Re:locating the Arts

University of Manchester, Tue 4 November 2025

Re:locating the Arts is a one-day symposium at the University of Manchester’s Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama, hosted by the Music Department in collaboration with Manchester Camerata.

For the majority of UK-based arts organisations, ‘community’ activity plays a key role in strategy as well as meeting the requirements of increasingly place-focused funding obligations. Additionally, the current trend within the sector for organisations to relocate, often to areas that sit outside of creative clusters (Gilmore and Burnill-Maier 2025), amplifies the importance of developing strategies to understand the needs of the community/ies within which they operate. To effectively engage with these groups requires a considered approach, not least as a community ‘can hold a polyphony of voices and contested meanings’ (Eagle 2025). The necessity of these strategies reflects recent findings from the Centre for Cultural Value, which signify the importance of ‘an understanding of power dynamics both within and between groups, particularly as top-down approaches can become exploitative and risk alienating the very communities they seek to engage’ (Wright 2024, Arts Professional).

The symposium therefore addresses these developments by focusing on the re-location of arts organisations, questioning and re-imagining the value and meaning of place in their output and activities. The event will include speakers from academia and industry.

This event is free to attend, with refreshments and a light lunch provided. Travel expenses are available for those currently studying. Please email rebecca.parnell@manchester.ac.uk for details.

Accessibility

If you have particular access or dietary needs, please let us know in advance by providing details when registering for your ticket or by emailing rebecca.parnell@manchester.ac.uk.

Organisers:

Dr Roddy Hawkins (University of Manchester)

Max Thomas (Manchester Camerata/Creative Manchester)

Rebecca Parnell (PhD student, University of Manchester)

This Music Department event is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, Northwest Consortium Doctoral Training Partnership’s Targeted Funding Programme. With thanks to Manchester Camerata and Creative Manchester.

About Creative Manchester

Creative Manchester is an interdisciplinary research platform based at The University of Manchester. The platform champions research in creativity and creative practice, bringing together research communities with external stakeholders to explore new research areas and address strategic opportunities. Please visit the website for more information: Creative Manchester.

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