Official hand over of Sutton Coldfield Arts Forum from The New Streetly Youth Orchestra to Highbury Theatre Centre
An open letter from Ian Myatt, Chair of The New Streetly Youth Orchestra
In my last email update I explained that, after three years at the helm, the orchestra had taken the decision to step down as lead organisation for Made in Sutton. While this was a tough decision, we felt that it was time to hand the baton to a new organisation with fresh ideas that could take the forum to the next level. I am therefore pleased to announce that following a competitive process, Highbury Theatre Centre will be the new forum lead.
The timing of this decision was deliberately chosen to coincide with a rotation of the district “arts champions”. The arts champions being a scheme whereby the council partners each of the major Birmingham based arts organisations up with each of the districts; for the last three years DanceXchangewere the arts champion for Sutton Coldfield. The rotation will see DanceXchange move to focus on Hodge Hill and THSH (Town Hall, Symphony Hall) will become the new arts champion for Sutton Coldfield. They will support Highbury Theatre in the running of the forum along with continued support from Birmingham City Council.
It really has been an incredible three years! We embarked on our mission not entirely sure what to expect, but slowly and surely we established a brand and a presence both online and in real life. I hope Made in Sutton has made a positive difference to those who have engaged; from the groups you represent to the members of our community who watched, participated or benefited from our events.
I usually try to avoid long lists of credits for fear of missing someone out, but if you would forgive me I would like to call out some specific thanks to a few key members of the orchestra team without whom Made in Sutton would not be what it is today; Andi for creating the branding, Nessie for her dedication to our social media presence, Chris for his ability to transport just about anything to anywhere at anytime and to Laura and her excellent event management skills. I should also pay tribute to the tireless support received from Theresa from the Council, Laura at Bodybeat, Sue at Creation Station and Helen at Squrim - they have contributed to pretty much every event we have ever done!
One of the great things has been the variety of events and activities we worked on together – each had a different cast list of volunteers, participants and supporters. I would like to thank you all; it has been an honour and a privilege to get to know you and the organisations you represent.
In reality, I’m not going anywhere – the orchestra will remain active participants of the forum and I hope you will too.
I hope you have a great Easter and look forward to seeing you soon!
Many Thanks
Ian Myatt
Chair, The New Streetly Youth Orchestra
An open letter from Ian Myatt, Chair of The New Streetly Youth Orchestra
In my last email update I explained that, after three years at the helm, the orchestra had taken the decision to step down as lead organisation for Made in Sutton. While this was a tough decision, we felt that it was time to hand the baton to a new organisation with fresh ideas that could take the forum to the next level. I am therefore pleased to announce that following a competitive process, Highbury Theatre Centre will be the new forum lead.
The timing of this decision was deliberately chosen to coincide with a rotation of the district “arts champions”. The arts champions being a scheme whereby the council partners each of the major Birmingham based arts organisations up with each of the districts; for the last three years DanceXchangewere the arts champion for Sutton Coldfield. The rotation will see DanceXchange move to focus on Hodge Hill and THSH (Town Hall, Symphony Hall) will become the new arts champion for Sutton Coldfield. They will support Highbury Theatre in the running of the forum along with continued support from Birmingham City Council.
It really has been an incredible three years! We embarked on our mission not entirely sure what to expect, but slowly and surely we established a brand and a presence both online and in real life. I hope Made in Sutton has made a positive difference to those who have engaged; from the groups you represent to the members of our community who watched, participated or benefited from our events.
I usually try to avoid long lists of credits for fear of missing someone out, but if you would forgive me I would like to call out some specific thanks to a few key members of the orchestra team without whom Made in Sutton would not be what it is today; Andi for creating the branding, Nessie for her dedication to our social media presence, Chris for his ability to transport just about anything to anywhere at anytime and to Laura and her excellent event management skills. I should also pay tribute to the tireless support received from Theresa from the Council, Laura at Bodybeat, Sue at Creation Station and Helen at Squrim - they have contributed to pretty much every event we have ever done!
One of the great things has been the variety of events and activities we worked on together – each had a different cast list of volunteers, participants and supporters. I would like to thank you all; it has been an honour and a privilege to get to know you and the organisations you represent.
In reality, I’m not going anywhere – the orchestra will remain active participants of the forum and I hope you will too.
I hope you have a great Easter and look forward to seeing you soon!
Many Thanks
Ian Myatt
Chair, The New Streetly Youth Orchestra