The Mayor Sadiq Khan today announced the winners of the much contested London Borough of Culture competition. Waltham Forest will be the first borough to be awarded the title – in 2019, followed by Brent in 2020.
The London Borough of Culture award, a flagship manifesto commitment, is a major new initiative launched by Sadiq in June 2017 – inspired by the UK City and European Capital of Culture programmes. Khan said:
“#London Borough of #Culture is a game-changer for the capital. It will give all Londoners, regardless of background, the opportunity to enjoy the capital’s fantastic cultural riches, discover places they never knew existed and will increase the level of participation in the arts across the city – especially in outer London boroughs. But with such high-quality bids, deciding which boroughs should win was a very difficult decision. All boroughs who have bid should feel proud of their proposals”
More than 12,000 local people backed #Waltham Forest’s submission from across the borough’s diverse communities. Drawing on this diversity was a key strength of Waltham Forest’s bid
Each winning borough will be awarded £1.35 million of funding to deliver a programme of ambitious cultural activities, placing culture at the heart of communities and celebrating the unique character of local people and places. In total, 22 boroughs submitted bids to be London Borough of Culture. Recently, Sadiq committed £1m of extra funding to London Borough of Culture, to inspire young Londoners to become the next generation of creative talent.
