This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture: Digital Archive Collection Highlights
Explore the journey of This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture 2023-2024 below, with selected highlights from the archive collection! Click on each image to see the full record and catalogue description
The Bid and Early Planning Stages: 2019 - 2023
This is Croydon - Croydon's London Borough of Culture Bid narrative
Croydon Archives Ref Code: LBOC/1/1/1/1/6/3
This document includes a summary of the application submitted by Croydon Council for the London Borough of Culture award in 2019.
It covers a programme description, a profile of the Borough of Croydon, and how winning Borough of Culture would help the Council to achieve its 6 ambitions for culture in Croydon.
This document provides a snapshot of an early point in the Council’s London Borough of Culture journey, and can be used to compare how initial ideas compared with the programme that materialised in 2023.
Delivery Presentation November 2021
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference:
LBOC/1/1/1/1/4/2/2
These images show early iterations of the Croydon Council delivery structure, ambition and vision for Croydon’s year as London Borough of Culture, taken from a stakeholder presentation in November 2021.
The delivery model shows ideas for different funding sources, as well as how the Council would provide a central administrative role whilst individual delivery partners would be responsible for the running of events and projects.
Early ambitions and visions put young people, communities and the environment at the forefront.
London Borough of Culture Steering Group Records
Croydon Archives Catalogue References: LBoC Steering Group Records can be found at LBOC/1/1/2/8 and LBOC/1/2/9
The This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture Steering Group was established in 2022, and was responsible for ensuring that the creative voices of residents, local artists and community group’s voices were amplified and heard throughout Borough of Culture and to provide the grassroots steer for the programme.
The images above show the agenda for the first meeting of the group at Stanley Halls in March 2022, and the image below outlines the role of the Steering Group chair.
Credit: Talawa Theatre Company.
This is Croydon Launch Invite
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/1/1/1/3/3/3
Croydon’s London Borough of Culture year kicked off with a launch at BOXPARK Croydon on Tuesday the 14th of March 2023. This digital invitation shows one of the first instances of the new ‘This is Croydon’ branding, and it gives an idea of what the community could expect from the launch day, and the year ahead.
The launch event was attended by over 200 people, and was broadcast live on the BBC.
Desire Paths Artist Commissions (Turf Projects)
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/2/1/3
Flagship Project
Desire Paths by Turf Projects commissioned nine locally connected artists and groups to create new work with a focus on disused and underused spaces around Croydon.
The (Pub)lic House project by Phoebe and Roger Wagner looked at pubs across Croydon (many now empty) and asked 3 key questions: “What happened in these pubs, what are they now and what could they become?”.
The film utilises the outcomes of interviews and workshops, as well as music, stories and sounds, to celebrate a now declining but crucial part of Croydon’s community history - the pub. It explores what these spaces meant to people, and how it feels to lose a space that was designed to serve the public.
To see the full (Pub)lic House film, click the image on the right.
Credit: Paul Fuller
Evaluation and the This is Croydon Legacy: 2024 - 2025
Credit: Croydon Council.
This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture Impact Event Visual Minutes Illustration
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference:
LBOC/3/7/4/1
This illustration was created by Sandra Howgate as a visual representation of the minutes of the London Borough of Culture Impact Event, held at City Hall on the 12th of July 2024.
The event was attended by those involved in This is Croydon, as well as representatives from the Greater London Authority (GLA), and reflected on the successes and challenges of the Borough of Culture year.
Advice for Wandsworth from This is Croydon Partners
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference:
LBOC/3/4
As part of the evaluation process, those involved in This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture came together to produce a list of advice for Wandsworth, 2025’s London Borough of Culture.
Alongside the official Impact Report, this list is key in documenting the lessons learned, challenges and successes of This is Croydon in a more informal way.
This is Croydon Press and Marketing Strategy
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/1/2/12/19
This image from the press and marketing strategy for This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture shows the key aims for how the programme would be communicated within the Borough and beyond.
The primary audience was identified as Croydon residents, but it was also a priority to engender positive perceptions of Croydon from audiences across London.
