Cultural Strategy – Creative or Cultural Sector survey

In 2022, Lewisham was the London Borough of Culture. Over 240,000 people attended more than 400 events from Deptford to Downham. More than 1,800 people volunteered to make it happen and over 7,000 young people benefitted from our Creative Futures programme, which supported 16–30+ year olds with career advice, training and mentoring. Lewisham’s vibrant creative and community organisations made the programme happen with more than 200 partner organisations contributing to the year. 88% of schools in the borough participated in creative challenges and more.

We are now developing a Cultural Strategy for Lewisham to build on the success of the year and create a legacy for future generations. We delivered the London Borough of Culture year in partnership and we are taking the same approach to the Cultural Strategy.

London Borough of Culture was one of the biggest projects we have ever undertaken to understand how people participate in culture and how cultural activities impact their lives. We sought feedback during the year and we developed new ways of working. We will be using what people have told us to inform the strategy.

Why your views matter

Lewisham has a vibrant and diverse cultural and creative sector. There are individual practitioners, small and medium-sized businesses, voluntary sector and cultural organisations of different sizes, higher education institutions with a focus on culture and creativity, and public sector cultural venues and services.

The creative and cultural sector is important to Lewisham’s economy and in 2019 the north of the borough was declared one of London’s first Creative Enterprise Zones.

We want to hear from people who work in the cultural and creative sector in Lewisham to understand how together we can sustain and grow the sector in years to come. Your views will also help us understand the current creative and co-working space provision in Lewisham. This will inform how we can maximise opportunities for inclusive use of these spaces. By sharing your views with us in our survey, you can help us develop the best Cultural Strategy for Lewisham. We will be developing the strategy over the coming months. Later in the summer we will provide an update on how your contributions have helped us.