Culture East Sussex

Culture East Sussex (CES)

Culture East Sussex (CES) is a network of public bodies, cultural organisations, and individuals that is hosted by East Sussex County Council. It is a subgroup of Team East Sussex (TES) and reports to TES annually. 

Culture East Sussex works across four main areas, it:

  • is a collective voice for culture across East Sussex
  • supports and develops the skills of all people working in the cultural sector in East Sussex
  • promotes the diversity of the sector and ensures equality of access to culture in East Sussex
  • encourages collaboration and mutual support within the cultural sector and works with its partners across a range of themes of mutual interest.

Culture East Sussex vision and mission

CES believes that culture is a route to positive change, creates new possibilities and enables diverse communities to live well.

Its mission is to advocate for culture so that together CES can create opportunities for positive change for all of East Sussex.

Principles and priorities

The work of CES is underpinned by a set of principles that are as follows:

  • Strategic - CES supports and endorses projects that are strategically driven, long-term, and linked to broader strategic objectives
  • Skills - CES will support projects that aim to develop the skills and opportunities for people within the cultural sector
  • Diversity and inclusion - CES will endorse projects that have diversity and inclusion at their heart, capitalising on East Sussex’s diverse population, culture and heritage
  • Collaboration - CES will look favourably at projects that are partnership-led, build networks and exchanges and are cross-sectoral
  • Wellbeing - CES will support projects that put local people first and support their wellbeing through cultural engagement and education and demonstrate long-term sustainability
  • Sustainability - CES will champion projects that demonstrate long-term environmental and financial sustainability.

The priorities of CES are linked to the East Sussex Cultural Strategy (2013-25) which has three key priorities:

  • Priority 1 - Create an environment where great cultural experiences are available to everyone to enhance their quality of life
  • Priority 2 - Create an environment which enables the cultural and creative economy to expand and enhances the ability to attract and retain other businesses
  • Priority 3 - Develop and promote well packaged cultural tourism offers which celebrate the identity of East Sussex, raises its profile and attracts more visitors and businesses to the County.

These three priorities have shaped a set of cultural commitments which were published in March 2026 as the East Sussex Cultural Prospectus. 

Culture East Sussex Board

The CES Board works together to deliver the vision and mission of CES and ensure that the cultural sector creates opportunities and possibilities for everyone. They do this by managing the CES Culture Priority Pipeline, discussing topics of relevance and interest, and advocating for the sector.

Applying to the board

Applications to the board are now closed and will reopen in Autumn 2026.

For information on how members are appointed to the board, please review the CES Recruitment Policy. [277.7 KB] [docx]

How the Board is chosen

Depending on the category, individual places are either:

  • chosen by an open competition
  • proposed by certain organisations in consultation with the nominations committee,  or
  • co-opted.

Board members serve for a three-year term and can be re-elected every three years. On appointment, all Board members will receive an induction pack and will be required to complete a declarations of interest and protected characteristics form.

Culture East Sussex seeks to increase the diversity of its board to reflect the diverse cultural sector and population of East Sussex. You can view the makeup of the board here [44.4 KB] [pdf].

Who is on the Board?

The CES Board comprises up to 35 members. This includes representatives of cultural organisations, independent artists and freelancers, representatives from East Sussex County Council, Eastbourne and Lewes, Hastings, Rother and Wealden District and Borough Councils, Team East Sussex, the education and public health sectors as well as co-opted members to improve representation of people with protected characteristics under the Equalities Act, and other national or county bodies that support culture in East Sussex.

Current CES members are listed below. Please note members who are listed together hold a shared membership.

Stewart Drew, De La Warr Pavilion (Chair)

Stewart is the Director of the De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea. Primarily established as a visual arts organisation, DLWP has a reputation for innovative gallery and engagement programmes, commissioning new work, delivering large-scale installations, challenging interdisciplinary programmes and a high quality live programme. The organisation plays an important role in providing a platform for artists at all stages of their careers to develop their work, as well as being a catalyst for culture led regeneration of the region. Stewart is also the Chair of 1066 Country Marketing, and Chair of East Sussex and Brighton & Hove Music Hub.

Julia Roberts, Culture Shift (Vice Chair)

Julia is CEO at Culture Shift, who deliver a diverse portfolio of projects, working with a wide range of beneficiaries including children and young people, disabled people, their families and carers. Julia is a theatre specialist with a portfolio of experience which includes working as a Performing Arts consultant for the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, Creative Agent for Creative Partnerships Sussex and Surrey and Programme Manager and Live Arts Creative Producer for Carousel, a disability arts organisation based in Brighton. 

