| MEMBER BULLETIN
Dear Jackie
Short on time? Read the condensed roundup here. Want to listen to the Bulletin rather than read it? Then click here to give it a listen. Welcome to the February Members Monthly Bulletin. This edition brings more opportunities to connect and plan ahead - from upcoming Catalysts and Round Table sessions, to funding and skills development shaping the cultural landscape across the Liverpool City Region. As ever, this bulletin is designed to help you stay informed, connected and supported in the fantastic work you do. |
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| 👥 CATALYST ONLINE #4 - PRESENTER CALLOUT🗓️ 12 March 2026, 1.00-2.45pm | Online Catalyst is our fast-paced online sharing space where members present ideas, opportunities, provocations and works-in-progress designed to spark collaboration across the network. We want to hear from you if you want to: Share an idea, project or call-out Test something early Listen, learn and make connection
Alongside member presentations, Catalyst #4 will be a chance for members to hear about Culture Liverpool’s annual plans, major events and updates on the LCR cultural strategy: Alicia Smith (Culture Liverpool) - upcoming major events and annual plans through to 2029 Jane Morgan (Liverpool City Region Combined Authority) - an overview of the new Liverpool City Region Cultural Strategy
Whether you want to share, test, or simply listen and connect, Catalyst is informal, generous and member-led. 👉 Book your place to present or attend. More details, including the full running order, coming soon. Please ink the afternoon of Thursday 12 March in your diaries! 🗓️ ROUND TABLES 2026 - BOOK YOUR SEAT Our Round Tables are monthly, themed sessions offering members a safe, focused space to explore big questions shaping the cultural sector. Each session includes: 15 in-person seats around the table at World Museum Liverpool An online listen-in option for those joining remotely Calendar invites (including the Teams link) sent closer to each session
Round Tables are designed for honest conversation, shared learning and collective thinking — your voice matters in the room. 👉 Book your 2026 places here (members only). Themes and hosts will be shared in advance of each session. Round Table #15
🗓️ 6 February 2026, 3:00 - 4:30pm AI Impact and Ethics
Host: Nicola Triscott, FACT Liverpool
A chance to discuss AI’s capabilities, practical applications, ethical issues and creative potential.
🗓️ LCVS CONVENTION & FUNDING FAIR
🗓️ 26 March
📍The Florrie Liverpool Council for Voluntary Service is hosting its first city-wide Convention & Funding Fair on 26 March, bringing together VCFSE organisations, funders and civic leaders. For Culture Network members, this is a key opportunity to build cross-sector relationships, understand current funding priorities and connect cultural work to wider social and community agendas. Booking details coming soon - for now, save the date. 🗓️ FIRST FRIDAY SOCIAL (FFS) 🗓️ First Friday of every month, 5:00–7:00pm
📍 Circle Bar, Liverpool’s Royal Court FFS is our most relaxed meet-up. Open to all members and all LCR creatives, it’s a chance to unwind, chat, and make new connections. Expect: Free drink whilst tokens last Delicious vegan snacks (thanks to Royal Court 🍻🌱) Friendly intros so you never stand in the corner alone. No RSVP needed - just turn up!
💬 JOIN OUR WHATSAPP COMMUNITY A safe, members-only space for: 👉 Click here to join (please say who you are when you enter!) 👥 MEMBERS CONTACT LIST
The updated February contact list is now available. Please check it over and email us if staff need adding or removing. Note: The file has 3 tabs - one with full details, one simplified for easy copy-and-paste use and one with growing list of cultural partners. |
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📋 POLICY WATCH: WHAT’S NEXT
We attended the most recent What’s Next? sector gathering, which reflected on the Arts Council England Review and the themes emerging from across the sector. Discussions highlighted strong support for the arm’s-length principle, alongside concerns about long-term sustainability, one-size-fits-all systems and the need to better situate ACE within the wider funding and policy landscape. Further responses from ACE and DCMS are expected in late February or early March, with opportunities for sector engagement to follow. You can read our notes from the gathering here.
🏛️ DCMS CULTURAL FUNDING UPDATE: NEW INVESTMENT ANNOUNCEDThe government has confirmed a new package of cultural investment, worth £1.5billion including further rounds of the Creative Foundations Fund (totalling £425m), additional funding for Libraries Improvement (LIF) and the Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND), and a new Museum Transformation Programme focused on supporting more sustainable business models. The announcement also confirms a 5% uplift for all regularly funded organisations supported by Arts Council England. Members are encouraged to keep an eye on eligibility criteria and timelines as further details are released.
