Art and culture are important aspects of life in Herefordshire and plans for the bid to become a City of Culture in 2021 are rapidly gaining momentum,

Public meetings, which began in Ross-on-Wye last week, will encourage all the market towns in the county to become involved in supporting and enhancing the bid.

Although it is known as the City of Culture, the team behind the bid hope to show that the whole county embraces culture and will benefit from developing all branches of the arts. They will also be developing events not just because of, or for, the bid, or even for the year as City of Culture. The team hopes that developing the culture of the county will also help to develop the economy in an area where wages are often low, and will act as a legacy for the future.

More than 25 people attended the meeting at the Ross-on-Wye Town Council Offices on September 27th. In an informal meeting members of the Herefordshire Cultural Partnership central strategy group gave an update on the progress of the bid to date and asked for feedback and further ideas.

The members of the HCP were delighted with their first meeting held in a market town. Dr Roger Morgan, Chairman of the Courtyard, told the Ross Gazette that he was very pleased with the way things are going. He said that they are at the beginning of a process that will culminate in the lodging of bid in 2017 that will bring together and encourage all aspects of culture across the county.

The bid has to be submitted in 2017 and Dr Morgan said that he believes that they are in a good position for this.

He explained that the aims of the HCP are to make more people aware of the bid and to encourage participation in the bid. There are nine working groups focusing on different aspects and themes, such as drama and poetry.

He said that they are hoping to create a market towns group which, for example could stage an event featuring one aspect such as photography or stage a cross-genre exhibition in a single location.

Local Councillor Caroline Utting agreed to be the focus for the planning in Ross. It is hoped that ideas will develop as the project develops and that this will include a positive Ross input into plans to celebrate the anniversary of the first trip down the Wye.