Ami Bouhassane and Antony Penrose, Farley's House and Gallery

Ami and Antony are Co-Directors of Farleys House and Gallery Ltd which manages the Lee Miller Archives and The Penrose Collection.

Antony Penrose is the son of the American photographer Lee Miller and Roland Penrose, surrealist artist and biographer of Picasso, Miró, Man Ray and Tàpies. Antony has written numerous books, articles and two plays on the subject of his parents and their associates. The movie LEE to be released in 2024 starring Kate Winslet as Lee Miller is based on his biography The Lives of Lee Miller. He lectures widely and is a curator of photography, an artist and film maker in his own right.

Anthony Kalume, Diversity Lewes

Anthony is the Director of Diversity Lewes, a community organisation with a mission to celebrate diversity in its broadest sense and change the current mindset. He is also a curator at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft with global connections, curating in Chicago, Berlin, and Kenya. 

Darrell Gale and Joanne Bernhaut, East Sussex County Council Public Health

Darrel Gale is the Director of Public Health at East Sussex County Council.

Joanne Bernhaut is a Consultant in Public Health who has worked in East Sussex for 18 years.  She am committed to supporting the population of East Sussex in relation to improving health and wellbeing and reducing inequalities.  Currently her work areas include health and housing with a focus on homelessness prevention and supporting people into skills and employment; the built and natural environment in relation to health and wellbeing; climate change and health; supporting local communities to lead on improving their health and wellbeing through strengths based approached; and arts and creativity for health. 

Joanne has a keen interest in supporting those least able to advocate for their own health and wellbeing, including gypsy roma traveller families, asylum seekers and refugees, people who are homeless, those from ethically diverse communities and people who identify as LGBTQ+.

She is committed to supporting and further exploring how as a county we can maximise opportunities to improve health and well-being and reduce inequalities through arts and creativity and other cultural routes. 

Dawn Badland and Sally Lampitt, Applause Rural Touring

Dawn is Executive Director of Applause Rural Touring, and has 20 years worth of experience in Arts Management. Applause is a cultural charitable organisation that collaborates with people across Kent, Sussex, Essex, and the wider region to create opportunities for creative experiences in their local communities.

Sally is deputy director at Applause Rural Touring.

Davina Christmas and John McPherson, Arts Council England

Davina is Senior Relationship Manager, Strategic Partnerships at Arts Council England. 

John is a Relationships Manager at Arts Council England, working with National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs) and creative industries in East Sussex.

Dr Fiona Courage, University of Sussex 

Fiona is Deputy Director for Library, Culture and Heritage at the University of Sussex, where she also provides executive leadership for the Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts. Her work is rooted in widening access and participation in the cultural sector, with a particular focus on the stewardship and visibility of heritage collections.

Fiona played a key role in the early development of The Keep, East Sussex’s state‑of‑the‑art archival and heritage centre, helping to shape its vision and partnership model. She continues to represent the University of Sussex on The Keep Board, supporting the centre’s strategic direction and its role as a major cultural resource for the county.

For many years, Fiona led the operation of the Mass Observation Archive, a charitable incorporated organisation cared for by the University of Sussex. After stepping down from her operational role as Director, she now serves as Chair of the Archive’s Board of Trustees, guiding its long‑term development and national engagement.

Her career reflects a sustained commitment to strengthening cultural participation, supporting collaborative practice, and ensuring partnerships with Higher Education remain accessible, meaningful, and relevant to communities and cultural institutions across East Sussex.

Joe Hill, Towner Eastbourne 

Joe has been director at Towner since 2018 and has led them through winning Art Museum of the Year in 2020, their centenary year and Turner Prize in 2023.

Kate Adams and Helen Charlton, Project Artworks

Kate Adams is an artist, advocate and activist. She is Director & CEO of Project Art Works and has curated many responsive, collaborative projects with neurominorities, families, care services, artists and galleries. Kate co-founded Project Art Works in 1997 to explore an expanded concept of art that was and continues to be influenced by Paul Colley, her son, who has complex support needs. Their work embraces personalised studio practice, peer support and award-winning films, art actions, installations and exhibitions. Kate’s practice disrupts preconceptions about what people can and can’t do, who they are and how they live, revealing other ways of being in and seeing the world.

