Caerbladon

Caerbladon was established in February 2022 by David and Karen Drake as a community interest company (CIC) based in Malmesbury, North Wiltshire, serving a wide, mainly rural catchment area of surrounding towns and villages within a 20-mile radius. We are an arts development agency taking a place-based approach, responding to the local context and addressing the needs of various communities, promoting sustainability, understanding of and respect for the unique heritage and character of the area. Documentation of our activities can be found at: www.caerbladon.co.uk

At the heart of Caerbladon’s work is using the arts to connect local communities with regional, national and international work reflecting the diverse influences, experience and stories that make up our contemporary cultural life. Our Pride of Place programmes have been transformational in enhancing the arts and cultural offer and levels of community engagement in the Malmesbury area. Their success gave us the confidence in February 2024 to take on new premises, including a dedicated studio, workshop room, exhibition space and an enhanced retail offer. The move has given Caerbladon long-term financial stability in terms of meeting core staffing and overheads costs. It has also freed up organisational capacity to undertake projects which in turn increase our business resilience and enable growth.

In Summer 2024, Malmesbury Town Team commissioned Caerbladon to undertake a research and consultative process to inform a new cultural strategy for the Malmesbury area which sets out, champions and supports the role of culture in the town and surrounding area. As part of the roll out of that cultural strategy, Practice of Place is our new place-based programme in North Wiltshire focusing on collaboration, capacity building and empowering the next generation of change makers.

Central to the planning and delivery of this programme is ensuring that there are multiple ladders of opportunity for young people which develop skills and creativity, giving them responsibility to shape programme content and outcomes. Caerbladon’s team and collaborators will provide professional development support, mentoring and opportunities for young people to work alongside commissioned artists and producers to deliver a programme co-created with community partners and local participants. The project will animate local heritage and share the stories of people and place that define Malmesbury’s identity.

By seeing the whole town as a venue, and through imaginative use of available buildings and public spaces, we have been able to deliver high quality, engaging events and activities. The challenge going forward is to scale-up our model of delivery, build local capacity and nurture emerging talent.