More detail on City of Culture grant spend requested as “scene setting” agreed for 2029 bid

The Chair of a Wrexham Scrutiny committee reminded Officers and a Lead Member that her committee was there to ‘ask questions around accountability’ this week.

The comments were made during a meeting on Wednesday about plans to launch a fresh attempt to become City of Culture in 2029.

Wrexham narrowly missed out to Bradford to host the 2025 event.

However it is hoped the county can build on the momentum of the previous bid and succeed in hosting City of Culture in seven years time. There are also plans for the local authority to create a Culture and Community Trust to take forward the work.

The details are provided within a report considered by members of the council’s employment, business and investment scrutiny committee.

During a meeting of the committee on Wednesday (7 September) Lead Member Cllr Hugh Jones, and a senior council officer were reminded that the Scrutiny Committee “need to ask difficult questions, so that we know that these things and these plans have been put into place, and then when you come back next time, hopefully you’ll have the answers for us”.

The polite but firm reminder came as councillors examined the ‘scene setting’ report into a future City of Culture bid, where information on a new Board was discussed and a clarity on funding given.

Councillors on the committee attempted to look back at the recent 2025 bid, with Cllr John McCusker noting he was aware of the ‘big red bus’ event coming to Overton evening before – and ‘just two people turned up’ as a result.

Cllr McCusker also queried the funding referred to in the report, and if the £125k grant from UK Government was a one off or due every year to help with the bid.

The officer noted it was ‘clumsy’ wording, and the £125k was a one off sum, and there is ‘expectation there will be additional funding from sources’ to deliver the new bid over the coming years.

Cllr Hugh Jones added that “part of the role of the trust will be to generate income from a broad cross section of the community”.

Cllrs Dana Davies and Andy Gallanders both pointed to a vast range of previous grant awards, something we have previously published the £43k list of ‘small’ £500 and £1000 grants and other sums, in what has likely been the largest such exercise in Wrexham’s history.

Cllr Davies asked if there had been an “lessons learned” exercises off the awards, with a new round of grants is due to start shortly so such information could help inform the ‘right criteria’.

An officer told Cllr Davies: “With that money in the 54 different events / activities that happened, what we have done is we’ve received feedback reports from everybody who received the grant up to £1000.

“That details things such as how the money was spent, what the positive impacts were for the county and for the town centre in terms of footfall statistics, and positive wellbeing statistics as well. So that’s the only kind of data we have specifically on those grants.”

The meeting was told surveys at events took place, site visits to different events to ‘gather information’ and feedback.

Cllr Gallanders said he was ‘a bit taken aback’ and ‘disappointed’ to hear there was such a range of data however it had not been circulated to councillors for the meeting.

He added: “If the work has been done, can we please see it?”

The officer replied explaining the feedback and evaluation reports were ‘done’ and submitted by those who had grant awards to “demonstrate value money and to demonstrate how they spent their grants”.

The officer indicated sharing of that data to councillors would likely be possible, but probably not made public.

The response from one four figure grant awardee to a question we asked while the meeting was on. They filled out an application form, awarded the money, but ‘nothing after’. (Reproduced with permission)

Cllr Gallanders referred to the earlier comment when Cllr Davies was told ‘everybody’ who was awarded grants had provided such an accountability feedback form,:”Have you had feedback from all of the grants?

“Because I know a few who had the grants and I didn’t see anything particularly happen with them.

“That would be my worry, that they’ve had the money and we haven’t actually seen what’s happened with it all.”

The officer said they ‘would need to check with the officer that was responsible for gathering the feedback’ before they could comment further.

The meeting was told there will be an imminent announcement (including via ‘local media partners’) on the opening of the grant application process that will see several thousand pound wodges given out, alongside ‘smaller pots of money for community groups and grassroots groups’.

The committee discovered that they were not specifically looking to give a verdict on a make up or structure of the Board of the proposed Trust.

Cllr Stella Matthews was keen that a Scrutiny representative was a Board member, with others concerned about oversight, and if the council itself should have a seat on the Trust.

Cllr Hugh Jones explained: “What we got to remember is that this is right at the very beginning of the next stage of the process, that it’s really important that we get it right.

“We’ve just had some very good questions that have been asked by members but in terms of establishing a trust, we need to take time, we need to make sure we get it right.

“We’re not asking anybody to float the shape of the trust, the principle of the trust is established by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.

“They say that there has to be a Cultural Trust in order to deliver (the bid) rather than a council to deliver. So we’re following the rules.”

Cllr Hugh Jones explained to the meeting the processes needed to identify board members and skillsets needed: “So we’re not coming to scrutiny today saying that this is the decision making process or a discussion around a trust or shape of the trust.

“This is the principle of establishing a trust that we reporting to the committee, which is a criteria from the DCMS and that’s all we’re doing”.

Cllr Gary Brown spoke of his delight over play in Wrexham, describing it as one of the ‘biggest assets’, but noted it had a historic association with preventative services.

Cllr Brown added: “Play doesn’t have a historical association with culture. I think that changed this year, and that change is magnificent.

“So whilst I completely endorse Cllr Dana Davies’ striving for a broader cultural strategy, I think we should absolutely capitalise and really go headlong for UK Capital of Play.”

Cllr Jeremy Kent offered a ‘more practical point’ telling the meeting he had noticed a range of City of Culture 2025 “stuff” still up around the city centre, and queried if that was on purpose to celebrate the bid or just that it had not been taken down yet.

The meeting was told it was a mix, that the digital advertising was switched off immediately however other elements remain ‘to celebrate what we have achieved so far’.

The committee formed up a range of recommendations including agreeing to welcome a formation of a trust with recognition there would be council representation on it, but also ‘requested’ consideration that someone from the committee also be on it.

A further report will be given on the Trust progress and ‘accountability structures’, as and when things progress.

The committee also requested an information report into the learning exercise and associated data that has taken place but was not circulated.