A North West youth arts and heritage festival, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, has been shortlisted to receive a prestigious national award for its inspiring and innovative programme through a period of national crisis.
The Festival of Hope is one of just 12 projects across the UK to be
named a finalist in the ‘Best Arts Project’ category of the
Hearts for the Arts Awards 2021, presented annually by the National Campaign for the Arts (NCA). These awards celebrate the unsung heroes of Local Authorities, who are championing the arts against all odds.
The Festival of Hope was produced by 40 young people through the Summer of 2020, working with five different heritage partners:
Bolton Museum,
Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery (Carlisle),
West Cheshire Museums,
Lancashire Museums and
The Atkinson (Sefton) and supported by
Blaze Arts. It is a key part of Curious Minds’ flagship youth heritage project, called
Hope Streets, which brings together partner organisations from across the youth, arts and heritage sectors to explore what it takes to authentically embed youth voice in museums.
Amidst a growing international crisis, with museums and cultural organisations forced to close their doors, these imaginative young people flexed and adapted their planning, to take the Festival online, ensuring hope was found and new light was cast on interpretations of heritage.