Recognition Behind the Scenes Promo Film (Talawa Theatre Company)
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/2/1/6/2
Flagship Project
Recognition was a production presented by Talawa Theatre Company in June 2023. The play was inspired by the life and works of Black composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, who wrote and composed music in Croydon in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
It was co-created by Amanda Wilkin and Rachael Nanyonjo, written by Amanda Wilkin, and directed by Rachael Nanyonjo, and featured original music by Mercury Prize-nominated Cassie Kinoshi (leader, Seed Ensemble), with Coleridge-Taylor’s compositions.
This short promotional film captures the importance of London Borough of Culture for cultural organisations across the Borough, and highlights the significance of uncovering Croydon’s hidden histories through the power of theatre and music.
Liberty Festival (Drunken Chorus)
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/2/1/4
Flagship Project
The Liberty Festival is the Mayor of London’s flagship programme celebrating Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent Artists, curated for Croydon in September by the charity, Drunken Chorus.
The festival programme included stand-up comedy, dance, workout sessions, a garden party, and orchestral performances.
The photographs on the left show examples of the festival’s varied dance and artistic performance styles by Stopgap Dance Company and Def Motion, more of which can be explored via the online catalogue.
The digital Easy Read Guide to the festival on the right gives a comprehensive overview of the Liberty Festival 2024 programme in Croydon, and also provides an example of how marketing materials created during the year could be adapted to be more accessible and inclusive for those with access needs.
Credit: Liberty Festival 2023 produced by Drunken Chorus.
Credit: Zoo Co Creative Ltd.
Credit: Phoebe Wagner and Roger Wagner. Made for the 'Desire Paths' project 2023-4, commissioned by Turf Projects as part of This is Croydon, London Borough of Culture 2023.
Credit: Paul Fuller
Credit: All rights reserved Siri Guru Singh Sabha.
Night Shift Digital Programme and Vox Pop Montage (Zoo Co)
Croydon Archives Catalogue References: LBOC/2/2/9/6 and LBOC/2/2/9/2/3/17/3
Large Ignite Project
Night Shift was a professional theatrical performance by Zoo Co, held at Stanley Arts in November 2023. Written by playwright Paula B. Stanic, the play was performed using a combination of spoken English, BSL, visual vernacular and creative captioning – giving a window into the often overlooked lives of night workers. It was performed by 8 deaf and hearing actors and a community ensemble.
The Night Shift digital programme provides both an overview of Night Shift, but also a snapshot in time of Zoo Co theatre company, an innovative part of Croydon’s cultural landscape and leaders in improving the overall accessibility of This is Croydon.
The vox pop montage below capture some of the immediate response to Night Shift from Croydon’s community and beyond, and how it made audiences feel about the accessibility of theatre, and about Croydon.
Credit: Zoo Co Creative Ltd.
Credit: RRB Photobooks x Ameena Rojee.
Zine created during neurodivergent and queer-led zine making workshops (A Collective, formerly Autistic Youth Hub)
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/2/3/1/5/11
Croydon Loves You Project
A Collective (formerly known as the Autistic Community Hub) is a digital-first youth collective supporting autistic young adults without learning disability.
A Collective received a Croydon Loves You London Borough of Culture grant to run six neurodivergent and queer-led zine making workshops in March 2024.
The zines created during this session, including the image on the right, showcase the creativity and personality of each of the neurodivergent young people involved, and are a unique and engaging addition to the Croydon Archives collection.
This is Croydon - London Borough of Culture Hoardings
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference:
LBOC/3/9/5
The image on the right shows an example of the hoardings that were displayed across Croydon, following the publication of the This is Croydon Impact Report in July 2024.
The hoardings aimed to communicate the reach and impact of This is Croydon to its communities, to celebrate a historic year for the Borough, and to encourage people to continue to think about its legacy.
Croydon Music NXT GEN Photographs (Finesse Foreva, Music Managers Forum and Croydon Music and Arts)
Croydon Archives Catalogue References:
LBOC/2/4/7/1/1/137 and LBOC/2/4/7/1/3/85
Croydon NXTGEN was a one-day event presented in association with the Music Managers Forum (MMF) in February 2024 that aimed to highlight opportunities in the music business to around 900 young people in Croydon and beyond. It also aimed to aim to provide attendees with an overview of the range of jobs and income-generating avenues available.
