The Bucks Culture Creative Collaboration Conference took place in November 2024. The Conference successfully brought together professionals, creatives, and community leaders to explore the power of collaboration in the arts. Held at the newly opened Garsington Studios, the event provided an inspiring setting for insightful discussions, creative exploration, and networking opportunities. The conference aimed to facilitate meaningful conversations on the challenges and joys of creative collaboration while fostering new partnerships to enhance cultural engagement across Buckinghamshire.
The venue provided a beautiful backdrop to a cultural event that invited audiences to share insight into practice and disseminate learning to support future collaboration whilst providing opportunity for creative exploration.
The event was well attended and allowed Bucks Culture to work closely with new partners. The event supported sector-wide conversations surrounding the challenges and joys of creative collaboration both within the sector and beyond, and examined what it means to co-create with communities. The conference was established with the intention to connect, collaborate and co-create, an outcome we continue to pursue in the delivery of Buckinghamshire’s Cultural Strategy. Our 2024 event incorporated the inaugural Bucks Spark Award Ceremony, now set to be a regular feature of the cultural calendar.
We are proposing that future conferences be developed by a small group of key strategic partners working together to shape the format and programme the conference read more about the conference and feel free to send us your suggestions.
Process
Our partners, the board, the creative sector and the internal team were invited to make suggestions for the programme during board meetings, lead-in sector development sessions, and via the newsletter with a call for contributions surveyed online.
In addition to the open invitation for contributions the development of the programme was informed by feedback and evaluation from 2023, aiming to capture suggestions and implement changes to build a model better suited to the needs of audiences.
Three Words Analysis
This is what Chat GPT thought of responses to our ‘what 3 words describe your experience’ question.
The responses to the “three words” question reflect overwhelmingly positive experiences, with key themes emerging:
1. Inspiration & Engagement
Many attendees described the event as inspiring, engaging, thought-provoking, and enlightening. This suggests that the conference successfully delivered fresh perspectives and meaningful discussions, resonating with participants on both an intellectual and emotional level.
2. Networking & Connection
Words like welcoming, friendly, vibrant, connection, and collaborative indicate that the event fostered an inclusive and supportive environment for attendees to interact, share ideas, and build relationships.
3. Learning & Insight
Terms such as informative, insightful, educational, and paradigm-shifting reinforce the idea that the event provided valuable knowledge and challenged conventional ways of thinking.
4. Energy & Atmosphere
Words like dynamic, lively, fun, happy, and exciting suggest a positive and high-energy atmosphere, making the experience enjoyable beyond just the formal content.
5. Areas for Improvement
A few words, such as inaccessible, poorly attended, and tiring, indicate that some participants experienced challenges, possibly around accessibility, turnout, or event pacing. These could be key areas to address in future iterations.
Overall Takeaway
The conference was largely seen as an engaging and enriching experience, successfully fostering inspiration, connection, and learning.
Championing the work of women from the cultural sector and identifying how our work can support women from all walks of life as we work towards a more equitable society for all.
On the 6th of March Bucks Culture hosted the inaugural Women of Culture Event in celebration of International Women’s Day. The event, hosted at the Elgiva Theatre in Chesham, saw women and allies from across the sector come together to explore issues faced by women and champion the work of women in the cultural sector.
Audiences were treated to an interactive workshop led by Rosie Axon, Founder and Director at Chiltern Music Therapy and Betty Makharinsky Founder and CEO at Vache Baroque. This musical session explored the role of female voice in music, from the exclusion of female artists in the Baroque era to how the song, Bread and Roses, became the slogan of a political movement calling for safety, shelter and better living standards for all. Delegates were in full voice and the Forum at the Elgiva was filled with not only sunshine but the beautiful sound of an entirely female choir.
‘Love our new girl band’ gleefully expressed post workshop by an attendee, testament to the joy of participation. This could be the start of something new for Bucks.
We were delighted to hear from Vicky Hope-Walker, CEO at National Paralympic Heritage Trust (NPHT) and valued Board Member at Bucks Culture. Vicky spoke of her creative journey to CEO at NPHT. From training in creative arts to implementing socially inspired programmes as a freelancer leading to the eventual establishment of NPHT. Vicky’s presentation took us on a journey through time celebrating the great work and discoveries of female leaders from across Bucks and beyond.