🧩 FUNDED INTERNSHIP PROJECTS WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF LIVERPOOL
Liverpool Interns, a funded internship programme connecting local businesses with Culture Network member University of Liverpool students to support short, project-based work.
“Liverpool Interns is a standout initiative from the University of Liverpool that is designed to drive innovation and growth across the Liverpool City Region. Through the programme, we connect local businesses with talented students to foster project-based knowledge exchange” Click here to read the Programme Overview. If you have a project in mind, or would like to know more about the programme please get in touch with Jade Bolderson: jade.bo...@liverpool.ac.uk.
🧩 FUNDED INTERNSHIPS WITH LJMU - DEADLINE 6 FEB Local employers, including Culture Network Members, are invited to submit projects to host final-year undergraduate interns through the LJMU Discovery Internships: The Grad Edition programme. LJMU will fund 140 hours of paid work to help you bring in graduate-level talent on meaningful, real-world tasks that support your organisation and offer students valuable experience. Projects must be submitted by midday Friday 6 February 2026 for placements starting in May. Find the application and guidelines on the project form; contact inter...@ljmu.ac.uk with queries.
📚 FREE ONLINE EVALUATION TRAINING FOR ARTS, CULTURE & HERITAGE The Centre for Cultural Value is offering a free, self-paced online evaluation course designed specifically for arts, culture and heritage professionals. The training covers how to plan, collect and use evaluation evidence in a proportionate, meaningful way - useful for funding applications, reporting and organisational learning. The course is open access and can be completed at your own pace. 🔗 Find out more and enrol. |
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📋 CREATIVE UK PAPER - CULTURE AS GROWTH INFRASTRUCTURE The Creative UK’s provocation paper Culture as Growth Infrastructure (Amy Tarr and Michelle Calame) makes a direct case that culture should be treated like infrastructure in UK economic strategy - not just a “nice-to-have”. It argues the sector already delivers measurable returns across growth, wellbeing and place resilience, yet is consistently under-valued in the appraisal systems that determine where public money (and growth finance) flows. 👉 Read the full paper here. 📋CREATIVE CAREERS: LCR EMPLOYERS NETWORK - JOIN BY THE END OF FEB Culture Network members are invited to join the Creative Careers Programme – Liverpool City Region Employers Network, making it easier to connect with schools, special schools and colleges. The network supports employers to inspire young people, strengthen pathways into creative work and help build the future workforce.
Free DBS certification is available to all organisations that join before the end of February.
🔗 Find out more here.
🚀 INVESTMENT FUNDS - WHAT MEMBERS SHOULD KNOW
Livv Investment manages a range of investment funds designed to support business growth, innovation and long-term sustainability. While primarily aimed at commercially trading organisations, some funds may be relevant to cultural and creative organisations with earned income, property ambitions or growth plans. Culture Network members exploring capital investment, asset development or scale-up opportunities may wish to review the available funds and eligibility criteria. 🔗 Explore current funds
🌍 GLOBAL LCR & LIVERPOOL PARTNERSHIP
Liverpool City Council and the Combined Authority are setting up the new Global LCR & Liverpool Partnership, and the Culture Network has been asked to engage. If you're interested in being part of the initial mapping to share your International plans, please email Charlotte before 10 Feb 2026.
📝 BLUECOAT 100: HELP SHAPE FUTURE COLLABORATION
As Bluecoat approaches its 100th anniversary in 2027, cultural organisations are invited to share insight on priorities, partnerships and future collaboration via a short survey.
Closes 20 Feb, 5pm. Complete the survey.
🤝 OUR ALLYSHIP, SOLIDARITY AND ACTION POLICY Our EDIA Working Group’s Allyship, Solidarity and Action document is a practical guide for moving beyond allyship towards active solidarity, and building fairer, safer, more inclusive cultural spaces across the Liverpool City Region. It’s a living document and we welcome continued input from across the network. 🎧 An audio version is available via the ‘play’ button (top right). Alternative formats can be requested at ad...@culturenetwork.co.uk. Click the image below. |
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| 🧭 WORKING GROUPS - UPDATES Strategy Tourist Tax Consultation – Discussion on the key points and connection to the membership as a whole, working through the process to submit our feedback to the Government and how we can gain from this long term! Global LCR & Liverpool Partnership Update – Overview of current activity and progress, including Liverpool’s role and positioning within the wider LCR partnership. LCR Soft Power Board – Update and discussion on the forthcoming board, its purpose, and the potential opportunities and impact for the Liverpool City Region and our members. LCR Cultural Strategy – Early update on the developing LCR cultural strategy, ahead of its formal announcement
EDIA (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Access) The EDIA Working Group met in January to review learning from the December Connect event and to plan next steps. The group also discussed EDIA fatigue, access awareness at events, and how future Connect sessions can be structured to allow deeper, more meaningful conversation. The next EDIA Working Group meeting takes place on 17 February.
