Val Birchall reflects on becoming a LPIP Fellow and the work she has planned for her fellowship. About Me As a Place Fellow at the LPIP, I am excited to be joining a team of practitioners at the intersection of policy and place. I bring over two decades of experience shaping and delivering local cultural … Continue reading “Culture at the Crux of Place-Based Thinking: Positioning Locally Driven Cultural Development Within a New National Policy Framework”
Category: Cultural recovery
Community Empowerment and Living Heritage in 2026: A Watershed Moment for Community-Owned Culture and Heritage in England?
Liam Smyth, LPIP Hub Place Fellow, discusses his recent briefing paper on how the UNESCO 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) and the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill could be triangulated with a place-based cultural development context to herald in a watershed moment for community-owned culture and heritage in England. … Continue reading “Community Empowerment and Living Heritage in 2026: A Watershed Moment for Community-Owned Culture and Heritage in England?”
Beyond Benchmarks: Reflections from Regional Studies Association Conference Session on Culture, Communities and Infrastructure in Place-Based Policy
At the recent RSA session “Culture, Communities and Infrastructure: Building Capacity, Capability and Confidence in Place,” Dr Sara Hassan and Professor Abi Gilmore brought together a group of researchers, engagement and knowledge exchange managers to explore exactly this question. Co-convened by colleagues at the University of Birmingham and drawing on the research of the UKRI … Continue reading “Beyond Benchmarks: Reflections from Regional Studies Association Conference Session on Culture, Communities and Infrastructure in Place-Based Policy”
Beyond Economics: How Can We Better Capture the Value of Cultural Activity?
Dr James Davies explores how to move beyond economic metrics to more holistically measure the social, cultural, and community value of cultural activities and interventions. With the new Labour Government’s continued commitment to prioritising the Arts, Cultural and Creative Industries sectors as key drivers for the UK economy, there remains a need to consider the … Continue reading “Beyond Economics: How Can We Better Capture the Value of Cultural Activity?”
Call for Submissions: Culture, and Communities in Their Places
As part of the work of the Local Policy Innovation Partnership Programme’s (LPIP) Strategic Hub, City-REDI has organised a Special Session at the 2025 Regional Studies Association Annual Conference, which is scheduled to take place at the University of Porto, Portugal between the 6th – 9th May 2025, focusing on two interrelated key themes of … Continue reading “Call for Submissions: Culture, and Communities in Their Places”
REF Impact Case Studies: Why Are They Important to Place Partnerships? – Cultural Recovery
The Research Excellence Framework (REF) case studies outline changes and benefits to the UK economy, society, culture, public policy and services, health, the environment, and quality of life and impacts in these sectors beyond the UK. REF impact case studies were written by HEIs, following a four-page template provided for REF submissions. The template was structured … Continue reading “REF Impact Case Studies: Why Are They Important to Place Partnerships? – Cultural Recovery”
Evidence-Based Insights: Cultural, Recovery, Policy and Place in the UK
This blog post by Dr James Davies summarises the approach taken on an evidence review of the role of culture and cultural recovery in place-based policies as part of the Local Policy Innovation Partnership (LPIP) Hub. It takes a multifaceted approach, defining key concepts and identifying key questions around uneven funding, the crucial role of … Continue reading “Evidence-Based Insights: Cultural, Recovery, Policy and Place in the UK”
Not the Same: Why Definitions of Culture and Creativity Matter in Place-Based Policymaking
Dr James Davies investigates the definitions of ‘culture’ and ‘creative’, and why it is important to be able to distinguish both industries. Context With the 2023 Autumn Statement recognising creative industries as one of the five priority sectors for the UK economy, and the wider ‘Levelling Up’ agenda prioritising a renewed focus on place-based policymaking, … Continue reading “Not the Same: Why Definitions of Culture and Creativity Matter in Place-Based Policymaking”