From one inspirational leader to another, our very own, Lallie Davis, Director at Bucks Culture, shared howWomen of Cultureprovided opportunity to celebrate and champion women around the world alongside the cultural sector in Bucks, with a lens to the past, a moment in the present, and an eye to the future. The event provided time for networking and opportunity to come together to discuss the wider issues faced by women and the communities we work with.
Bucks Culture’s first International Women’s Day event is something Lallie has been intending to convene for a long time. International Women’s Day has been taking place annually on the 8th March since 1911. The day is dedicated to the advancement of women worldwide and belongs to all who care about women’s equality.
Sadly, in a rapidly changing World, women are often most affected by some of our most pressing issues: migration, poverty and climate change.
In the cultural sector we are in the amazing position to be working in an impactful way to implement change for the communities we work with. Our work in community settings serves to uncover inequalities, raise the profile of challenges, and bring people together armed with art and creativity as a tool for engagement and a catalyst for change.
Stories, music, visual arts, poetry, crafts and events, all play a role in reaching people and bringing them together. In difficult times, this role is of more importance than ever.
Notes on Accelerating Action from Lallie Davis, Director at Buckinghamshire Culture
This year’s International Women’s Day theme, accelerate action, is about how we can collectively Accelerate Action for women everywhere by addressing systemic barriers and biases women face in both personal and professional spheres.
Despite everything,
the World Economic Forum says full gender parity is still five generations away[i].
87% of men in paid work are full-time workers, whereas only 59% of women are in paid full-time work[ii].
Women are now 47% of those in employment but are still the majority of those in part-time employment[iii].
Employment rates of Bangladeshi and Pakistani women still lag behind that of other groups[iv].
The Gender pay gap has increased to 8.9% since 2018, while overall pay gap has decreased to 17.3%[v].
Women account for 69% of low earners, a proportion that has barely changed since 2018(70%) and that has remained constant since 2011[vi] (69%)
Women continue to encounter numerous challenges, including:
Health Inequities: Studies show that women’s pain is often dismissed, leading to delayed diagnoses and inadequate treatment. The Sun
Mental Health Struggles: Research indicates that young women experience higher levels of mental distress compared to their male counterparts, influenced by societal pressures and gender-based discrimination. The Australian
What steps can you take today to challenge gender biases?
How can you support the women in your community more effectively?
In what ways can your workplace promote a culture of inclusivity and equality?[vii]
Tree of Insight and Intentions
Attendees shared thoughts and plans, writing a tag for our Tree of Insight and Intention sharing how to accommodate female audiences and pledges for the future to accelerate action!
As shared below
I pledge to actively praise and elevate my team of women, recognising their strengths, input and skill sets. I could not do my job without them.
I pledge to make space for more women to devise and lead on projects! + being aware of added barriers to intersectionality.
I do and will celebrate the women who came before us, paved the way for us to help and inspire the women who will follow us.
My intention is to promote fiction and non fiction written by women (esp from Bucks)when possible. Look at heritage of Bucks born writers e.g. Enid Blyton
I pledge to create more spaces for women to come together to be creative.
Seek out ways to make links with the local British Asian Community of Women.
Write and create more female characters to explore and present female perspectives. Continuing to connect with and champion female causes.
I pledge to promote and embrace female artists.
Continuing my recent exhibition work concerning, Childhood Lost, by sponsoring a young female street child in Kolkata.
I pledge to learn more about women’s businesses locally that I can promote.
Providing community, supportive inclusive and fun activities.
We are delighted to connect with and hear from women working across Buckinghamshire, working in collaboration to reach communities, support each other’s endeavours and ensure that women’s issues are included in our work and programmes.
Please do get in touch with ideas for future programmes, recommend speakers and to keep us up to date with your work.
We are looking for an Administrator to join our small team. This is a role for someone with good organisational skills and who enjoys helping to make events and projects happen. It would be a good role for some one just starting out in the cultural sector, someone returning to work, or someone looking to be a vital part of a small creative team.
The Administrator will support essential elements of Bucks Culture’s business, including operations, finance, data collection and impact measurement, sector support and projects delivery. We support flexible working and are open to how the hours are delivered but will require some time at the beginning of each week to be spent at our office within Buckinghamshire New University’s High Wycombe campus.
