Civic Centre Arts and Culture - Proposed Programme

This document summarises the proposed programme of arts and culture that will take place in the new Civic Centre. We are undertaking consultation to seek the views of the public and stakeholders to help us shape and refine the programme.

Brent Civic Centre

In June 2013 an exciting new building is opening in Wembley. Brent Civic Centre will be the community hub for the London Borough of Brent. Designed by Hopkins Architects (designers of the London 2012 Velodrome) it is on target to be the greenest public building in the UK.

The Civic Centre will offer a range of public services such as a Customer Service Centre, Registrar services and Library and will also serve as a venue for community and private functions and events. It will also provide Brent with its headquarters by providing office space for 2,300 council staff.

Civic Centre Arts and Culture Programme

Brent Council is developing a public programme of high quality arts and culture that will run throughout the year. Activity will include art exhibitions, heritage displays, dance, music, drama performances, screenings and hands-on arts and craft workshops amongst many others. There will be plenty to do for people of all ages and interests including programmes for young people and families.

Activity will be delivered by a combination of top quality arts professionals and organisations as well as local individuals and community based organisations such as local schools, colleges, dance, theatre and music groups.

Some activities will be specially commissioned by the council and some through an open call out where people and organisations interested in providing content will be able to apply. Applicants will be selected on the quality and range of their work.

This programme will not feature activity specifically relating to religious or faith based events. Instead the programme will focus on activity that brings Brent’s communities together in celebration.

Our aims and objectives

  • To programme a range of arts and cultural activity that is relevant, innovative, educational, entertaining and enterprising.
  • To encourage participation by developing a range of cultural opportunities that are engaging, accessible and enriching for all local communities
  • To demonstrate the wealth and breadth of arts and culture in Brent
  • To promote the range of cultural services provided by Brent Council
  • To celebrate Brent’s cultural diversity
  • To attract nationally and internationally recognised arts practitioners and organisations to the borough
  • To support the local cultural economy

Due to the nature of the building with its different uses and users it has been designed to be flexible and multi-functional. This programme will need to use the spaces in imaginative and innovative ways. Activity will be concentrated on the following areas:

  1. Foyer

The foyer is a large central atrium where visitors pass through to access services or simply mingle and enjoy the space. The Foyer has grand civic steps with amphitheatre style seating and is an ideal setting for performances, workshops, fashion shows and art and craft fairs.

  1. Library

On the ground floor there will be a state of the art library. This space will have a transparent façade onto the new retail street, West Olympic Way. The library will include a children’s library, a young people’s area, study space, ICT learning area, Wi-Fi, ebooks and a cafe. Events to include author talks, storytelling, spoken word performances, creative writing and poetry workshops.

  1. Gallery

At the top of the grand civic steps there is the long gallery. This can be used as a meeting space, act as a foyer to the Community Hall and is where there will be small rotating displays of art, craft and heritage artefacts.

  1. Community Hall

The Community Hall on the first floor has a sprung timber floor and capacity to accommodate up to 1,000 people seated theatre style. With IT and audio visual equipment, key features integrated into the design include a demountable stage, changing rooms, two bars and catering facilities. Concerts, dance performances and stand-up comedy could work well here.

  1. Civic Hall

The Civic Hall will perform the traditional function of a council chamber but be flexible to accommodate other types of function, with capacity for up to 300 people and with movable furniture and adaptable IT and audio visual equipment. This hall is suitable for lectures and performances.

  1. Exhibition Space

Located on the ground floor close to the Foyer this space will host a rotating programme of art exhibitions, mostly two dimensional works to hang from the walls.

  1. Garden

Part canopied the garden is an ideal space in the summer for outdoor events such as informal concerts and family hands-on activities.

All of these spaces except for the Library and Exhibition Space will also be available for hire to private and community organisations and individuals.

Exhibitions and Displays Programme

The exhibition and display programme will be focused on the ground floor exhibition space and the Gallery. As well as displays by artists and community organisations there will be displays of objects from Brent Museum and Archives who are based at Willesden Green Library Centre

Aims and Objectives

  • Give the Civic Centre a strong sense of local identity and pride
  • Help promote the council’s Heritage service across the borough
  • Provide local artists with public space to exhibit their works
  • Provide space to showcase the artistic creations of community groups, schools and organisations.

Proposed exhibitions and displays

  • Brent Museum and Archives to curate a rolling programme of displays of material in their collections.
  • Exhibitions by professional artists with works for sale.
  • Exhibitions guest curated by external organisations and individuals
  • Exhibitions by local groups such as schools, youth groups, charitable organisations and community organisations
  • Artist-in-residence programme – responding to the Civic Centre and the people that use it.

Opening Celebration

To mark the opening of the Civic Centre there will be a large-scale weekend festival provisional dates of Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 October 2013. The theme of this event is ‘The Drum’, the name of the public part of the building.

Aims and Objectives

  • To act as a celebratory event for people that live and work in Brent
  • To showcase the potential of the new building in terms of usage
  • To showcase the building’s sustainability and green credentials and outstanding architecture
  • To promote the range of cultural services provided by Brent Council
  • To help to attract nationally and internationally recognised partners to work in collaboration with Brent
  • To celebrate Brent’s cultural diversity
  • To launch the on-going programme of arts and culture at the Civic Centre and encourage people to participate in it

Look and feel

  • The theme of ‘The Drum’ will run through many of the activities with a wide variety of performances from across cultures.
  • A family friendly event with plenty of high quality activity for people of all ages and interests to get involved with
  • A mixture of local run activity working with grass-roots organisations and national and internationally recognised organisations and individuals.
  • Active participation encouraging people to have a go and do something new
  • A colourful and vibrant experience

Opening Celebration Potential Activity

It will be important to use as many of the public spaces in the Civic Centre as possible so people can see the full potential of the building. All of the following suggestions will be dependent on budget availability.

  • Staged music and dance performances
  • Variety of drumming performances
  • Fashion show
  • Celebrity book readings
  • Poetry and creative writing workshops
  • Spoken word and poetry open mic
  • Family art and craft workshops
  • Archive footage of Wembley and Brent
  • Display of artefacts and archive material from Brent Museum and Archives
  • Dance, theatre, carnival costume and music workshops
  • Specially commissioned theatre
  • Screenings
  • Food, art and craft stalls
  • Brent council stalls

Funding

The Council has a limited budget to deliver arts and cultural activities across the borough. The majority of funding for the Civic Centre programme, including the Opening Celebration, will need to come from external sources. The aim is to source the majority from corporate sponsorship with smaller amounts through grants from organisations like the Arts Council. Some activity in the programme is expected to be delivered at low cost or be self-funded through event ticket sales although most events will be free to attend.

Rosanna Kwok, Arts Commissioning Officer, Arts Team, Brent Council

August 2012