Glossop has always had a great high street but it currently lacks a focal point, somewhere that celebrates the creativity of the town in a place that attracts locals and visitors alike.
I have always seen the redevelopment of the Town Hall/Market Complex as key in the development of this focal point, and the process of seeking an operator for the complex brings that vision a step closer.
However, I have always said it’s not about the building, it’s about the people and how they use it! In order to realise our vision, we need to create a vibrant creative economy, supporting and nurturing the types of business that will breathe new life into the Town Hall complex. What’s more, we need to do this now! Even though the opening of the complex could be well into next year.
It is for this reason that, through initiatives like Glossop Creates, we are working hard to support and develop the creative community in the town. It’s also for this reason that we are supporting the Kin.Der initiative. The brainchild of Claire Tymon, in partnership with a number of local creatives, Kin.Der will, among other things, become a base for Glossop Creates’ activities and give us a physical presence on the High Street. But it’s more than that. With a number of local creatives making their home at Kin.Der, it also aims to model some of the activities and uses that we are expecting to transfer to the Town Hall/Market complex when it opens.
Based in Glossop Gasworks on Arundel Street (in the space previously occupied by Wains), Kin.Der aims to be a creative hub, allowing space for creative businesses to ply their trade and interact with the wider community.
As part of our mission to make Glossop an attractive place for creatives, supporting the is a privilege; especially as it will give us some great experience in how this type of space works, in advance of the opening of the Town Hall\Market Complex.
Big capital projects like the Town Tall and Victoria Hall Arts Centre are easy to get excited about, and it’s easy to see them as separate from initiatives like Glossop Creates and Kin.Der. but, in reality, their successes are totally interdependent. The long-term success of the big projects is totally reliant on the success of the grass roots initiatives. The Town Hall/Market Complex and Victoria Arts Centre projects will only succeed if they exist as hubs within a thriving, creative community that is nurtured by initiatives like Glossop Creates and Kin.Der. These will, in turn, need the capital projects to succeed to give them a sustainable future. It’s a cliché, but it’s win:win!
My hope is that in a year or so, Kin.Der will have outgrown their current home at the Gasworks and will be ready, with other similar organisations nurtured through the activities of Glossop Creates, to become part of a thriving creative hub in the Town Hall/Market Complex.
As a community we may not be able to be directly involved in the day-to-day development of the big projects, but we can help make them a success by supporting and enabling cultural and creative growth at the grass roots of the town. At the same time, the Glossop Creative Trust, is working with the council to make sure that the creative community has significant input into the big projects.
If you would like to get involved and support any of our activities, we would love to hear from you to talk about either sponsorship, or simply getting involved.