As well as assisting with the day to day running of the charity, this role will champion Bucks Culture, ensuring excellent communication with partners and potential partners, raising the charity’s profile and reach.
To apply, please start by reading through the Administrator Job Description:
A covering statement sharing what you would bring to the role and how your skills and experience would benefit Buckinghamshire Culture
Your CV
You may apply in writing (covering statement to be no more than 2 A4 sides) or by sharing a video (no longer than 10 minutes) or audio recording (no longer than 10 minutes) covering all of these points.
Interviews will take place 28th and 29th April.
Please feel free to contact the Director (Lallie@buckinghamshireculture.org) if you would like to discuss this opportunity before applying.
Join us at Amersham Museum for our final Going Green Gathering and help us work out the next steps for a more sustainable approach to programme delivery across culture and heritage settings.
The session is led by Melissa Maynard from Dacorum Heritage Trust on the 17th of March from 3-5 in person at Amersham Museum
Melissa works with the Group for Education in Museums to look at how public-facing programmes and events can be more sustainable.
Melissa’s work on environmental sustainability is focused on how to implement impact behind the scenes to reduce carbon footprint taking into consideration; insulation, heating and lighting. Melissa’s session explores how to consider the impact of visitor activities, shops and displays, and programme accordingly.
This workshop explores some of the ways in which we can make greener choices for visitor events. The session is followed with opportunity for Q&A and networking with tea, coffee and snacks provided.
Have your say – join us for Creative Culture Conversations, 20th March
Bucks Culture invites cultural organisations of all sizes to join our online Creative Culture Conversation to inform how we connect and collaborate to enable sector growth. The event, set to take place online, is facilitated by the fabulous team at Axon and Black.
Aiming to deliver a fun and engaging session providing feedback in real-time, the session offers opportunity to input into strategic planning, inform groupings and allow people to feel heard, part of something and understood.
This facilitated session will enable peer sharing, identification of trends and celebration of successes – ultimately helping Bucks Culture to see how best to support the sector to develop and grow.
A series of digital tools will be used to help participants respond to a proposed programme of sector development presented by Bucks Culture.
Be part of the conversation
Join Bucks Culture and cultural organisations of all sizes to shape the future of arts and culture in Buckinghamshire.
Join us at Amersham Museum for our final Going Green Gathering and help us work out the next steps for a more sustainable approach to programme delivery across culture and heritage settings.
The session is led by Melissa Maynard from Dacorum Heritage Trust on the 17th of March from 3-5 in person at Amersham Museum
Melissa works with the Group for Education in Museums to look at how public-facing programmes and events can be more sustainable.
Melissa’s work on environmental sustainability is focused on how to implement impact behind the scenes to reduce carbon footprint taking into consideration; insulation, heating and lighting. Melissa’s session explores how to consider the impact of visitor activities, shops and displays, and programme accordingly.
This workshop explores some of the ways in which we can make greener choices for visitor events. The session is followed with opportunity for Q & A, networking with tea, coffee and snacks provided.
Sign up for your free ticket at Eventbrite and email kerry@buckinghamshireculture.org with any questions.
Bucks Culture is proud to present Women of Culture, a networking and celebratory event in honor of International Women’s Day, bringing together women from Buckinghamshire’s cultural sector. This gathering offers a space to connect, exchange ideas, and champion women’s contributions in arts, heritage, and creative industries.
Join us on the 6th of March, in a space for Connection, Reflection, and Inspiration
More than just networking, Women of Culture is a space for reflection, discussion, and collaboration. Through engaging activities and thought-provoking conversations, we’ll explore women’s leadership, representation, and creative expression. While designed with women in mind, men are welcome as allies in fostering an inclusive, supportive sector.
Meet the Inspirational Women Leading the Conversation
At the heart of Women of Cultureare the inspiring voices of three incredible female leaders in Buckinghamshire’s cultural sector, each bringing a unique perspective on leadership, creativity, and advocacy for inclusion.
Rosie Axon, Founder of Chiltern Music Therapy, an advocate for music’s power in transforming lives. Betty Makharinsky, Founder of Vache Baroque, making Baroque music and drama more accessible. Vicky Hope-Walker, CEO of National Paralympic Heritage Trust, championing inclusion in arts and heritage.
