In 2023/24, Heritage, Libraries and Arts welcomed:
12,612 Oldham Theatre Workshop Participant Visits
5209 visitors to Oldham Archives and Local Studies from April to November
31,116 social media followers
50,028 visitors to Gallery Oldham
766,947 visitors to Oldham Libraries
103,174 attendees across 5,026 events
“I’m not normally one to give feedback but praise where it is due, you’re smashing it out of the park!”
Great Start and Skills for Life
Collections, Creativity and Culture
- Curated 15 Exhibitions, and were the first venue on the regional tour of L.S. Lowry’s iconic painting, ‘Going to the Match’, visited by 14,194 people
- Delivered 26 Gallery Talks to 729 attendees Supported 37 Local History Groups and delivered Talks with over 704 attendees
- Handled 838 Local Studies and Archives enquiries, online, in-person and by phone, helping people discover their local and family history
- Commissioned 20 artists: supporting new work by local creatives
- Ran 24 Adult Art Classes with 502 participants
- Screened 25 Small Cinema shows which attracted 739 people
- Staged 68 Live@theLibrary performance events, reaching audiences over 2,450 attendees
- Delivered 7 large-scale multi-location events with total attendance over 28,400
Illuminate feedback – “It was absolutely breathtaking, just taking it all in now…we love this festival (and all of your festivals), think this one may be the winner though”
Literacy & Learning
- 246,797 Physical Books borrowed
- 112,502 Children’s Books
- 134,295 Adult Books
- 95,726 eBooks and Digital Audiobooks borrowed
- 201 Adult and children’s readers and writers group sessions with 1,219 overall participation
- 9 Author talks, 121 attendees
- Oldham’s first Children’s Literature Festival, with 2,320+ participant children & families
- GM City of Literature Festival 6 events and 142 attendees
- 2,030 Children took part in the Summer Reading Challenge
- 321 English Conversation Classes with 4,220 attendance
Under 5’s Offer:
- 25 GO Baby and GO Explorer sessions with 1,238 cumulative attendance
- 647 Bounce and Rhyme sessions with total attendance of 8,358 babies/toddlers and 7,668 parents/carers
- 64 other early years sessions with 2,606 accumulated attendance
Baby Art Studio – “thank you and Gallery Oldham in general, you have been a real life line for us this year, the events you put on have been amazing”
Schools Engagement:
- Welcomed 80 school and college visits to Gallery Oldham
- Delivered Gallery workshops for 2,579 children and young people
- 111 Class visits to Oldham libraries welcomed 3,134 children
- Arranged 51 class book swaps totalling 1,211 participant visits
- 3,357 school children enjoyed ‘The Wrong Reindeer’ Christmas show, at Oldham Library or in School, produced by Oldham Theatre Workshop in partnership with Oldham Coliseum
“Absolutely brilliant. I was captured by the imaginative production….”; “It was amazing! I saw it twice but wished I could see it a third time!”; “Absolutely fantastic! Thoroughly enjoyed.” (Three Times Table feedback)
Informal Learning Activities for Children and Families:
- 338 children accessed Holiday Activities and Food sessions over the Summer, Winter and Easter holidays
- 88 Making workshops attracted overall participation of 1,657
- 75 Summer Reading Challenge Events with 2,031 total attendees
Oldham Theatre Workshop delivered:
- 568 core programme workshops with 12,612 participant visits
- Live performances to a total audience of 15,317 people
- 24 children engaged in Listen to the Earth project, using holocaust education to explore tolerance themes through drama, creativity, and 5-day trip to Poland.