Helen Charlton, Development Director joined Project Art Works in 2019, having previously worked across social care and cultural sectors in project management, professional development, audience development, marketing, communications, and fundraising. She currently leads on fundraising across programmes and capital development at Project Art Works.

Kathleen Soriano and Rebecca Drew, Hastings Contemporary 

Kathleen is the Interim Director at the Hastings Contemporary. Kathleen Soriano is an independent curator, strategic consultant and broadcaster. Chair of the Liverpool Biennial, on the Advisory Council of 2 Temple Place, and a specialist advisor to the National Trust. With over 35 years’ experience in the art world, she has been responsible for contemporary and historical exhibitions, collections and public programmes at the National Portrait Gallery, London and the Royal Academy of Arts, where she was Artistic Director (2009-14), as well as at Compton Verney Art Gallery, where she was previously Director.

Rebecca is the Operational Manager at Hastings Contemporary.

Kim Byford, De La Warr Pavilion  

Kim Byford is Head of Skills at the De La Warr Pavilion, heading up Talent Accelerator within the Coastal Catalyst a partnership with Brighton Dome. Previously at Bexhill College where she was Head of Performing Arts and Associate Principal (Community). In this role she took a wide-angle view of the College’s relationships within the local community as well as forging relationships with the arts community to ensure clear career progression routes for young people.

Kim was part of the steering group, with Rother District Council, De La Warr Pavilion and Flatland Projects, for the development of Beeching Road Studios, a new creative hub for Bexhill. She understands the local context for young people and is committed to supporting them to fulfilling creative careers.

Kim has had a long career post-16 education working in a variety of Colleges and Sixth forms across the country since 2000. She is committed to introducing children and young people to new experiences, believing that this builds confidence which increases achievement across the curriculum and raises aspiration. Previously she has taken students to perform in Venice, receive conservatoire actor training in Prague as well as a host of performances in festivals and venues.

Linda Salway and Trudie Godfrey, Coastal Schools Partnership (East Sussex)

Linda is an educator, arts strategist, project manager, workshop leader and Pilates and yoga practitioner. She is passionate about creative education and inclusion for all.  

She holds an MA in Arts and Cultural Management alongside her teaching qualifications, and is presently Head of Partnership at Eastbourne College where she established the Arts Award programme as a key part of the broader curriculum. Linda is Executive Chair of the Coastal Schools Partnership.

Linda has worked as a theatre education director and young people’s theatre producer. She was arts manager for Waverley Borough Council from 1997- 2005 and the co-ordinator of Arts Partnership Surrey.

Linda is a Gold Arts Award assessor, Chair of trustees for Lewes Live Literature, an RSA Fellow and a trustee of Culture Shift. She has also been a board member of Creative Future and a governor of Alfriston School.

Trudie is the Coastal Schools Partnership (East Sussex) Administrator. She has worked within school administration for the past 20 years, offering a professional work ethic with the flexibility to move between varying roles on a daily basis.

The administrator for the CSP since its beginning in 2014, Trudie is responsible for the joint planning and logistics of uniting multiple schools and professional partners together to create meaningful experiences for young people to thrive.

Linda and Trudie were part of the Eastbourne ALIVE Project Board during the lead up to, during and following the Turner Prize, focused on the Year 9 mass intervention project. They continue to work closely with Towner.

Lorna Ford, Rother District Council

Lorna is the Chief Executive of Rother District Council. Before joining Rother District Council, Lorna worked at Ashford Borough Council for four years and 17 years at Canterbury City Council in Policy, Communication, Transformation and Economic Development roles.

Nathaniel Hepburn MBE, Charleston

Nathaniel is director at Charleston in Firle and the newly opened Charleston in Lewes, and previously director at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft. Nathaniel has been the Chair of the tourism marketing organisation, Sussex Modern, since 2019. Sussex Modern led of the Sussex Wine: A Plan for Growth which was published in 2023. 

Nichola Watters and Melanie Powell, Wealden District Council

Nichola is the Head of Planning Policy, Economy and Climate Change including the Culture, Tourism, and Economic Development teams.

Melanie is the Senior Economic Development and Culture Officer at Wealden, and the East Sussex Chair of the South East Creative Economy Network (SECEN).

Peter Chivers, Create Music

Peter Chivers is the Director of Create Music, the county's music education hub, engaging with thousands of young people weekly.  He also serves as Director of Future Creators and Good space, two strategic programmes promoting volunteering experiences and cultural education partnerships locally and nationally.

