A former vacant shop unit in Twerton High Street, Bath has
been transformed into a community-led pop-up creative space and workshop for
Bath’s Carnival team.
The team will use the space over the next few weeks to work
with volunteers and professional artists to make carnival costumes for the
July carnival.
The project has been delivered with support from Bath &
North East Somerset Council and funded by the West of England Combined
Authority as part of the regional ‘Love our High Streets’ pilot which seeks to
re-vitalise and re-think the way we use local High Streets.
Councillor Tim Ball, cabinet member for Housing, Planning
& Economic Development, said: “I am delighted to champion this project
which will provide a real boost for Twerton High Street. Our High Streets are
changing and we need to come up with new and innovative ways to ensure they
thrive. High Streets provide a focal point for communities; contributing to our
health and wellbeing, reducing isolation and loneliness, reducing car
dependency and promoting active travel. By creatively using vacant premises we
can give our High Streets a new lease of life and help support local
businesses.”
As well as using the space to create costumes for the parade,
the carnival team will run in collaboration with local charities a series of
community workshops on the site to help residents across Bath prepare for the
big day.
Stuart Mason, Project Coordinator for Bath Carnival, said
“One of the biggest challenges we face each year is securing a safe space for
our artists to design create and repair costumes This unit is a real game
changer, with enough space for our lead artists to work on some of our largest
structures and costumes as well as provided space for us to run sessions with
volunteers and workshop participants to upskill them in carnival arts.
“Suitable spaces for the arts are really hard to come by, so
we are very grateful to everyone who has helped make this happen. The results
will be for everyone to see at the carnival in July, which is shaping up to be
a pretty spectacular event!”
Bath Carnival takes place on Saturday 13 July and will
involve a free Party in the Park in Sydney Gardens and a stunning two-hour
carnival procession around Bath city centre.
Volunteering opportunities are still available. For more information visit the carnival
website: http://www.bathcarnival.co.uk/
Voluntary sector groups or charities that are interested in using
the Twerton High Street unit or other vacant premises in the area should email:
environment&design@bathnes.gov.uk
Love our High Streets
Pilot
The Love Our High Streets project is funded by the West of
England Combined Authority.
The B&NES Love Our High Streets Pilot comprises three
parts, which each focus on High Street vitality at different neighbourhood
scales; city centre, town centre and neighbourhood/local centre.
The pop-up space is part of the Local High Street initiative
which will deliver improvements to Twerton High Street, along with a wider
Local High Street vitality health check which will assess the health and
vibrancy all local centres across Bath and North East Somerset to identify how
they can be supported and improved.
Bath Carnival:
Bath Carnival takes place on Saturday 13 July.
Carnival Parade | 15:00 | City Centre | FREE
Party in the Park | 10:00 – 22:00 | Sydney Gardens | FREE
Fiesta at the Rec | 10:00 – 15:00 | Bath Recreation Ground |
FREE
Public donations to the Local Giving page: https://localgiving.org/charity/bathcarnival/
Sponsorship enquiries to enq@bathcarnival.co.uk
For more information about Bath Carnival visit:
www.bathcarnival.co.uk or email: enq@bathcarnival.co.uk
Insta: @bathcarnival
Twitter: @bathcarnival
Facebook: /bathcarnival
