Vivacity Peterborough: the first five years 

[prev] …capture kids at an age when they are excited by science, and gives them a chance to delve more deeply and have a more hands-on experience. We’re the only ones in the Eastern region running this project.

PRESUMABLY, ATTRACTING MORE VISITORS TO PETERBOROUGH ALSO MEANS MORE PEOPLE TAKING A POSITIVE IMAGE AWAY WITH THEM – NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY…
KT: Yes, but they also leave something – they leave their five and ten pound notes in the tills of the local pubs, eateries and hotels and make a positive contribution to the city’s economy. to the cultural infrastructure in Peterborough has been spoken about at national and international conferences. The city has developed a significant profile as a result of that and all that is going on here. So we have something to celebrate – in five years we really have achieved something.

THERE CERTAINLY SEEMS TO BE A GROWING SENSE OF VIBRANCY IN PETERBOROUGH…
KT: The last Heritage Festival was the biggest and best yet, and each year we aim to get a little bigger and a little better. We set ourselves a target of 20% growth, and most years we’ve achieved that. Last time we just missed it, but we’ve got up to 35,000 people coming. How far they’re coming is mostly anecdotal, but what we’re finding is that people are visiting friends, for example, but are choosing that weekend to do it, because they know something exciting is happening.
SS: One area where we have very clear numbers is Flag Fen, and is related to the fact that prehistory is now on the school curriculum. If you look at the number of schools that are booking to come to Flag Fen, we’re absolutely full, and are now talking about having to build new classrooms and provide more facilities in order to cope with demand. And that demand will get bigger – it’s only the first year of this being on the curriculum, and there are very few centres in the country which can explain the Bronze Age. Here you have a Bronze Age landscape where you can see and feel what it was like to live in those times. The last five years have been significant in recognising the importance of that site. I suppose one of the biggest things that has happened during that time is the discovery of the Must Farm Bronze Age boats – and having a new facility at Flag Fen, conserving those boats and being able to put them on display is the next part of the story. That story is local, and emphasises the national and international importance of Peterborough and the surrounding area – both now and for the past 3,500 years. One of the Must Farm boats is included in the British Museum’s History of the UK in 100 Objects. It’s here, it’s ours, and more people deserve to know about it! And schools are loving it. That’s local schools, of course, but last year we also had lots of schools from London and elsewhere and we are now looking at a much wider spread – all of which will help make people aware of the importance of the site.
KT: Also, the dig is back on at Must Farm. Cambridge Archaeological Unit are back excavating, and we will find more!

GIVEN THEIR IMPORTANCE, WAS THERE EVER A POSSIBILITY THAT THE MUST FARM BOATS MIGHT NOT STAY IN THIS AREA?
SS: We did have to fight to keep them in this location. Had we not, two of the boats would certainly have gone to other locations – either York or Cambridge.
KT: And you have to remember that they were not found in Peterborough, but in Cambridgeshire. We had to work very hard to demonstrate that this was a good home for them.

DOES HAVING A SINGLE ORGANISATION MAKE IT EASIER TO JOIN THE DOTS AND POOL RESOURCES?
SS: If we keep to the example of Flag Fen and education, when we reach out to schools and say ‘Here is an education programme for you based on heritage…’ we can link into Longthorpe Tower and the Museum, as well as Flag Fen, so the schools get a cohesive offer.
KT: We definitely have a much more business-like approach to our marketing. When we sell an opportunity to the family to visit, say, the Museum, we can suggest other things they as a family might be interested in – a birthday party at Regional Fitness & Swimming Centre, an experience for the young ones at the Key Theatre. So, we can cross-market. That wouldn’t have happened before.
SS: One of the things we’re looking at doing is bringing those things even closer, so drama and theatrical productions are something that doesn’t only happen at the Key Theatre. We can have a performance in the middle of a library, or at the swimming pool. That allows us to circulate that audience so they use many more of our facilities and experience more.
KT: And, indeed, we have put on a play, and screened a film – Jaws – at the Lido… We’re also offering holiday activities for young people and afterschool clubs, and that provides a valuable service for parents who might be working and can’t easily pick up their children immediately after school, as well as giving the children a positive experience for an hour or two. And they’re doing a whole raft of things – some doing sport, some doing art, some learning through experience. Last time I visited they were learning about the geography of North America as a fun activity. Again, that’s something that just would not have happened in the past.

DO YOU THINK THESE EFFORTS ENCOURAGE CULTURAL ACTIVITY IN GENERAL, BEYOND VIVACITY’S OWN EVENTS AND VENUES?
SS: Definitely. We were instrumental in bringing Metal to the city, because it was something that was going to help artists gel, give them more confidence, develop their skill set and enable them to fly. It’s taken time, but now you really can begin to see the fruits of our labour. When I sat on the Arts Council, it was easy to give money to Norwich and Cambridge, but it was hard giving money to Peterborough because until Vivacity there were no organisations like that to give the money to!

SO, WHAT DO YOU HAVE PLANNED FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS?
KT: More of the same! And we have some big plans to make Flag Fen a regional/ national destination. At the moment it should be, but it’s not. It’s got international quality, but we need to find better ways to present it, so we’re now talking with others, including the Heritage Lottery Fund, about how we can bring that about. We’re also exploring the possibility of delivering library services in Lincolnshire. They are currently near the bottom of the pile in terms of quality and cost of library provision, and they’re looking to do it differently. One of the organisations they’re talking to is Vivacity – and it could be that Vivacity is delivering library services in Lincolnshire from next spring. What’s most satisfying about that is it means other organisations are now coming to us to have a conversation about our expertise.
SS: One important thing to understand is that an organisation such as this does require continued investment – without it we could not deliver what we do in a city the size of Peterborough.
KT: To that end, Vivacity is now engaging with corporate organisations in the city, such as the BGL Group and Perkins, who have realised that what we’re doing is important for Peterborough and for their workforce. They, as good employers want to have a business that’s in a thriving city, so they’re working with us to help create that buzz. I don’t think this would have been possible if a local charity wasn’t doing this work.

www.vivacity-peterborough.com