Arts Council funding to support ambitious new programme

We are delighted to announce that South Square Centre has successfully secured funding from Arts Council England to deliver a range of exciting new projects across Bradford. Building on the momentum of Bradford’s year as UK City of Culture, this programme will celebrate creativity, community and collaboration while creating new opportunities for people across the district to engage with the arts.

What’s included?

One of the first projects to launch will be a brand-new exhibition at South Square later this year that will transform our gallery spaces in ways visitors have never seen before. Through a bold concept and shifting perspectives, the exhibition will inspire care for nature and highlight the urgent realities of biodiversity loss. We’ll be revealing more details very soon, so watch this space.

The funding will also support us to develop OUR TURN: Visual Arts Festival with the ambition of bringing the festival back to Bradford in 2027 (further funding dependent). Building on everything we learned from our pilot year, we’ll be engaging more deeply with artists and communities to make sure the festival reaches an even wider audience, particularly people who may face barriers to accessing arts and culture. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing opportunities to get involved with the next chapter of OUR TURN, so do keep an eye out.

Alongside these projects, the funding will also enable us to create new opportunities for people of all ages to engage with the arts and strengthen partnerships across the district.

What’s next?

Over the coming months, we’ll be working with artists, schools, community groups and local partners to help shape these projects and bring them to life. Supported by our fantastic Board of Trustees, we’re excited to begin this journey and communities across Bradford to deliver an ambitious and inspiring programme.

We’ll be sharing regular updates, opportunities to get involved and further announcements on our website and social media channels. You can also sign up to our newsletter to be kept up to date on all our news.

Finally, we’d like to extend our sincere thanks to Arts Council England for their support. We’re incredibly excited about this next chapter and can’t wait to share it with you.