The day featured bitesize panels, seminars, showcases and networking events. The photographs show experts leading sessions on topics including building a business, streaming, copyright and how to get programmed at festivals and gigs, as well as live performances by artists Skengdo & AM, SwitchOTR, Jords, Chrissy Day and The One.
Credit: Sandra Howgate.
Credit: Shaniqua Benjamin. Poster design by Julia Woolams of 31% Wool in collaboration with Riley Welch, Rosa Grahl and Gavin Bowyer. Poetry by group participants from community workshops.
New Culture Croydon Co-Chairs
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference:
LBOC/1/1/6/1/15/3
The image on the right was taken at Stanley Halls on the 29th of February 2024 the Culture Croydon Symposium 2, showing the newly elected co-chairs of the Borough of Culture legacy body, Culture Croydon.
The symposium was held to share the progress of a new working group, exploring a potential interim structure for Croydon’s arts and cultural community in 2024 following the end of the Borough of Culture year.
Culture Croydon has now developed into Croydon Makers + Creators, and the 4 co-directors (as shown in the photographs) focus on the following areas:
Honey Gabriel - Project & Comms Support
Katie Hurley - Network & Programme Support
Katia Del Rio Smith - Inclusion & Solidarity Support
B Atherton - Operations & Strategy Support
Sikh & Punjab History on the Streets of Croydon Photographs and Slides (Siri Guru Singh Sabha Croydon Gurdwara)
Croydon Archives Catalogue References: LBOC/2/2/13/2/1/8 and LBOC/2/2/13/2/1/11
Medium Ignite Project
The Sikh and Punjab History on the Streets of Croydon project was held between September 2023 and January 2024, and involved workshops, walks and talks uncovering the borough’s rich Sikh history.
Sri Guru Singh Sabha, Croydon Gurdwara, worked with A little History of the Sikhs and local artist PiNs to research Sikh and Punjab history and heritage via the streets of Croydon and neighbouring areas.
The images on the left show materials relating Sikh and Punjab history that were shared with those attending talks, and the slide below highlights significant stories of Sikhs in Croydon.
The records of this project are the first records transferred to Croydon Archives relating to the Sikh and Punjab community in the Borough, signifying the importance of London Borough of Culture in improving the diversity and relevance of the overall collection.
Credit: All rights reserved Siri Guru Singh Sabha.
Credit: A Collective.
Crocus Valley Digital Photobook (Ameena Rojee)
Croydon Archives Catalogue Reference: LBOC/2/3/1/5/11
Heritage Microgrant Project
Ameena Rojee is a photographer and writer who tells stories about adventure, the outdoors, and the relationship with the natural world.
Her project, Crocus Valley, is a photobook and love letter to Croydon, featuring poetry by Croydon’s former poet laureate Shaniqua Benjamin and cover art by local painter Bev Jones. Crocus Valley was accompanied by a free-to-all and accessible outdoor exhibition in Park Hill Park (near the walled garden) until 10th September 2023, and a series of guided photo walks led by Ameena.
The digital version of the Crocus Valley photobook shows Croydon in a new light to the urban landscape one might typically think of, and highlights its nature and rural environments alongside the more developed skyline.
Credit: Sami Videl Media and Finesse Foreva.
Credit: Daisy Ldnnn and Finesse Foreva.
Out of Silence Poetry Posters and Mythophone Recordings (Shaniqua Benjamin
Croydon Archives Catalogue References: LBOC/2/4/9/8/28 and LBOC/2/4/9/17
Out of Silence was a multi-generational poetry project telling the untold stories of Croydon’s community, produced by Croydon’s first Poet Laureate Shaniqua Benjamin. From October 2023 to May 2024, Shaniqua and five other local poets ran workshops in some of Croydon’s schools, youth organisations and elder’s groups to uncover what is important to different generations.
The posters and film from this project showcase the breadth of poetry that was written by Shaniqua and the groups she worked with, expressing their truths, passions and what matters in the world around them.
Credit: Bear Jam and Shaniqua Benjamin. This film contains footage by TVOX and Mary Melodies. Some footage belongs to London Mozart Players.
