The Creative Community Hubs Network is a partnership project increasing connections and solidarity between community-based creative hubs across Edinburgh.
The project has a threefold focus. First, working to build and sustain a network grounded in trust, respect, and mutual support. With these values, the network champions collaboration over competition.
Second, through a small grants programme associated with the network, the project is supporting creative activities in local communities across Edinburgh, while simultaneously interrogating wider funding practices and models.
Third, to advocate for the value of community-embedded and people-centred cultural work across Edinburgh, Scotland, and beyond. Watch the video below to learn more.
The Network
For the purposes of this project, a ‘creative community hub’ is an organisation that operates out of a publicly accessible building (the hub) within an identifiable community or locality, with culture and creativity as a primary concern. The Creative Community Hubs Network currently consists of eight partner organisations based across Edinburgh. There are many similarities and shared experiences between the hubs, yet each organisation has a unique offering and approach to their work. This reflects the rich history and real diversity of creative community practice across the city, developed over time in response to specific local contexts and shaped by people in communities.
Working Better Together
The Creative Community Hubs project began in 2021 as a six-month pilot exploring areas of commonality between local creative hubs in Edinburgh. Several key themes quickly emerged, including partnership working, power dynamics, and funding. The findings from this research are captured in the Working Better Together report with the pull-out poster titled How We Would Like It To Be.
These documents give insight into power imbalances frequently at play in partnership working between creative community hubs and cultural institutions in Edinburgh, as well as laying out some basic principles for successful partnership working.
Working-Better-Together-How-we-would-like-it-to-beSay hello if you’re interested in learning more about the Creative Community Hubs Network, sharing learning, or collaboratively supporting one another.
Reach out! If you consider your organisation to be a creative community hub and you are based in Edinburgh but not yet involved with the network.
Got a platform? We welcome opportunities to speak about our work and to have a voice shaping cultural policy and funding structures.
Interested in partnering with the network? Please read our Working Better Together report. Consider the partnership principles in the How We Would Like It to Be section of the report before contacting us.
Contact Us
Enquiries about the network: tiki@whalearts.co.uk
Please contact hubs directly with enquires specifically concerning them. Contact details can be found on the respective hubs’ websites.
The Creative Community Hubs project is funded by City of Edinburgh Council. Whale Arts is lead partner for the project. The project and network activities are facilitated by Tiki Muir (Whale Arts) and Morvern Cunningham (freelance creative).