Phoene Cave, The Musical Breath

Phoene Cave is a creative producer and project manager, performer, trainer, clinical supervisor and HCPC registered music therapist whose experience ranges across multiple organisations and diverse communities. Her pioneering work in singing for lung health began in 2008 at the Royal Brompton Hospital London. As Director of The Musical Breath  she has trained 320+ singing leaders worldwide.

Previously, Phoene's work includes Head of Music Services, Music Therapist at HMP Bronzefield, Arts Therapies Placements Development Lead at East London NHS Foundation Trust, Consultant on a feasibility trial into the efficacy of singing for lung health and joint author of multiple research papers. Creative producer and lead artist for TRANSIT an Arts Council England funded site-specific residency at Towner Eastbourne.

Polly Risbridger, The Bright Foundation

Polly Risbridger is a seasoned arts leader with a passion for, and track record of, bringing artists and communities together in high quality, innovative creative experiences. She is currently the CEO of Hastings based arts education charity, The Bright Foundation. Founded by Academy Award winning costume designer, John Bright, the charity offers an inspirational programme of creative learning and events in film, theatre, and visual arts, inspired by their collections of antique toys, puppets and early cinema. Polly developed, launched and continues to run the organisation, venues and programmes which launched in June 2022.

Prior to this Polly was the Chief Executive and Artistic Director of East London Dance, having grown her career within the organisation over 18 years from Project Manager to Creative Producer to taking over as Director in 2013. Through her role at East London Dance, Polly developed an ambitious dance programme for the Cultural Olympiad as part of the London 2012 Games; led a £3.8m capital project in partnership with UD Music to establish The Talent House – a creative engine room for dance and music artists and young people; and co-produced a 4 year talent development programme and spectacular production, East Wall with Hofesh Schecter Company which saw 150 professional and nonprofessional dancers and musicians perform in the moat of the Tower of London to audiences of almost 10,000 people as part of LIFT.

Polly has also sat on the Board for Protein Dance and Dudley Infant Academy, and was selected by Here East as an East London Innovator in 2018.

Ross Boseley, East Sussex County Council

Ross is a Specialist Support Manager in Adult Social Care at East Sussex County Council. 

Sarah Tye, Lewes District Council and Eastbourne Borough Council 

Sarah is Head of Communities and Strategic Partnerships for Lewes District Council and Eastbourne Borough Council.

Steph Fuller, Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft

Steph has been Director at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft since 2018. Ditchling Museum opened in 1985 to celebrate the rich artistic history of the area. Steph is also a member of the Disability Arts Online board, and previously worked as a senior manager at Arts Council England.

Tim Slaney and Anooshka Rawden, South Downs National Park Authority

Tim Slaney joined the South Downs National Park Authority in 2011 as the first Director of Planning, and served as Interim Chief Executive Officer in 2023/24. He set up and led one of the country’s busiest planning teams adopting a unique partnership arrangement with other planning authorities.  Prior to that, he worked at the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead as Head of Planning and Regeneration.

Anooshka Rawden is the Cultural Heritage Lead for the South Downs National Park Authority. She currently sits on Arts Council England’s UK Museum Accreditation Committee, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund London and South Committee. Anooshka’s background is in museums, and includes collections management and programme management, with stand-out experiences including having cared for the collections of the Society of Antiquaries of London. Anooshka has previous acted as vice chair of the Society for Museum Archaeology, where in 2020 she co-edited the first revised standards for the care of museum archaeology collections to be updated since 1992, and has mentored young people as part of Museum Futures.

Victoria Conheady, Hastings Borough Council

Victoria is the Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Place at Hastings Borough Council.

Secretariat team:

Sally Staples, East Sussex County Council

Sally is the Team Manager for Culture and Tourism at East Sussex County Council.

Saffron Phillips, East Sussex County Council

Saffron is the Project Coordinator (maternity cover) in the Culture and Tourism team.

Applications to join Culture East Sussex will open in Autumn 2026.

Culture Priority Pipeline

The Culture Priority Pipeline (CPP) is a pipeline of projects that align to the priorities of East Sussex’s Cultural Strategy (2013-25) and principles of Culture East Sussex (CES).

The pipeline allows CES to clearly identify projects that are investment-ready when significant funding pots become available. CES will then advise organisations of the opportunity and support the application, helping the cultural sector deliver the priorities of East Sussex’s Cultural Strategy.

