The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 22: Winter 2021 | Page 6

BUSINESS NEWS

AND READY TO CONNECT PEOPLE THROUGH THE POWER OF THE ARTS

Bath Festivals is a charity that brings some of the finest international musicians , speakers and writers to the city . Building on its 70 year heritage , its turning Bath into one of the top three festival cities in the UK .

Ian Stockley , Chief Executive at Bath Festivals , shares how the team have diversified through the pandemic , reaching new international audiences online and attracting visitors to the city now that things have opened back up . Ian joined Bath Festivals in 2017 , with a background as a professional classical singer and Managing Director of Bristolbased marketing agency , Indicia , which grew to become one of the UK ' s leading customer engagement agencies .

What has your organisation learned from Covid and how has it impacted on future ways of working ?

We were unable to put on live arts events for many months , but we soon realised that it was even more important to invest in creating opportunities for children to still gain from engaging with the arts . In 2020 , Reading is Magic Festival was a digital alternative to our live Bath Children ’ s Literature Festival , reaching more than 150,000 children in 65 countries . The festivals team is currently watching the figures rise for the 2021 festival , launched in September and free to view until Friday 31st December .

The pandemic has reminded us of the value of live arts in enhancing and enriching people ’ s lives . We will continue to programme live events and are planning how best to adopt a hybrid approach for the longer term that allows us to access a global audience through both free and paid-for events . Visit www . readingismagicfestival . com to find out more .

What does Christmas / 2022 have in store for Bath Festivals ? Bath Festivals has worked with other organisations , including B & NES , Bath BID and Visit Bath , to stage Bath at Christmas to welcome people back into Bath this festive season . Our contribution is an immersive event in Bath Abbey on Wednesday 8th December , with Charles Hazelwood conducting the Paraorchestra , performing the Symphony of Sorrowful Songs under The Museum of the Moon , the spectacular sculpture by Luke Jerram .

Our programmers are busy planning the 2022 Bath Festival , which opens with Party in The City on Friday 13th May - a free evening of all kinds of live music which attracts 20,000 people to the city . The festival will bring the finest musicians and most fascinating authors to Bath .

Sign up to get all the latest festival announcements at www . bathfestivals . org . uk / the-bath-festival / sign-up /

How can businesses support Bath Festivals in 2022 ?

Towns and cities which offer a vibrant cultural experience tend to attract skilled people , who want to live and work in them , in turn supporting high value businesses .

Bath Festivals contributes to the vibrancy of the city ’ s cultural scene and to its economy , attracting people to the city . In 2019 , 50 per cent of our live audience came from outside Bath .

We work to inspire and connect communities through the power of the arts and I am always keen for organisations and businesses to get in touch to talk about how we might work together . A few examples of partnerships include businesses working with us on events and projects such as our Lunchtime Lectures , the centrepiece of our Collated Collection for the Curious Mind , Rising Classical Stars , our series of early evening concerts and our Junior Journalists project .

For more information on how your organisation can work with Bath Festivals please email : development @ bathfestivals . org . uk

“ Novia has been a proud sponsor of the Bath Children ’ s Literature Festival for many years . With the introduction of the Reading is Magic festival in 2020 as a response to the pandemic , the team at Bath Festivals were able to reach more children than ever ! Being part of that journey has been a real privilege .”

Jody Roblin ,

Head of Marketing , Novia For more info : www . bathfestivals . org . uk

@ Bathfestivals

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