SHIFT (Sustainability) The SHIFT Sustainability Network is inviting cultural organisations to complete a short survey to help inform future sustainability support, resources and activity across the sector. Member insight will help ensure practical, relevant responses to the environmental challenges organisations are facing.
📝 Complete the Shift Pledges Progress Survey by 7 February.
Skills & Participation
The group is exploring connections with the LCR Combined Authority Creative Careers team, along with how we can build a central directory of cultural skills and participation opportunities across the LCR. Early thinking includes organising these offers into four clear categories and, in time, integrating the directory with the Culture Network CRM so it becomes a long-term, accessible resource for members and the communities they work with.
Want to get involved? Contact Leanne or Charlotte. Joint Promotion The Joint Promotion Working Group is looking for new members to help shape how we collectively shine a spotlight on Culture Network member organisations. The group plays a key role in developing and refining the Culture Network’s communications strategy, while driving audience reach and growth for UncoverLiverpool.com for the benefit of all members, as well as measuring and sharing the impact of the network. This work helps ensure the Culture Network’s projects and initiatives align with our shared goal of fostering a creative, innovative and collaborative city region. Keen to get involved? Contact Lucy Byrne or Clare. 🗣️ CALLOUTS Free or discounted training places?
If your organisation has access to free or subsidised training opportunities - whether that’s creative skills, leadership, health & safety, or digital upskilling - please share them so other members can benefit. We’ll feature a selection in next month’s bulletin and on our member communication channels. |
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📣 MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
The partnership
Art in Liverpool partnered with Culture Network LCR in 2025 to help clarify the role and future direction of the Independents Biennial. The collaboration focused on strategic development, grounded in a shared understanding of the region’s arts ecology and long-term ambition for Liverpool City Region. Impact & outcomes
A key outcome was a sector mapping exercise developed ahead of Culture Network’s launch, which directly shaped the independent Biennial’s programme and publishing approach. The festival reached over 169,000 engaged audience members, surpassing its counterpart for the first time since 1999 - with partnership development identified as a significant contributing factor. In their words: “Culture Network LCR enabled us to create a focused development plan — not just for ourselves, but for the network we want to see delivering exceptional art.”
Patrick Kirk-Smith, Art in Liverpool CIC Why this matters
This partnership demonstrates how strategic collaboration can strengthen individual organisations while supporting a healthier, more connected cultural ecosystem. Together we are stronger!
💬 CELEBRATING LCR’S CULTURAL DESTINATIONSIn December, we ran our Big Uncover Competition, with Culture Network members generously donating prizes for adults and families. Our winners are already enjoying their prizes — thank you to everyone who took part! Entrants also shared their favourite cultural destinations in the Liverpool City Region, and we were blown away by the responses. Here are just three snippets from over 230 quotes for venues including FACT Liverpool, The Atkinson, Shakespeare North Playhouse, National Museums Liverpool, Squash, Unity Theatre and many more. You can read them all here. 24 Hope Street - It is a wonderfully inclusive venue. All of us have a different story to tell and the staff and teachers make individuals feel valued.
Lady Lever Gallery - A great cultural destination, for me, is somewhere that all generations can feel like they fit in, and somewhere where you can create some amazing memories.
Unity Theatre - They encourage local people of all backgrounds to get involved in their work, from professionals to community groups. I think they add a lot of value to culture in our city because of this! Organisations are welcome to use the quotes anonymously. For more information, contact Clare. |
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| | | | | Dive in, bring your voice, and make the most of your membership. Got ideas? We’re listening! |
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| | If there is anything we’re missing in your Bulletins, then please do let us know.
What do you think of this month's Bulletin? Your feedback helps us create better emails for you! |
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THANKS FOR READING!
Best wishes, Charlotte, Ria and Clare
The Culture Network LCR Board of Directors: Emma Smith - Liverpool Irish Festival Gillian Miller - Royal Court Theatre Jay Farley - First Take Laura Pye - National Museums Liverpool Lucy Byrne - dot-art Madeline Heneghan - Writing on the Wall Nicola Triscott - FACT Patrick Fox - Heart of Glass Rob Sanderson-Thomas - Norton Priory Museum & Trust |
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