OUTSIDE Arts Grants £24,000 to Support Moorlands Artists

Arts programme OUTSIDE has awarded 30 Creative Community Commissions to artists, community groups and organisations across the Staffordshire Moorlands.

The successful funding applications, totalling over £24,000, were selected by OUTSIDE’s advisory group and youth advisory group made up of local residents, and will support a wide range of arts activity to take place over the next year in the district’s towns, villages and rural areas.

Funded projects span all kinds of art forms from heritage crafts to dance, and a variety of formats from workshops to festivals. These include a dance festival in Leek, a Drawing for wellbeing project that takes referrals from social prescribers, cob making workshops, and an exhibition of young people's artwork in Biddulph Town Hall. They will also be supporting an 8-week after-school knit and crochet activity in Cheadle.

OUTSIDE’s director Katie Aldous said: “Once again, the quantity and quality of applications received for the Creative Community Commissions this year was fantastic. It was wonderful to see how much thought had been given to community engagement and innovation particularly, something that the Advisory group was keen to see represented.

“Huge thanks to our advisory group and youth advisory group for developing and refining the application process to make it accessible and clear for applicants. They thoughtfully designed the call out, and deliberated and selected the successful applications with a huge amount of care, time and attention.

“The Creative Community Commissions are a big part of OUTSIDE’s ambition to support high quality creative arts activity across the whole of the Moorlands. The selected proposals ensure a wide range of residents will benefit from these projects.”

The successful 2026 Creative Community Commissions are:

Artificial Silk – How I want my Planet to be (Ex Objects), Werrington

Autin Dance Theatre CIO – Autin Dance Theatre Workshops, Biddulph

Beau Pudsey – Folklore, Nature & Storytelling Workshops, Leek

Biddulph Methodist Church and Victoria Centre – Portable Histories

Biddulph Moor Community Association – Biddulph Moor Well Dressing

Biddulph Town Council – Young People's Art & Photography Exhibition

Biddulph Youth and Community Zone – SEN Youth-led Creative Project

Bolton Gate Arts CIC – Bolton Gate Bloom

Borderland Voices – Pride Banners, Staffordshire Moorlands

Brown Edge Well Dressing – Brown Edge 80th Well Dressing

Caverswall Community Society – Creative Writing & Spoken Word Project

Cheadle Arts – Cheadle Arts Festival

Danielle Beardmore – Cheadle Young Makers

Endon Village Hall – Community Garden & Youth Arts Design Project

Endon Well Dressing Organising Committee – Create Your Own Well Board

Foxlowe Clay Collective – Foxlowe Clay Collective, Leek

Grindon Parish Council – Community Wall Hanging

Kate Dawes Studio – Pen Drawing for Wellbeing, Staffordshire Moorlands

Kingsley Holt Centre – Summer Community Event

Leek Yarn Bombers – Leek Yarn Bombers

Many Strands – Knit Network Skills Workshops, Staffordshire Moorlands

Staged CIO – Read to the Beat Flash Mob, Biddulph

Stephanie Akerman – Community Threads, Tean

Stockton Brook Time and Space – Big Draw Festival

Teresa Pattison – Teresa Pattison Dance Festival, Leek

The Happy Makers – The Happy Makers Community, Leek

The Leek Polish Connection – Polish Arch

The Navel of the Moon – The Navel of the Moon, Leek

Waymark Interpretation CIC – Centenary Hum, Staffordshire Moorlands

Victoria Motika – Cob Making Workshop, Leek

Editor's Note: A very well done to all those involved we can't wait to see what you do!

About Outside  

A participatory arts programme, OUTSIDE is led by local residents in the Staffordshire Moorlands working with professional artists. Together, they co-curate ambitious, inspiring and inclusive arts and cultural activities and events celebrating life in the rural landscapes, villages and market towns of the Moorlands. A Creative People and Places project, supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. Thanks to National Lottery players, Creative People and Places is about more people taking the lead in choosing, creating and taking part in creative and cultural experiences in the places where they live.

OUTSIDE Arts Grants £24,000 to Support Moorlands Artists - created 15th April 2026