Exploring Women’s Leadership, Voice & Expression
Rosie, Betty, and Vicky will lead a dynamic, interactive session that blends storytelling, music, and discussion, offering valuable insight into what it means to be a leader in the cultural sector.
Through artist-led activities and participatory sessions, the event will explore the significance of the female voice in music, movement, and leadership. Attendees will gain inspiration from the Female Founder Journey, where Rosie and Betty will share their experiences in building and sustaining cultural organisations, while Vicky will offer a deeper perspective on leading inclusion-focused initiatives and advocating for greater representation in the sector.
A Collective Commitment to Change
A key moment in the event will be The Tree of Insight & Intentions, where participants will have the opportunity to share how they have adapted their work to better support women in their fields and make a pledge for future action.
The event will close with informal networking over tea and coffee, providing a space to continue conversations, forge new connections, and build a stronger, more collaborative creative community in Buckinghamshire.
We are currently exploring the idea of a new programme to celebrate and promote the creative and cultural industries across Bucks, with the working title, Made in Bucks. This new piece of R&D, inspired by our Co-Chair Julius Weinberg’s vision to “make Buckinghamshire sticky,” will reflect and celebrate the unique cultural identity of Bucks.
We are keen to hear your thoughts about how we could better celebrate and harness the creative industries across the county – in terms of profile, career pathways and vibrancy. Please see the ‘Made in Bucks One Pager’ below for more details and review the attached project outline. We’d love your feedback—share your thoughts through our brief questionnaire by Monday, 9th of December by scanning the QR code at the bottom of the page or click here.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to our consultant, Jacqui Gellman, at jacqui.gellman@gmail.com.
Bucks Culture is excited to present the first ever Bucks Spark Awards created to showcase and celebrate arts, heritage and cultural achievements delivered by fantastic, hard-working organisations and voluntary groups within the county. Submissions for work taking place in the last year were invited across three categories and we are now able to share the inspiring shortlist.
The categories and shortlist for this first year of Bucks Spark Awards are:
Best cultural event:
UK Astronomy’s Planetarium at Stowe
Unbound Theatre’s Buckinghamshire Shakespeare Festival
Visual Images Group’s Bucks Art Weeks
Best cultural exhibition:
Amersham Museum’s Marie-Louise in Amersham exhibition
Fractured Land Collective’s Fractured Land exhibition
Marlow Museum’s Writers of Marlow exhibition
National Paralympic Heritage Trust’s The Story of the Games display
South Asian Artists’ Community’s Kaleidoscope exhibition
Best cultural collaboration:
Buckinghamshire Council’s Local Heritage List
Bucks Youth Dance Company and Wycombe Youth Action’s Express Yourself project
Chiltern Music Therapy and English Sinfonia’s Safe in Sound project
Decreate and Hughenden’s Easter Family Art Trail
National Paralympic Heritage Trust’s Global Virtual Museum
Milton’s Cottage and Vache Baroque’s Visionaries: a multi-sensory experience
Wycombe Museum and Chalk, Cherries and Chair’s Chiltern Chairs Festival.
All of the submissions we received were of an extremely high quality and judging has been very hard. Our judging panel consists of:
Professor Sri-Kartini Leet, Head of School of Art and Performing Arts at Buckinghamshire New University
Daniel Williams, County and Diocesan Archivist at Buckinghamshire Archives
Pablo Colella, Director and Lead Consultant at Disconnected Bodies
Julius Weinberg, Co-Chair at Buckinghamshire Culture.
Pablo Colella said: “I was blown away by the calibre of the submissions for Bucks Spark Awards this year, I am so impressed by the range of events and activities that are taking place in the county. I feel really lucky to have been selected as the community panel member for the Awards judging.”
The winners and runners-up will be announced at Bucks Culture’s Conference on 7th November, with awards presented by award winning author Claire Fuller and Lord-Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire, Countess Howe.
We are so excited to share these cultural moments and achievements with partners, colleagues and friends in the sector. We aim to build a supportive creative community to celebrate these successes and the value that the cultural sector brings to our county and its residents.
Do you have the passion, expertise and collaborative approach to help steer our charity into it’s next phase?
