Artists and organisations in Ealing have joined forces to back the council's bid to become Borough of Culture 2019, which could make it a “destination borough”.
Ealing Council wants to create a year of culture that would include “eye-catching events for local people”, which could attract visitors from London, the UK and overseas.
The Borough of Culture is selected based on a variety of different categories, but the competition values events funded and organised by the community – such as the Hanwell Carnival.
Backing the borough's bid, a spokesman for The Event Umbrella – a company which has worked with Ealing Council for 10 years – said people would be “surprised how much culture Ealing has”.
Culture in Ealing
The company runs the nationally recognised Ealing Summer Festivals and oversees all events that takes place on council land.
Alex Duncan, of The Event Umbrella, said: “There is no one identity synonymous with Ealing, which is the borough's greatest strength.
“Take the time to explore, learn and witness what there actually is out there and as long as you keep an open mind, I think you'll be surprised by what you find and how much culture Ealing has.”
Also supporting the council's efforts is Afghan Academy International, which has found support within the borough as it raises awareness of their culture.
Assiya Amini, co-founder of the company, said: “Ealing's culture represents the UK's multi-cultural society as one unit.
“It, therefore, can offer various opportunities to show community cohesion and cooperation, which is particularly crucial during these times.
“For me, [winning] would provide further opportunity to initiate and work on artistic projects, showcase Afghan art and culture, as well as to build strong partnerships with other stakeholders.”
There is less than a month until boroughs have to submit their bid for Borough of Culture 2019 and Alex said he saw the importance of winning the title.
He added: “Winning Borough of Culture would enable everyone who participated to make Ealing a 'destination borough'.
“It would be a fantastic reward for all those people that have lived and worked within the culture sector in Ealing for even longer than I have.”
Local residents can show their support for Ealing's bid by completing a short survey, up until the Sunday November 26 deadline.
If you have any ideas about what Ealing’s bid should involve or would like to join the Ealing Arts Forum, you can email culture@ealing.gov.uk before the end of November.
Keep up to date with the latest news in west London via the free getwestlondon app.
You can set up your app to see all the latest news and events from your area, plus receive push notifications for breaking news.
Available to download from the App Store or Google Play for Android .