The CPP is not a funding application or a bid. It is managed and kept updated by the Culture and Tourism Team. 

If you are interested in viewing the projects on the pipeline, please contact the Culture East Sussex inbox.

Add your project

To tell CES about an investment-ready project, organisations can complete a short project summary and explain how it will meet the principles and priorities of the Cultural Strategy and investment principles.

Our subcommittee meets four times a year to discuss projects. You will hear back from us after our next meeting. If you wish to send us a submission to review, please send the completed document to us a week before our next meeting. The upcoming dates are:

  • 3rd December 2025
  • 25th February 2026

Please send the completed form to Culture East Sussex .

Culture East Sussex documents and Subgroups

CES meets quarterly. The dates of CES Board meetings for this financial year are:

  • 10 June 2026
  • 20 October 2026

Two further meeting dates for winter 2026 and spring 2027 are to be confirmed. 

East Sussex Cultural Sector Data and Evidence Review

The East Sussex Cultural Sector Data and Evidence Review 2025 [945.3 KB] [pdf] was produced by Marshall Regen Ltd for Culture East Sussex in early 2025. 

The report brings together national strategies, policies and data sets relating to the cultural sector, with more local evidence provided by partners from across East Sussex and the South East region.

You can find information on the current state of the Cultural and Creative Industries sector to support your project planning and future funding applications by clicking on the link above.

CES Board meeting minutes

Download the last minutes of the CES Board meetings:

Terms of reference

CES terms of reference were updated in 2022:

Complaints policy

You can read the Culture East Sussex complaints policy here:

Sub Groups

Culture East Sussex has four Sub Groups comprised of members and co-opted members. These groups meet regularly to discuss CES projects and the board are kept up to date on activity.

Culture Priority Pipeline (CPP)

The CPP subgroup meet to discuss submissions, give advice to organisations on funding, and decide which projects are placed on the Pipeline. You can find more information on the CPP page on the previous tab.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI)

The EDI subgroup build and report on the CES EDI Action Plan. Reporting at each CES board meeting, the group aim to increase and improve provision in Culture across East Sussex.

View the Culture East Sussex EDI Action Plan 24 - 25 [18.1 KB] [docx]

Nominations 

The nominations group create the CES advert to ensure it is easily accessible and shared widely. They also review and accept applications to join the board, and identify gaps in representation.

Cultural Strategy

This task and finish group is working through refreshing the East Sussex Cultural Strategy. 

Contact

The East Sussex County Council Culture and Tourism Team

Event Resources: An exploration of Cultural Sector responses to Racism in Public Spaces, March 3rd 2025

Overview

Please find below information and resources from the March 3rd event, An Exploration of Cultural Sector responses to Racism in Public Spaces. You can view more information on the hosts and speakers alongside the full program of how the day ran  here [7.8 MB] [pdf].

The event was hosted by Culture East Sussex and the University of Sussex, at the University site in Falmer.

Speaker resources

Below you will find details on the speakers, their presentations, and extra resources they shared. Please note the key takeaway items have captured points that arose in the presentations, but they do not capture the full breadth of each presentation.

Professor Divya Tollia-Kelly, University of Sussex, presented: Landscape, Race and National Heritage: Challenging exclusion.

Sergeant Peter Hayward, Sussex Police, presented: United Against Hate

Alinah Azadeh, artist, and Jess Taylor, Razia Aziz, from the EA Consultancy, presented: Do you hear us now?

Next Steps

Keep up to date with Culture East Sussex by following us on LinkedIn for future events and resources.

East Sussex Cultural Prospectus 2026

Culture and Collaboration: Our Shared Commitments for East Sussex

This section presents the East Sussex Cultural Prospectus 2026 in a text-only format.

Please use the index links on the left to navigate around the document. 

Published: March 2026

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Culture and our County

Our natural landscape and our distinctive places provide the setting and inspiration for an incredibly rich and diverse mix of cultural destinations and activities.

Micro-clusters of creative enterprises such as design, gaming, fashion, music, screen, and the visual arts contribute directly to local employment, growth and vitality. 

Our county boasts a mix of boldness and vibrancy that is unique to East Sussex, and which sits alongside its built heritage and local character.

Many leading cultural organisations, freelancers, and creative enterprises have their historic roots here or have chosen to be based in East Sussex, London’s extraordinary neighbour, where they flourish in a welcoming environment with its own compelling qualities.