Bucks Culture is seeking a new Co-Chair to serve alongside Julius Weinberg, leading our Board of Trustees. We have a model of two Chair-persons serving together, each bringing different knowledge and experience to the role. Bill Morris joined Bucks Culture in 2019 and has been a fantastic support, a knowledgeable guide and a great person to work with – we will miss him! However, Bill’s other commitments require more and more of his time and he is keen to handover his role as Co-Chair around the end of 2024.
We are seeking a collaborative person that can be a champion and guide for Bucks Culture as it evolves from a fledgling charity into its next phase.
If you think you might be interested in this role, please take a look at the Role Description below. We are requesting expressions of interest by: 9am, 16th September 2024.
If you would like to speak to Lallie, our Director or Julius, our ongoing Co-Chair about the role, please email Lallie: Lallie@buckinghamshireculture.org to arrange a conversation.
Hundreds of residents invited to take part in epic photo project this Summer – sharing our STORIES project
This July community meetings will take place in three ‘villages’ across Buckinghamshire, inviting local residents to be part of large-scale photographs. These meetings will be the start of our Village Stories strand, which aims to create new portraits of modern villages through photography and writing. Residents in Burnham, Brill and Fairford Leys (a village within Aylesbury) are invited to join in.
Photographer Camilla Greenwell and choreographer Theo Clinkard have devised this celebratory photo project inspired by the works of 16th-century Flemish artist, Pieter Bruegel the Elder. These famous and often humorous images are bustling with life and full of characters and incidents. They show people at work and leisure, individuals and groups, old and young. The project asks who lives in our villages now? And how can we capture the vibrant life of these communities? We are inviting 100+ local residents and those connected to these villages to take part in the project in each location. It will be simple and fun and take only a couple of hours, on one day in September. Participants will be given some easy ideas and tasks to create a gesture or action to capture the essence of the place they live in.
In addition to the photoshoots we are also offering writing workshops with authors, including Costa Novel Award winning novelist Claire Fuller.
If you, your family or group would like to take part in Village in one of the three locations across Bucks this Summer please use this link to sign up: https://buckinghamshireculture.org/village-stories/
Village Stories is just one strand of our multi-faceted STORIES programme in 2024. We are inviting residents across Bucks to take part in creative and cultural activities that explore what makes this county unique: its people, heritage, natural environment and histories. STORIES will grow and develop over the next years into a festival-like series of events and participation opportunities. From June to November 2024, we kick off with three pilot projects, stretching across the county from Buckingham in the north to the Chilterns in the South, with events in woodlands as well as village and town centres, from projects that see artists researching in local archives, to mass participation in local villages.
Alongside Village Stories, in 2024 we will deliver:
Archive Stories, which will see a new disabled artist collective led by poet Ellen Renton working with Arden Fitzroy, Guy Morris, Jess Starns and Noor-e-Sehar Ali, investigate the National Paralympic Heritage Trust archive and the National Disability Art Collection & Archive to inspire the creation of new artworks.
FiresideStories, which will bring three outdoor performances by circus and theatre artists Nikki & JD and Lost Dog Dance to local spaces and woodland settings, telling a story of monsters and what makes us afraid, in a family-friendly performances with real fire. In each location additional wrap-around events will make the evening special.
“I can’t wait to tell new stories with local folk who are up for the challenge of making a huge artwork together, one that captures both the physical fact of this place and this moment in time, but also the collective imagination of the people that live here”
“Village is just such a brilliantly simple and creative idea: A rallying call to leave your home or work for a moment to congregate and create an action-filled snapshot of yourself, your community, your location and this moment in time. Let Buckinghamshire’s village life become as famous and loved as Breugel’s Flemish scenes from nearly 500 years ago.”
Clive Harriss, Buckinghamshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture & Leisure said:
“We are very pleased to be supporting the development of Buckinghamshire Culture’s STORIES project, we are excited to see what is produced and where it goes next! With so many villages making up our landscape in Bucks it feels appropriate to put village life in the spotlight!”
STORIES 2024 is made possible thanks to funding from Arts Council England, Rothschild Foundation, Buckinghamshire Council, National Paralympic Heritage Trust, National Lottery Heritage Fund and supported by a range of committed partners across the county.
Elgiva Theatre, St Mary’s Way, Chesham HP5 1HR
Booking Link: 
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