News and Views

Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (CLEP) is looking to recruit individuals working in the county’s creative and cultural sector to help shape its development in the years ahead.

CLEP is looking to boost the strength of its Creative and Cultural Sector Panel by recruiting new members to represent both freelancers working in the sector and digital creative practitioners.

The Panel acts as the strategy and co-ordination arm of CLEP Board for all creative and culture sector related issues.

Its main purpose is to ensure that the sector is supported to grow further, faster and deliver increased productivity, jobs, prosperity and inclusive growth for Cumbria.

It also provides a collective voice for the sector and its interests, ensuring that its needs are understood, communicated to key audiences including Government and develops responses to these. Clearly, over the coming months, a key priority will be supporting the sector’s response to and recovery from COVID-19, which has hit the sector very hard given that many venues were required to close.

Earlier this year, CLEP and Cumbria County Council worked with partners across the sector to jointly develop and release Cumbria’s Creative and Cultural Strategy, which identifies key strategic priorities for supporting the economic growth and further proliferation of the county’s creative, cultural and heritage offer.

Panel Chair Colin Glover said: “The Creative and Cultural Sector Panel members are now leading on developing and realising key actions from the Strategy.

“However, in order to ensure adequate representation from across the entirety of the sector, we’d like to recruit new members currently working in createch, design, gaming, film, photography, TV, broadcasting, publishing, as well as freelancers working in the sector and individual artists.

“Their expertise will help us ensure that the Strategy effectively encompasses as many facets of the creative and cultural sector as possible.”

The successful candidates will be:

• Able to provide strategic overview of current issues affecting not only their business but the wider sector;
• Willing to work collaboratively at a strategic level to support the entirety of the Creative and Cultural Sector in Cumbria;
• Confident in contributing to and leading on strategic actions;
• Well networked within their field of expertise, preferably both within and out of the County.

The posts are voluntary, with successful candidates expected to join two-hour meetings four times per year and participate in sub-groups or task and finish groups as appropriate and necessary. Career starters and those with protected characteristics are actively encouraged to apply.

Meetings are currently held by Zoom, and are held during normal office hours (9am- 5pm, Monday – Friday).

Colin added: “CLEP recognises the importance of inclusivity and diversity and welcomes applications from voices representing every aspect of our communities.”

Interested applicants are invited to apply with a one page written expression of interest detailing suitability for the role, and a CV of no more than 2 pages.

Applications should be emailed to Maisie Hunt, CLEP Head of Secretariat, maisie.hunt@thecumbrialep.co.uk by 5pm on November 9. Potential applicants are invited to contact Maisie should they wish to discuss the role further.