Culture is who we are, how we live our lives, how we connect and communicate, and how we make sense of our environment and place. Culture is transformational, for individuals and whole places. Culture is part of what makes East Sussex unique.

Culture is a route to positive change. Culture creates new possibilities and enables diverse communities to live well. Culture drives impact and investment:

  • For the economy: generating employment, catalysing innovation and driving growth
  • For talent development: providing opportunities to gain skills and develop sustainable careers
  • For health and wellbeing: enabling people to participate, be active and thrive
  • For a sustainable environment: supporting regenerative culture that respects and protects the environment
  • For communities: bringing people together, enhancing town centres, boosting neighbourhood renewal
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Culture East Sussex - a collective voice

Together, the culture and creative sector in East Sussex has unlocked, and will continue to unlock, impactful investment for the county. This is demonstrated by our trailblazing partnership, Culture East Sussex - a network of public bodies, cultural partners and individuals convened by East Sussex County Council.  

The Culture East Sussex (CES) portfolio of cultural organisations and creative enterprises includes strengths across a broad range of art forms and creative sub-sectors. CES is a collective voice for culture across East Sussex, promoting the diversity of the sector and encouraging collaboration and shared commitments to areas of mutual interest.

We want to ensure culture and creativity is the foundation of a prosperous and inclusive county. The cultural sector is vital to the renewal of our coastal towns and, through innovative programming, anchors community life, attracts high value cultural tourism and drives innovation and economic growth.

Looking ahead, devolution is a huge opportunity for the wider Sussex region. Culture represents one of the keys to success, with the unlocking of strategic investment and the ability to work at scale to grow the creative economy.

Through this period of significant change, as we move forward with devolution alongside local government reorganisation, we will work together to ensure culture continues to improve lives, while contributing to growth and prosperity. 

We will also be open and transparent about the challenges faced within the cultural sector and will be supportive of all organisations, taking a realistic approach and advocating for the sector’s needs as well as championing the demonstrable benefits culture brings to communities across the county.

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Culture By Numbers

93%

of people say cultural experiences improve their quality of life

84%

of people say cultural experiences make places more enjoyable to live in

£12 of economic impact

our cultural organisations generate more than £12 of economic impact for every £1 of public investment

62 million visits

culture is a major force in our tourism economy, with around 62 million visits to Sussex as a whole annually, generating £5 billion a year

14%

of all local jobs are in the culture sector

£33.8 million

of Arts Council England funding was secured across East Sussex between 2018 and 2024

8

National Portfolio Organisations are based in East Sussex 

£15 million

is generated by Glyndebourne alone for the local economy, supporting close to 700 jobs

£16.1 million

is the calculated combined economic impact of the 2023 Turner Prize at Towner Eastbourne, and Eastbourne ALIVE (the wider cultural programme)

£67 million

worth of investment-ready projects county-wide with the potential to generate growth across the cultural sector and deliver economic impact are captured by Culture East Sussex’s Culture Priority Pipeline

The data presented is based on the East Sussex Cultural Sector Data and Evidence Review, Marshall Regen Ltd., 2025.

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Our Original Strategic Priorities

Culture East Sussex has championed the shared ambition of the culture and creative sectors to make a positive difference in East Sussex, driving impact across the county and wider devolved geography.

The East Sussex Cultural Strategy’s original three priorities are:

Priority 1 - Create an environment where great cultural experiences are available to everyone to enhance their quality of life.

Priority 2 - Create an environment which enables the cultural and creative economy to expand and enhances the ability to attract and retain other businesses.

Priority 3 - Develop and promote well packaged cultural tourism offers which celebrate the identity of East Sussex, raise its profile and attracts more visitors and businesses to the county.

These three priorities have shaped a set of cultural commitments focused on creating lasting positive difference as we adapt to the changes ahead.

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Our Commitments

Culture, Growth and Prosperity

The Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy launched in June 2025, will channel support to eight growth-driving sectors, including the Creative Industries. Culture provides the talent, ideas and stories which power the Creative Industries: a sector which generates a Gross Value Added (GVA) of £124.6 billion, contributing 5.7% to the national economy and employing 2.4 million people [1].

The East Sussex Economic Prosperity Strategy prioritises prosperity for people and place with ambitious plans to 2050. It affirms the importance of making the most of the county’s creative, cultural and environmental opportunities, alongside investments in connectivity.

