Client
Coventry City Council
The council for Coventry, UK City of Culture 2021 and home of the West Midlands’ cathedral city.
About the work
Coventry City Council runs local services for more than 340,000 people in one of the West Midlands’ biggest cities, and is a founding member of the West Midlands Combined Authority. Rebuilt after the Second World War around its bombed-out cathedral, Coventry has long described itself as a city of peace and reconciliation. In 2021 it became UK City of Culture, a year-long programme of arts and events that put culture at the centre of the city’s recovery from the pandemic and its plans for the future.
During its City of Culture year, the council’s Culture, Sport, Events and Destination teams brought in Always Possible to help them think beyond the day job. The aim was to give staff space to explore big ideas together, build relationships across teams and imagine what Coventry’s culture, tourism, events and public spaces could become once the spotlight moved on.
We designed and ran a series of online events and workshops, including Knowledge Exchange sessions where guest speakers from around the UK shared fresh perspectives. One example was Dan Thompson, founder of the Empty Shops Network, who spoke on how innovation can bring city centres back to life after the decline of retail and office work.
We then turned those conversations into a culture, innovation and destination strategy, with a statement of intent, a shared language across teams and a six-point action plan connecting the big ideas to the council’s operational plans.
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