Wolverhampton one of 20 places to battle for City of Culture accolade
Wolverhampton is up against 19 other places as it bids to become the UK's next City of Culture.
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has announced that a record 20 places will vie for the title, which is being contested for the fourth time and is currently held by Coventry.
Joining Wolverhampton are other cities including Bradford, Derby, Southampton, Newport in Wales and Stirling in Scotland.
Other entrants have taken advantage of the contest being opened up to regions and groups of towns. They include Cornwall; the Welsh areas of Powys, Conwy, Wrexham county borough and Bangor; Lancashire, Great Yarmouth and East Suffolk; the Scottish borderlands region and Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon in Northern Ireland.
The DCMS says the contest uses culture as a catalyst for levelling up areas outside London, with entrants tasked with proving they can put culture at the heart of their plans to recover from the the pandemic.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said the record number of entries was testament to the "huge success of City of Culture in generating investment, creating jobs and boosting local pride".
"This prestigious prize creates a fantastic opportunity for towns and cities to build back better from the pandemic and I wish all bidders the very best of luck," he added.
Sir Phil Redmond, Chair of the City of Culture Expert Advisory Panel, said: "The three previous title holders have demonstrated the transformative and catalytic effect culture can bring about, even within places that have been ultimately unsuccessful but have gone on to develop collaborative and sustainable partnerships."
The bidders will be reduced to an initial long-list in the coming weeks and then cut down to a final shortlist early next year. The winner will be announced in May 2022.
Successful long-listed places will be awarded £40,000 to support their applications. Wolverhampton's bid has been submitted by the city council and backed by MPs, including government minister Gavin Williamson.
Council leader Ian Brookfield said winning the accolade had the potential to "fast-track our city’s growth, international profile and reputation".
Since becoming City of Culture, Coventry says it has attracted more than £100 million in capital investment to support cultural projects. It has also received £15.5m in government funding.
