these images to represent the Town,“ he says.
Having been involved in the Town’s regeneration for over 12 years, Bryan explains his passion for Clay Cross:
“This Town Deal is a once in a generation opportunity to really lift our Town. We've always seen Clay Cross as a sleeping giant in our district and which is now beginning to wake up, which is fantastic.”
Connecting to place through art
Jane, and the team at Junction Arts, are equally focused on using art as a tool for reaching communities whose voices aren't always heard. “Our priority is to work in or with communities that are disadvantaged in some way, those that don’t have access to the same level of participation in the arts as perhaps other areas that are better connected to opportunities,” explains Jane. “The arts are a great way to connect with people, to share a message and engage people in what's going on in their local area.”
Artist-led community engagement
Lucie Maycock is a community artist commissioned by Junction Arts to facilitate the community engagement for the Town Deal. Lucie ran 19 workshops with residents, getting their opinions and looking at ideas on how to shape the future of the Town through the medium of art and creativity. This resulted in 90 individual pieces of art being created during workshops with local schools, care homes and students from Chesterfield College. All these pieces of artwork will now be part of the Town’s identity going forward.
Lucie is interested in exploring what art can offer to the regeneration of a place.
“An artist-led piece of work will always have a different approach and that approach will be personal to the people involved, which makes it unique. You might think that uniqueness, when applied to the redevelopment of an area, wouldn't work well but that's where artists are crucial, because they can visualise how these things will mould and gel together.”
A core part of this project has been involving local residents at an early stage, to give them a voice and strengthen their sense of community. “We've worked with people of all ages, but importantly, we worked closely with young people. It may sound like a cliché but young people are the future, and it’s important they feel they’re listened to,” says Jane.
Engaging Clay Cross residents throughout the pandemic required a pivot towards online platforms and different kinds of collaboration. Despite what might have felt like a barrier initially, by working with staff in care homes, teachers and lecturers in the local college, the artists were able to spark people’s imagination. “Jane, Lucie and the other artists are taking it to a whole new dimension. And it's absolutely fabulous, it's capturing everyone's imagination, and the Town Deal Board is thrilled with it” explains Bryan.
The team also developed a small touring exhibition, another way to raise awareness of the Town Deal development plans. “We’re holding the exhibition in non-traditional venues, for example the local leisure centre and other community spaces where people already are. We're not overloading them with information, that’s important,” says Bryan. “When you do a traditional consultation, we really struggle to engage with young people. This exhibition and light show is a much richer experience, I think.”
Residents shaping the future
As for the future of Clay Cross, Bryan is aware that there is a long road ahead.
“We'll be engaging and consulting our communities for years to come, because we're just at the very beginning of this. There are many projects in the investment plan for Clay Cross and we want to get people involved at every step,” says Bryan.
With established partnerships in place with the arts and cultural sector, Jane, Lucie and Bryan are all passionate about bringing this culture-led approach into all regeneration work. “We've demonstrated that this approach works so we'll do this again,” says Bryan. “It's our job to raise the profile of the regeneration plans and to get people behind it. For me, this is a really positive way of doing it.”
In Clay Cross this fresh approach to involving residents in the Town Deal is showing early signs that change is on its way.
This story was written from a conversation with Bryan Harrison, who is Senior Regeneration Officer and Urban Designer at North East Derbyshire District Council; Jane Wells, Project Coordinator at community arts charity Junction Arts; and artist Lucie Maycock.
Clay Cross is one of 101 places invited by the Government to develop Town Deal proposals to deliver long-term economic recovery, clean growth, jobs and prosperity as part of the £3.6 billion Towns Fund. Clay Cross has submitted a successful Town Investment Plan and secured a Town Deal of up to £24.1 million. Clay Cross is currently developing business cases to take forward their Town Deal proposals.