In East Sussex the Creative Industries, inclusive of the cultural sector, are on an upward trajectory contributing to growth and prosperity. County wide, our creative industries are powered by over 3,000 enterprises employing over 7,000 people, alongside many more freelancers.

The county is a growing hub for digital creatives, the visual arts scene is rich in its variety and diversity, and each part of East Sussex is home to a unique mix of designer makers, artists, performers, writers and more. Increasing numbers of talented people are choosing our county as a place to locate, build and flourish, enabling them to access our distinct cultural and natural landscape and be part of the London and South East creative super-cluster.

Culture is also key to a flourishing tourism sector and central to the overall quality of place. East Sussex has a proven track record in attracting cultural investment, and with the structures and establishments in place we intend to build on this to support future growth. The East Sussex, Brighton and Hove and West Sussex Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) has established a Visitor Economy Strategy for Growth, paving the way for further cultural tourism development.

Our commitment: Together, we will unlock new investment to enable conditions for creative growth.

 [1] https://www.business.gov.uk/invest-in-uk/investment/sectors/creative-industries/

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Embracing talent, shaping positive futures

Culture in East Sussex thrives in an ecosystem that encompasses every art form, from organisations, festivals and events large and small, to communities of creative enterprises that include many freelancers. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that we support this diverse cultural landscape so that all communities and all ages can access culture. 

We will work to facilitate skills and educational provision to enable talent to reach its full potential in this vital growth sector. This includes collaborating with universities to nurture clusters of activity and boost cultural infrastructure, and partnerships with schools and colleges to unlock investment in training programmes and industry talent pipelines to nurture inclusive growth. Focus is needed to address significant challenges and gaps in provision, such as in music education, and on future-proofing the cultural sector in an age of accelerated digital transformation.

We want to focus on providing opportunities for young people in a county where too many talented individuals leave to fulfil their ambitions in other places. We will align with the Get Sussex Working Plan to encourage and enable creative talent into employment and self-employment.

Our commitment: Together, we will create more local jobs and build a cultural and creative sector built on fairness and inclusion.

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Enhancing our health and wellbeing

Clinically robust research shows that cultural participation is good for mental and physical health. Across East Sussex, culture, health and social care partnerships have developed, especially through the period of post-pandemic recovery and healing. This is demonstrably improving the health and wellbeing of local people, with particular impact on older and younger people.

The cultural sector is partnering with the NHS, Public Health, universities and organisations with a track record in culture and health to co-create a strategic approach for culture, health and wellbeing. This is critical given the demographic profile of East Sussex and the wider region, with an ageing population and sharp health inequalities across different places. This is particularly seen between the coast and inland, with the former facing multiple acute health challenges while at the same time enjoying something of a cultural renaissance.

Our commitment: Together, we will ensure the provision of culture is relevant, accessible, and impactful, improving lives and delivering positive outcomes for health and wellbeing.

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Regenerative Culture

As a cultural and creative sector, we want to be responsible custodians of the environment. We are committed to achieving carbon neutral status and building coalitions to tackle the climate emergency.

The county and wider region is home to significant knowledge, expertise and innovation relating to environmental sustainability – in our universities, and within our science and technology sectors. With our artists and cultural organisations, we want to maximise the area’s full potential as a sustainable development pioneer, using creative and interdisciplinary collaboration to foster innovation.

We will encourage approaches which preserve and reimagine our heritage, our natural landscape, and place-based regeneration, such as through micro creative clusters, where economic growth can be achieved sensitively and sustainably.

Our commitment: Together, we will prioritise culture as an agent for environmental regeneration, prioritising a responsible and sustainable model for growth.

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Pride in Place

Across East Sussex, culture is a change-maker: generating jobs, attracting visitors, and offering renewal, shared purpose and hope. This is evidenced in the ways cultural organisations have been catalysts for regeneration, and how the county’s many events and festivals have brought communities together to provide inspirational experiences which genuinely change people’s perceptions of where they live.

Put simply, culture delivers pride in place. It is through culture that we will collectively thrive.

Our commitment: Together, we will continue to grow cultural opportunity and build a cultural ecosystem which gives local people opportunities to participate, collaborate and renew.

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Now and the future

The culture and creative sector in East Sussex is built on collaboration. Through the established leadership of Culture East Sussex, we will continue to develop opportunities to connect, create and grow.

By working together with shared purpose to drive impact, we will ensure Culture remains a dynamic and positive force in East Sussex - across all sectors, for all communities, and at scale, now and in the future.

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