This month, Swindon’s UK City of Culture team are inviting people across Swindon to dare to dream of possible ambitious futures for the town and country, as they collect ideas from communities across the town.
Bidding teams have been given a deadline of 10th August to submit their full applications for the next stage of the UK City of Culture competition which gives winners a £10million grant for a year of celebration in 2029.
The selection panel praised the vision and ideas which secured Swindon’s place on the long list, and now the bidding team will spend the next month gathering ideas from people of Swindon to build on that vision.
Dr Roderick Hebden, of Swindon Culture Collective, who are leading the bid in partnership with Swindon Borough Council, explained:
“As we said in the first stage of our bid, Swindon is the hidden engine of modern British life: where things are made, tested, proven and delivered. Our deeper story is one of constant, people-led reinvention. For two centuries, the people who have chosen Swindon have pioneered the systems and ideas that build the nation.
The Great Western Rail workforce built locomotives and created civic institutions ahead of their time – the Health Hydro, a radical blueprint for the NHS; the Mechanics’ Institute, home to the UK’s first lending library. Swindon consistently outperforms major cities in productivity, with innovation and waves of new arrivals creating an open, diverse and culturally active town. Swindon’s UK City of Culture plans will support this reset of ambition and reclaim our history of imagination, invention and quiet national leadership with a bold vision: A Town That Dreams in Public!”
A colourful temporary pavement artwork opening the invitation to dream up bold new futures has been created outside the Zurich offices by Swindon artists Caryn Koh and Dayna Baxter.
Swindon Culture Collective will be reaching out to Swindonians across the whole borough to capture their dreams for the future the town and for the UK. At events across the town, there will be fun and creative opportunities to get involved, both in the town centre, and in local communities and surrounding villages. There will also be simple #WeDreamInPublic ‘postcards’ and boxes in libraries and other public places for people to share their ideas and dreams.
People have already started taking part, including hundreds of Swindon Town Football club supporters joining in at their final home game and audiences at Swindon’s famous Festival of Literature earlier this month.
Whilst the bidding team are still confirming local groups and participating events, and calling for more organisations and events to join the #WeDreamInPublic efforts, these public events are already confirmed for people to take part:
Camerados Public Living Rooms – as part of A Million Acts of Hope:
Weds 13th May at Manor Road Community Garden: 10.30 – 1.00
Weds 13th May at Walcot Skate Park: 3.30 – 6.00
Saturday 16th May at Queens Park: 11.00 – 1.00
Tuesday 19th May in The Brunel Swindon: 10.00 – 1.00
Swindon Imaginarium, The Brunel Swindon – Weds 27th – Saturday 30th May, 11.00 – 3.00
Pick, Plant and Pizza Community Day, John Moulton Hall, Penhill – Friday 29th May:
Swindon Filipino Association Pinoy Food Festival, – Saturday 30th May 1.00 – 5.00, Ellendune Community Centre, Wroughton
Swindon Wordsmiths, The Well, Abbeymeads, Saturday 30th May
Louise Halliday, Swindon Culture Collective, added:
“For Swindon’s bid, public dreaming is the idea that people shape the future. #Swindon2029 will be a project to imagine new futures together. It will give us an opportunity to explore ideas, test decisions and strengthen opportunity across every area of the borough. Five challenges will guide our year, linked to Swindon’s innovative can-do spirit: democratic futures; young people leading change; humans and technology; climate imagination; and collective storytelling and identity. We’ll create big ‘engine’ moments to showcase Swindon in a bold way, alongside hyperlocal activity that meets residents where they are, strengthening the bonds between neighbourhoods and the town centre.”
Swindon’s UK City of Culture bid describes the town as a UK connector, pointing out that it stands out in the country as home to national institutions such as National Trust, Science Museum Group, Historic England’s Archive, UK Research and Innovation that have national and global reach. Just as Swindon has long tested the country’s future – from rail to Mondex, chip and PIN and 5G – it is a microcosm of the challenges and opportunities facing UK towns, so Swindon’s UK City of Culture plans can become a national exchange of ideas and collaboration.
Kate Wyatt, Head of Culture at Swindon Borough Council, said:
“We know that culture has the power to make familiar places feel extraordinary: festivals that transform parks and streets, performances that illuminate industrial heritage, creative trails along green/blue corridors, and community-led events that bring neighbourhoods together. These moments allow residents to see their town, and their place within it, differently. That shift in imagination is the foundation for long term change. City of Culture 2029 can supercharge what is already happening in Swindon – using culture to drive economic growth, regeneration, investment, skills and employment. To re-energise our town and ensure every ward of our borough is part of shaping Swindon’s next chapter. Other places have shown that gaining City of Culture status can be transformational. We invite people in every ward of our borough to take part across May to shape ideas for Swindon’s next chapter.”
For those who can’t make it to a public event, Swindonians can get involved on a dedicated UK City of Culture page on the Swindon Culture Collective website:
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