In the 30 years since the launch of the National Lottery more than 100 creative projects have been funded across North East Lincolnshire because of funding from Arts Council England, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Since the middle of last year, when Create North East Lincolnshire picked up the reins from the original Grimsby Creates project, more than half a million pounds, funded partly through National Lottery players, has been spent on creative projects in the area.
Projects funded through the National Lottery include:
- Edible Grimsby
- Festival of the Sea
- Our Future Starts Here
- Our Big Picture
- the Seagull trail in Cleethorpes
- poetry nights,
- live music, artistic classes and workshops
- More than 90 other exhibitions, craft days, short films
One of the latest works is a mural of a dad and daughter in a poppy field by artist Nikita Spires, which has recently been completed at the Willows in Grimsby, the 100th project to be funded partly by Create North East Lincolnshire.
The mural is just one of a diverse range of projects, ranging from children’s podcasts, to creative conferences, one-day festivals, inspirational crafts courses, writing workshops, immersive plays, gallery shows and exhibitions, which have been funded through Create NEL grants since last year.
Meanwhile, the National Lottery Heritage Fund has been the backbone of the heritage restoration work to the balconies and shop fronts in Cleethorpes, bringing them back to their former Victorian splendour.
The latest project to be completed is the dual shop front project on Sea View Street – with work all but completed this month.