West Midlands Life is at an exciting time in its history. As well as the appointment of Brian Woods-Scawen as the new Chair of West Midlands Life, in June 2003 we appointed our first Executive Director, Steve Trow and shortly after announced the names of the 12 individuals who make up the new board;
 

Councillor Ian Ward	Liz Roberts
Professor Susan Bassnett	Anita Bhalla
Paul Udenze	Sir William Lawrence
Martyn Green	Maureen Compton
Reverend Anthony Priddis	Professor George Caird
Dorothy Wilson	Jonnie Turpie

The board forms a network of some of the region’s leading cultural lights who, alongside Brian Woods-Scawen, have four main areas of responsibility including; strategy development; advocacy; advisory and; creating/brokering regional links.

To coincide with all of the changes taking place, we are also redesigning our website and refreshing the Regional Cultural Strategy and its associated Action Plan. The new website will provide an exciting, ‘umbrella’ resource for the cultural sector in the West Midlands, as well as provide regularly updated information about our work, members and ongoing initiatives. The new site is due to go live in Spring 2004.

We hope that you will bear with us and in the meantime our Regional Cultural Strategy, Annual report and Regional Cultural Map can be downloaded from here. For any other enquiries please contact West Midlands Life on;

T: 0121 245 0150

Alternatively, you can write to us at the address below.

Culture means many things to many people. It’s about who we are, what we believe, where we live and our experiences of life. But it’s also about what we do - from the arts and sports to museums, heritage, media, libraries, archives, media, architecture, creative industries and tourism.

Through our cultural heritage, we broaden our horizons, fulfil our potential, learn, question and challenge. Through our participation in cultural activity we interact with others, form relationships, improve self-esteem, acquire new skills and perhaps even earn a living. And through the region’s creative industries and world-class cultural assets we bolster the regional economy and attract visitors and investment from around the world in an increasingly competitive global market. In fact, the cultural sector generates many of the activities that we enjoy the most and provides many of the reasons for both earning our money and spending it!

But in order for it to continue to flourish, our cultural heritage needs to evolve and develop in line with the changing needs of people and our communities. An intrinsic part of what defines and shapes the West Midlands region, our cultural life needs to be nurtured, supported and encouraged in order to improve the quality of life for everyone.

West Midlands Life is the body that aims to do just that. It is one of eight Regional Cultural Consortiums in England set up by the Department for Culture, Media and Sports.

Made up of 15 dynamic and experienced individuals, West Midlands Life harnesses the collective expertise and strength of the region’s cultural sector, working to develop and enhance it for the benefit of current and future generations.

West Midlands Life has four principal roles;

• Advocacy: To champion, promote and raise awareness of the role of culture and creativity within the context of the Government’s broader social, economic, educational and regional agendas.
   
• Advisory: To advise and lobby local, regional and national Government on cultural and other related issues. West Midlands Life works closely alongside the Government Office for the West Midlands, the West Midlands Local Government Association, the European Capital of Culture bid team, the National Lottery distributors, the Regional Assembly, Advantage West Midlands and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
   
• Strategic Overview: One of its first tasks was to put together a Regional Cultural Strategy (RCS) which identified six strategic themes; the cultural product, excellence, choice, access, the economy, sustainability and influence. These themes underpin the whole Regional Cultural Strategy and for the first time provide a strategic vision for all the cultural organisations within the West Midlands to work together to develop and encourage the region’s cultural life.
   
• Making Links: As a regional and sector-wide body, West Midlands Life is able to forge important links with individuals and organisations throughout the region and across the cultural sector. It encourages cross-sectorial working and ensures that the cultural agenda is embedded into the main regional strategies (eg, the Regional Economic Strategy).