Culture Essex
Culture Essex supports, promotes and advocates for the arts, cultural and creative sector in the county.
Through our Arts and Cultural Fund we provide dedicated funding and support for artists, organisations, and creative practitioners working across a broad portfolio of disciplines and throughout, arts, heritage, creative and green spaces in Essex. In addition to this, we recently launched a Cultural Strategy for Essex, a broad and ambitious initiative that defines a county-wide roadmap of how we can help create the conditions for our cultural and creative sector to flourish.
With a focus on encouraging strategic partnerships, and networks and encouraging the sustainability and growth of the sector, we also support several Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisations in Essex.
We understand the place that digital and tech businesses have in growing our county’s creative sector from digital start-ups, film and television production to games developers, entertainment companies as well as architects and designers, Essex has a wealth of potential.
Our vibrant cultural infrastructure stretches from Creative Estuary – part of the Thames Estuary Production Corridor in the south, to Colchester based Firstsite which was named Art Fund Museum of the Year in 2021.
The Team
- Andrew Ward, Cultural Development Lead
- Elza Zeneli, Cultural Development Officer
- James Ravinet, Cultural Development Officer
You can contact the Culture team on email: culture@essex.gov.uk
- Erica Gilson, Manager of Culture and The Essex Film Office
You can contact the Essex Film Office on email: Film@essex.gov.uk
What Do We Do?
Supporting Arts and Culture in Essex
Through our dedicated grants scheme we support arts, heritage and creative practitioners to deliver activities across the county.
Since 2021, the Arts and Cultural Fund has supported over sixty projects across many disciplines including the visual arts, festivals, heritage, literature, theatre, and performance.
As well as supporting activity across the sector, the Fund has enabled over 300,000 Essex residents and visitors the opportunity to get involved with or benefit from creative and cultural activity across the county.
Mapping Creative Hubs in Essex, Report 2023
In 2023, the Cultural Development Team at ECC commissioned a detailed study to map creative hubs across the county. The report builds on a national mapping study ‘Mapping Creative Hubs in England’, which was commissioned by the British Council in 2021.
The Essex study was intended to take a deeper dive into the Creative Hub ecosystem found in the county. The study aimed to gain a better understanding of the profile of creative hubs, including their members, activities, roles, and impact in Essex and to build on the impact of existing investment in the arts and cultural sector, complementing initiatives such as the ECC Cultural Strategy (2023) and the ECC Arts and Cultural Fund grant scheme.
We recognised the importance of unifying these varied initiatives and commissioned this research to serve as a resource in developing a cohesive vision and integrated approach for the county’s creative economy.
Read the full report here.
Case Studies
The following includes several case-studies for projects supported by Essex County Council through its dedicated Arts and Cultural Fund, as well as its partnership with arts organisations such as Essex Cultural Partnership Project:
Venues:
We work across ECC culture and green spaces services and venues including the Essex Record Office (county archive), Jaywick Martello Tower (exhibition and events venue), Cressing Temple Barns (heritage venue) and our country parks and green spaces.
As part of the County Council, we are committed to supporting and promoting the wealth of heritage and cultural spaces that Essex has to offer.
Whether you’re looking to undertake historical research for a project or seeking a venue to host an event, you can find out more about our arts and heritage venues here.
Building Partnerships and Enabling Networks:
We actively encourage and support strategic partnerships and networks to bring together local authorities, organisations and arts, heritage and creative practitioners from across the region, including forums such as Creative Colchester, Harlow Creates, Association of South Essex Local Authorities (ASELA), Museums Essex, UK Growth Hub, The Essex Film Collective and the South Essex Creative Economy Network (SECEN).
We welcome partners both within the sector or those with an interest in developing a relationship with the arts, heritage and creative sector in Essex.
Want to find out more?
If you’re an arts, heritage and creative practitioner, organisation or community group working in the sector in Essex, we’d love you to connect with us.
You can sign-up to our regular newsletter to keep up to date with key information, opportunities and information on ECC supported activities and or follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.
Subscribe to the Essex Cultural Network newsletter
Subscribe for regular sector news and updates on strategy, funding and events