It is with sadness and satisfaction that I am leaving my post as chair of Ignite.
When I joined about 18 months ago, I was determined to find an ‘Arts Building for Chelmsford’ (ABC get it?) and thought Shire Hall might be it – however, upon actually looking round it I realised it was probably the least accessible building I had ever encountered – back to the drawing board!
At about this time Culture Chelmsford started their strategy review and it was obvious then that I would be nurturing Ignite in a transitional period until the new strategy was adopted and new structures up and running.
And – that time is here, the strategy is in place, new groups are being established and I am making way for a new partnership board of wonderful creatives who I know are going to serve our community and our city brilliantly!
It only remains for me to thank the previous partners for their support and enthusiasm; Sangita Mittra who has also dedicated her time to running the Ignite bar at socials, Samantha Humphreys, Sara Tupper, Kevin Miller, Cllr Natacha Dudley, Amber Nyoni, Lorraine Jarvis and Garry Ormes.
All of these cultural and community leaders are going on to other positions in the cultural landscape, alongside their substantive roles, and I know we will be working together still.
Also to thank Marc Death and Liz Hunter-Gray, without whom Ignite would not be in such great shape to hand over.
Over to you, new partners. Good Luck and Best wishes. I’ll see you at an Ignite social very soon!
Lynne Foster, departing Chair of Ignite Chelmsford
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As part of the transformation stage of Ignite the Ignite Partnership has developed an Action Plan to channel the voice of creatives on the ground to influence delivery of the Cultural Strategy and shape the cultural landscape of Chelmsford.
Ignite will also be ramping up the good work it has done over the last few years to bring creatives together, including:
- Finding more opportunities to showcase the work of members, such as art fairs, exhibitions, blogs or podcasts.
- Supporting new creative projects to get off the ground, for example helping much-loved local music venue Hotbox to develop a new multi-venue music festival for Chelmsford and supporting Wyrd Flora and development of the Saffron Trail.
- Bringing people together to collaborate, through Online Hub meetings, newsletters and Ignite Socials including talks from ground-breaking local and national speakers.
As previous Partners move to new parts of the cultural landscape, Ignite welcomes a new group of Partners to take forward this good work. These are Jennifer Flint, Elaine Tribley, Aj Grand-Scrutton, Sofia Rojas, Jon Hughes, Sade Fadipe, Nick Hearne, Elodie Chousmer-Howells, Rachel Hopwood, Gareth Barton and Maxine Clark, alongside reminding Partners Rachana Vaja and Claire Gevaux.
Find out more about the new Ignite Partners and Action Plan here.
