Lydia Baldwin

As part of Creative Careers Month in November 2025, Peterborough Cultural Alliance put a spotlight on a talented pool of artists including actors, visual artists, designers, and musicians. 

The Creative Spotlight series shines a light on creative career pathways and the diversity of roles within the creative industries, focusing on people who work locally in Peterborough. Local role models have generously shared their own journeys into creative work, the key skills they’ve developed and some inspiring and practical top tips. 

Since November, as part of Peterborough Cultural Alliance’ Creative Careers programme, Spotlights have been published online, shared through social media and at careers fairs and industry insight days to raise awareness of roles and pathways in this important industry. The Creative Careers Programme has been about platforming creative role models, as well as recognising the young creative talent in Peterborough. We have worked in partnership to create new, inspiring opportunities for young people to discover creative industries, have positive experiences exploring creative roles and skills, as well as paid opportunities for young people in further and higher education to work on real-world creative briefs.

Insider top tips from our Creative Spotlight series included:

• Connect with others and ask for advice 

• Share your creative work with others

• Don’t be afraid of hearing ‘no’ 

• Be persistent 

• Advocate for yourself 

• Proactively contact venues and organisers 

Contact pca@neneparktrust.org.uk for your FREE copy 

Young people with an interest in exploring creative careers in the gaming industry were welcomed to a free interactive Insight Day at ARU Peterborough, in partnership with People in Games, ARU and Next Generation Creatives (Mission Accomplished). 

Twenty students from Year 10 and 11at Stanground Academy had an opportunity to learn about real-world games indutry roles and production workflows from industry professionals. They were set a creative brief to work in small ‘indie-studio’ -style groups to create their own digital board game prototype. Throughout the session they gained a practical understanding of the types of roles and skills in this fast-growing sector.

Each group presented their game prototype to the room in 2 minute pitch, and were given the tools and signposted to opportunities to continue building their skills and develop their creative gaming concepts in their own time.

Peterborough Cultural Alliance are exploring future sessions with partners, and opportunities for schools to use and build on these sessions within the curriculum.

Peterborough Cultural Alliance’s youth leadership programme, Peterborough Collective, are featured in the May 2026 issue of The Moment Magazine.  

Journalist Emily Scialom interviewed members of the group to find out more about what inspired them to create the Culture Talks podcast, aimed at young people age 15 – 30 in the City. The Collective are on a mission to make Peterborough feel like home for every young person – a city where diversity is celebrated, and culture is something everyone’s proud of. Each episode captures the energy of a city in motion, spotlighting the bold voices and creative minds shaping its future.

Read what the Collective had to say here: Young Creatives find their Voices | Community – The Moment Magazine 

The Peterborough Collective programme is aimed at empowering young leaders aged 16-25 to voice their thoughts on creativity and culture, develop their skills and inspire other young people to engage with arts and culture in Peterborough.   

The Collective is made up of a small, committed and diverse group of young cultural leaders who are supported through a bursary and training programme to develop Culture Talks. The 2026 programme offered two progression pathways, moving the 2025 Collective into mentorship roles to support a new group of young leaders.  

Peterborough Collective members learn new skills and share production tasks such as content planning, hosting, interviewing guests, recording and editing. They also help to promote and grow the Culture Talks audience online through social media, a website and in-person community listening events.  

The Collective also has opportunities to get involved in Peterborough Cultural Alliance’s creative projects across the city, share their views on programmes and plans, and attend events where they can meet the creative organisations PCA works with through its networks and partnerships. 

The 2026 programme is supported by a partnership with Norfolk & Norwich Festival and University Centre Peterborough.  

During April and May 2026, Peterborough Cultural Alliance collaborated with the Youth Justice Service, Peterborough based artist Xidus Pain and a music producer to support young people to write, record and produce their own rap music. The project was made possible through funding from Local Youth Transformation Pilot and Arts Council England.

Flow Forward is a pilot music mentoring project for young people aged 15-18 facing barriers to education, training or work, care-experienced, or linked with youth support services. The project focused on songwriting, music production, recording and creative self-expression, providing 10 young people in Peterborough with a positive space to share their stories, explore their experiences and discover more about the professional music industry. 

Participants developed technical creative and transferable life skills including communication, confidence, problem solving and collaboration. One young person, a Peterborough child in care, had been struggling with attendance in education but attended every session of this project. They came to the project with a high level of interest in music and, after engaging with project artists, gained the confidence to apply for a music course at college. Their application was supported by the music they created as part of the project, alongside references from project artists. Another young person has created powerful music based on his experiences in care and is willing to share this work with Children’s Social Care staff as part of a Q&A session.  

The level of engagement was a testament to the safe and relaxed environment created by the project team.  In the final studio session, participants who had never met before worked solidly for three hours on a collaborative track. They supported each other to have the confidence to perform it in front of family, friends and support workers in our final listening party.

Are you a creative educator? Do you teach a creative subject or use artistic, imaginative approaches to make learning more engaging & effective?

Arts & CulturED is Peterborough’s Local Cultural Education Partnership (LCEP) — a network of teachers, creative educators and cultural partners. We believe every child and young person in Peterborough deserves access to creativity and culture — and teachers are at the heart of making this happen.

Join our FREE Summer network session
23 June | 4-6pm | Flag Fen Archaeology Park, The Droveway, Northey Road, Peterborough PE6 7QJ 

Register here!

Why come along?
– Unlock high-quality creative opportunities for your pupils
– Connect with other teachers championing creative education
– Collaborate with artists, educators and cultural partners
– Help make your school a key player in cultural participation

Peterborough residents are invited once again to share their views on creativity, arts and heritage in the city. 

Cultural organisations want to make the city a vibrant place for people to live, play, work and visit, and they need your voice! Your survey response can directly inform and shape the way creative, arts and heritage activities are planned across Peterborough. 

Until the end of 7th June 2026, our second Be Heard! survey invites anyone who lives in Peterborough aged 16+ to share which creative, arts and heritage activities they enjoy, the places they go, and the events they take part in. We also want to hear from you if you don’t currently participate in these types of activities – your voice is just as important. All surveys are submitted anonymously. 

The 2024 resident survey provided valuable insight for Peterborough Cultural Alliance members, helping us understand what events residents take part in or why they don’t – how it makes them feel, or why people don’t currently feel connected to creativity, arts and heritage. Our city loves music, theatre and cinema. Park and greenspaces and historic sites are popular destinations, and culture makes you feel connected to others and happier. 

By taking part this year, you can help us better understand what matters to you and where we can make more meaningful creative opportunities for people. 

For more information and to take part in the survey visit www.be-heard-pbo.com