Communities across the Highlands and Islands have been invited to put their creative place forward for an award up to £150,000.

The Creative Place Awards celebrate the value of creativity to the social and economic wellbeing of smaller communities across Scotland, and to reward the hard work and imagination of such places.

Winning communities are chosen for the wide involvement of the whole community, as well as the creativity of their existing plans. There are three categories, depending on the size of the community:

· Under 2,500 Residents: £50,000

· Under 10,000 Residents: £100,000

· Under 100,000 Residents: £150,000

Winning communities will each receive a cash prize which will allow them to develop their activity further.

Iain Munro, Director of Creative Development, Creative Scotland said: ‘The Creative Place Award are all about encouraging small communities to think about the cultural activity that already exists – whether it’s Strictly Come Dancing classes at the village hall, the annual painting exhibition or hosting a festival that’s special to their town – and maybe fulfilling an ambition have a lot more happening.

‘All across Scotland, there are towns and villages – usually with a dedicated band of volunteers, or a dynamic local arts company, that would love to boost their activities.

‘Now’s the chance to make that happen across the Highlands and Islands. All we ask is that everyone in your community should have a chance to get involved and that you can tell us how you’ll achieve your ambitions.’

The 2012 winners of the Awards were: Wigtown, West Kilbride and St Andrews, with special awards going to Creetown and Huntly. (See notes for how they won their Award, and how they’re using their prize.)

The deadline for applications to the Awards is 5 October 2012 and the winners will be unveiled at a special ceremony in January 2013. Application information is here: http://www.creativescotland.com/investment/creative-place-awards

Wigtown (under 2,500 residents) In a town of just over 900 people, more than 90 people volunteer annually to help make the Wigtown Book Festival happen for 10 days each September/October. Through their collective efforts – and with the help of two full-time staff – the townspeople have created a large scale and high quality festival. The award will allow the Wigtown Book Festival to be developed into a year-round programme – including a residential creative writing course and a high-profile Wigtown Lecture.

West Kilbride (under 10,000 residents) has retained its sense of place in the face of decline and dereliction, and contributed to a more creative Scotland in the process. Local volunteers formed West Kilbride Community Initiative with a remit to position the town as Craft Town Scotland. The award will allow Craft Town Scotland to develop a new series of exhibitions for Barony Centre and develop new programmes to involve younger, and older, members of the community in their creative programme.

St Andrews (under 100,000 residents) The town has several established arts organisations and events which are spread throughout the year, including the Byre Theatre; Fife Contemporary Art & Crafts; a number of commercial galleries; StAnza Poetry Festival; Inside Out Street Theatre Festival; East Neuk Festival; a programme of concerts at the University of St Andrews; Fife Jazz Festival; Kaleidoscope Festival; St Andrews Voices; and the St Andrews Festival. The award will allow St Andrews to promote its already rich cultural programme to the UK and international visitors and to support a new community musical theatre production during the town’s centenary celebrations.

Two special Judges Awards were made to: Huntly, for its year-round programme of activity that features collaboration between a range of groups, alongside artists’ residencies and exchanges; and Creetown, which was inspired by Hideo Furuta, a sculptor of international recognition, who moved into the village in the 1990s and donated some of works to the community to create a programme of events, including a music festival and new sculptures.

Source: Creative Scotland