Shining a light on the importance and resilience of creative work within communities during the pandemic, the 13 winners and runners-up were announced on 1 March at Coventry Cathedral as part of the UK City of Culture celebrations. The winners were chosen for helping people through the pressures of lockdown by offering ways to stay connected, feel supported, be creative and have fun. One of the few positives to come out of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the uptake in creative activity that helped people through the pressures of lockdown.

With venues closed, creative groups who used to meet regularly were forced to find new and innovative ways to stay connected, at a time when the need for people to feel supported and have fun was greater than ever. Criccieth Creadigol – Creative Criccieth is the Wales winner in recognition of our multi-art project.

Criccieth Town Council responded to the challenges of the pandemic by building on its record of creative engagement and facilitating a number of imaginative projects which have involved hundreds of volunteers in their design and delivery. These projects have included a large number of voluntary associations, the local primaryschool and individual artists and other creative talents - a fantastic community effort, drawing on talents from across the generations and from all the districts of the town. In the words of a resident’s email on these varied projects from knitting, crochet, painting, gardening to creating a Town Map: “Thank you so much for everything you’re doing including the beautiful artwork, map and signage which seems to be popping up everywhere. And the lovely flowers, plants and herbs. Whoever you all are you’ve brought even more joy and personality to this wonderful town.”

Dr Catrin Jones Clerk of Criccieth Town Council:

“I am so proud that we responded to the challenges imposed by Covid-19 with compassion, energy and vision. We reached out, through varied creative projects to involve hundreds in the community, drawing on talents from across the generations and from all the districts of the town, contributing to people’s well-being and quality of life. The response from individuals and community groups to our varied imaginative projects has been fantastic. These projects included a Gown of Poppies, Friendship Benches, a Rainbow Bridge to commemorate the NHS and key workers, community gardening – we even produced a unique artistic and bilingual town map. People were able to remain connected by contributing to community initiatives from the confines of their homes even during extensive periods of lockdowns. It is amazing to see the results which have become lasting legacies, marking an unprecedented time in our lives. It is an honour to be recognised with a Creative Lives award which is a tribute to such a wonderful community effort.”

Talking about the award winners from Wales, Chief Whip of the Welsh Government and Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, Dawn Bowden MS said:

“I am delighted to be able to congratulate the winners at this year’s Creative Lives Awards. These last two years have been a particularly difficult time for our sector and it has had a profound effect on society in general. We have all faced difficult periods away from the people, the places and the activities that give our lives a sense of purpose. This has had a huge impact on our mental and physical wellbeing.

I know the focus of the awards this year is on community-based creativity that responded imaginatively to the difficulties of the pandemic and I am pleased to see that this year’s winners, Creative Criccieth, Coffee ‘N’ Laughs, Celf Able and Lost Connections are doing so much good at community level by using the arts to bring people together. They all show the benefits to wellbeing and social connection of taking part in creative activities during a worrying and troubling time. I wish them all the very best for the future.”

Talking about the Creative Lives Award Chief Executive of Creative Lives Robin Simpson, said:

“The annual Creative Lives Awards are always an inspiring celebration of the ingenuity, determination and passion of volunteer-led creative groups in local communities across the UK and Ireland. This year’s Awards feel particularly humbling, reflecting the incredible way that creative groups responded to the once-in-a-lifetime challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, using their capabilities, resources and networks in extraordinary ways to support those in greatest need within their communities through this difficult period. I am genuinely in awe of these amazing volunteers and their stunning achievements. I applaud them all.

More about the projects (pdf)