In light of the rail strike announcements for February, please check this update: CONFERENCE STRIKE UPDATE

Bradford: 2 Feb 2023

OutdoorArtsUK is really pleased to invite those working in outdoor arts to gather in Bradford for our first live conference for a couple of years. It is a chance to reconnect with the sector and build new working relationships in person (at last). The main conference day will be a combo of presentations, networking, socialising and discussions to inspire, engage and connect.

Taking place across two venues – Bradford Cathedral and Kala Sangam Arts Centre – there will be lots of inspirational speakers as well as plenty of time to connect and network. We will have some smaller discussion areas and some speed-meeting sessions to connect on a more personal level.

We will hear about the plans and opportunities coming up in Bradford as City of Culture 2025 and celebrate some brilliant creative outdoor arts partnerships. As the whole cultural sector needs to be ever more resourceful, we will provide opportunities to encourage creative ways of working together to build on the ambitions of the sector.

Thu 2 Feb 09:00-18:00 Conference Day

  • Artist Spotlight: inspirational stories showing how outdoor arts bring communities together
  • Bradford 2025: discover opportunities and plans for the next City of Culture in 2025
  • Artist Marketplace: a space for artists and programmers to share bookable shows
  • Ideas Summit Session: new ideas looking for partners
  • Partnership Stories: hear about cross-organisational projects in the outdoor sector
  • Sector speed-meetings: forge new connections and make new contacts
  • Funding advice with ACE
  • Vegetarian lunch will be provided
  • Quiet room: live streaming away from the main hall
  • BSL interpretation available
  • Registration opens 09:00 with coffee, the first session begins at 10.00am

Wed 1 Feb 18:00-22:00 Pre-Conference Dinner

  • Come to Bradford the night before and join us for the Outdoor Arts Conference Dinner: we’ll be taking over Bradford Cathedral for a delicious three-course dinner provided by MyLahore for a fun evening of curry, chat and entertainment. There will be a full range of vegan and vegetarian choices. We’re hoping it will all be rather lovely…

Conference tickets include full access to the conference across two venues, networking opportunities, conference resources, hot drinks service and a vegetarian lunch. Dinner is purchased separately. We have a limited capacity, so we are capping places to two per organisation.

OAUK Members: there are special reduced member rates for both the conference and the dinner!

Extra pre-conference meetings

On Wednesday afternoon, there will be a series of pre-conference meetings for those working in various parts of the sector and for sector newcomers. Let us know if you would like more information: conference@outdoorartsuk.org

  • Bradford Cultural Voice Forum
  • Carnival Meeting
  • Light Night Meeting (hosted by Light Up the North)
  • Mela Meeting (hosted by The Mela Partnership)
  • Outdoor Arts newcomers introduction session (hosted by OAUK)

Hotels

We currently have deals on the following hotels:

Leonardo Hotel – £70, including bed and breakfast. To access this price, use code ‘JIUKOU010223’ when searching for rooms.

The Midland Hotel – £70 including bed and breakfast. To access this price, please contact the Midland Hotel via telephone and quote the code ‘62113’.

We’ve also created a rough price guide on hotels in Bradford as listed below, as always these are subject to change.

OutdoorArtsUK is funded by Arts Council England.

With thanks to Bradford City Council, Bradford 2025, Bradford Producing Hub and Bradford Cultural Voice.

Image: The Show Globe and Thingumajig Theatre in Bradford | pic: Frank Garland