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March 2, 2017The team behind Paisley’s bid to be Uk City of Culture 2021 have wished all the best to their fellow bidders as the list of competitors was today confirmed.
The UK Government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport today published the list of bidding places, after the deadline for entries passed on Tuesday.
Paisley will be joined in the competition by 10 other places – Perth, Coventry, Sunderland, Stoke-on-trent, Hereford, Portsmouth, Warrington, Wells, Swansea and St David’s in Wales.
The Renfrewshire town is bidding for the cultural title as part of wider plans to use its unique heritage and cultural assets to transform its future.
At the heart of Paisley’s bid will be its unique story as the one-time centre of the global textile industry, and home of the world-renowned Paisley Pattern.
Paisley 2021 bid director Jean Cameron said: “Through this competition, DCMS are giving places across the UK a wonderful opportunity to harness the incredible power of culture to make people’s lives better, and we are thrilled to be part of it.
“The next few months will be hugely exciting for all involved, and we would like to send our very best wishes to all the other towns and cities joining us on that journey.
“Paisley has been working on its bid for more than a year now and the support displayed by the people of Renfrewshire has been incredible – and we want our bid to reflect that.”
Although Paisley is not technically a city, the competition is open to large towns and urban areas. Bids are due to be lodged with DCMS by the end of April, with a shortlist to be announced in the summer and the winner at the end of the year.
Since Paisley’s bid was launched in November 2015, the team behind it has had more than 8,000 conversations with members of the local community.
The bid has also received high-profile backing from Paisley-born cultural figures such as Paolo Nutini, John Byrne, Gerard Butler and Andrew Neil.
There has also been support from more than 150 local businesses, including big names such as Glasgow Airport, intu Braehead and the University of the West of Scotland.
More information is at www.paisley2021.co.uk