Better Jobs & Dynamic Business
Maximising Resources:
- Hosted 660 partner events
- Initiated 95 new partnership projects and/or service level agreements
- Successful applications for project and capital grant funding totalling over £834,500
Information and Digital
- 143,751 Digital loans
- 139,114 Online Database Sessions
- 95,599 PC sessions
- 42,692 Wi-Fi sessions at Oldham Library alone
- 1,302 Individual digital devices and data packages gifted
- 452 People completed Digital Skills sessions
- 276 People attended children’s digital sessions
Build a Business Programme:
- 73 Business events with 494 cumulative attendees, including Build a Business coffee morning talks and themed workshops
- 10 Start up Huddle Sessions with 227 attendees
- Supported 174 local businesses and entrepreneurs to develop, market and launch their products and services
Northmoor Library Visitor – “I came to this library and did many courses….especially the computer classes are very useful for me. I also like the English Conversation class very much. Many thanks to Oldham Council”
Healthy, Safe and Well supported residents
Health and Wellbeing
In 2023-24 we delivered:
- The Healthy New Year Festival; 5 Events across 2 days, with over 1,679 in attendance
- 161 health and wellbeing workshops, author events and classes with 5,563 recorded overall attendance
- 1,006 booked Sensory Room sessions and 16 Sensory Room showcase events
- And worked with 11 health specialist partners, including NHS, Oldham vs Arthritis, and Cancer Research UK
Concerning Healthy New Year Festival: “lots of great services and access to information and a very welcoming environment”
Workforce Development
- 163 volunteers donated 5,605 hours
- Over 55 HLA Staff attended Resident Focus in Action Training
- Awareness spotlights at full staff brief developed working knowledge of: Housing Options; Family Hubs; NHS App
- Development Officers received Digital Marketing and Social Media training
- HLA hosted 3 apprentices
Marketing and Advocacy and Community Outreach
- 2 Creativity & Cultural Forum events hosted to share creative and funding opportunities and nurture networking
- Monthly Artist newsletter with 147 distribution list
- Monthly Love HLA newsletter with 19,364 distribution list
- In early 2024 we launched a new integrated HLA Website hla.oldham.gov.uk
- 59,691 HLA and 12,457 OTW unique website visitors
- 70 Outreach events attended including digital drop-ins, school visits, Libraries of Sanctuary visit to the Victoria Hotel and careers events
A Clean and Green Future
Environmentally Responsible
- Garden project at Oldham Library developed from Oldham Brews, Biscuits and Banter group. Donation of a shed and equipment made by Kajima, soil from B&Q and had 4 regular volunteers
- 3 Gallery Exhibitions relating to Environmental Responsibility Awareness – Devotions to the Goddess Flora, Carboniferous Monsters, and Wild Colour – with 39,626 combined attendance
- Stopped buying felt-tip pens for children’s crafts to reduce plastics, and replaced with crayons
Project Case Example:
2023-2024 Innovations
Working with the Oldham West Indian Reading Friends Group, we invited participants of Caribbean origin to co-create an original artwork with textile artist Soleil Dee, using recycled fabrics, which has since been added to Gallery Oldham’s permanent collection
Build a Business enabled Zoe Bordiuk, local payment processing consultant service business owner, to significantly grow her customer base with a targeted and impactful marketing plan and a business support peer network
We hosted our first Early Years specific exhibition, ‘GO Play’, in partnership with two artists and funded by Arts Council England. This exhibition was co-curated with families and was a huge success with over 13,581 visitors and 770 people attending play sessions linked to the exhibition.
We secured €9,048 of Europe Challenge funding to support the wellbeing of South Asian women in Oldham, in partnership with CHAI Women’s Project, with our 5 Ways to Health Equality toolkit building programme
Service User Soundbites
Visitor Voice
Over almost four years you’ve been an ever present part of our growing family. […] we are really grateful for you”
“You always have high quality and interesting events”
“Lovely staff very welcoming to me as a homeless person, thanks for all the free coffee and a warm place to stay through the day”
“of all the archives we’ve visited, the Oldham Archives have been the most patient, engaging, helpful and productive”
“Children were entranced. Not sure who enjoyed it most, me or the little ones!”
“Brilliant session. Did brilliant craft. Helps with mental health. Brilliant group of people”