A first-ever Arts, Culture and Heritage Strategy will provide a much-needed boost to the arts sector in Kaipara.

Community feedback to Council’s Long Term Plan highlighted a gap around arts and culture. The new strategy, adopted by Council at the 28 September meeting addresses this gap by supporting and fostering our creative sector.

Council staff sought and received funding from Creative NZ to create the strategy in partnership with Creative Northland which seeks to build the profile of Northland as an arts community provincially, nationally and internationally.

At the decision meeting Mayor Dr Jason Smith reflected on his decades of personal experience of the arts in Kaipara and on the representation of arts around the council table. He noted that in some way or another, most Elected Members were involved with creative arts – from playing ukulele, poetry to visual arts and theatre.

“This is an important platform for Kaipara that gives our next council tools to foster arts and culture in our district. Preserving and celebrating our arts, culture and unique stories helps to strengthen our identity for generations to come. We now have a roadmap to encourage Kaipara creativity to flourish,” says Mayor Smith.

The Arts, Culture and Heritage Strategy sets out what Council, Creative Northland and the local creative sector want to achieve, starting with a three-year action plan. The strategy identifies seven themes to enable collaboration within local communities – leading to job generation, innovation and productivity as well as stimulating new ideas and thinking within communities.

Key themes from community consultation included the importance of museums in Kaipara, the need for youth spaces and activities, support for Māori arts and culture and the importance of remembering and celebrating our heritage.

“I’d like to thank our extraordinary arts community and local iwi for their contribution to this important way-marker into the future for the district. This is a great Kaipara moment for our cultural wellbeing.”

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