Who we are

Freshly Greated is Great Yarmouth's Creative People and Places (CPP) programme, funded by Arts Council England to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to experience, create and shape high-quality arts and culture, regardless of their background or previous experience. 

We believe creativity belongs to everyone. Rather than delivering arts to communities, we work with communities, building long-term relationships that enable local people to influence, commission, create and lead cultural activity across Great Yarmouth. Our Community Producers, artists, young people and partners work together to make arts and culture more relevant, welcoming and representative of the people who live here.

Why we exist

Great Yarmouth is home to extraordinary creativity, talent and community spirit, yet many residents face barriers to engaging with arts and culture. Freshly Greated exists to remove those barriers by bringing creativity into neighbourhoods, creating opportunities close to where people live, and supporting local people to shape the cultural life of the town. 

Our aim is to help people feel more connected, more confident and more proud of where they live.  

Our guiding principles: 

• Inclusion – Everyone should have the opportunity to experience and shape culture.
• Active Research – We listen, learn and evolve with our communities.
• Art Where People Are – We bring creativity into the heart of everyday life.
• All Art is Valid – We champion diverse artforms, artists and ways of being creative.

What we do

Freshly Greated delivers year-round creative opportunities across Great Yarmouth, including: 

Community-led festivals, events and neighbourhood celebrations  

Artist commissions and creative workshops  

Outdoor arts, music, theatre, dance and visual arts  

Creative health and wellbeing projects  

Our Space – a regular creative programme supporting young people's wellbeing and confidence  

Play Produce Promote – developing the next generation of local musicians, producers and creative leaders  

A growing network of Community Producers who help design and deliver the programme alongside the Freshly Greated team, professional artists and local arts and cultural organisations.

What we've achieved

Over the past six years Freshly Greated has become one of Great Yarmouth's leading community-led cultural programmes.

We've built trusted relationships with communities, created opportunities for local artists, supported large numbers of young people, residents and volunteers experience arts and culture in new ways.

Independent evaluation shows the difference this approach is making:

• 97% of Community Producers say Freshly Greated has shown that everyone can be creative.
• 95% say it has strengthened the feeling of community in Great Yarmouth.
• 85% believe it has made Great Yarmouth a better place to live.
• 89% say being involved has given them a stronger sense of community.
• 90% say Freshly Greated gets the balance right between supporting people and enabling them to lead. 
• 85% feel more confident trying new things.
• 100% of observed events were rated good or very good for artistic excellence.
• 91% rated events as good or very good for accessibility.

Alongside these outcomes, Freshly Greated continues to successfully reach the people Creative People and Places was designed for. Around 73% of participants come from the audience groups least likely to engage with arts and culture, and 84% live within our priority neighbourhoods across Great Yarmouth.