Overview
Keele Deal | Culture is a pioneering partnership launched in 2019 between Keele University and local cultural, civic, and business stakeholders. Designed to unlock the potential of Keele’s cultural assets for public good, the Deal provides a strategic framework for collaborative action across North Staffordshire.
In its first three years, the initiative delivered 165 cultural events, engaged 265,000 people, supported 86 creative and cultural enterprises, and generated over £240,000 in funding for local partners. By combining Keele’s academic expertise, civic mission and creative networks with local ambitions, the Deal has helped catalyse long-term investment in the area’s cultural economy, including the formation of Stoke Creates CIC, a major new vehicle for creative collaboration across the region.
The Challenge
When Keele Deal | Culture launched, the region faced a number of intertwined challenges:
- There was a shortage of infrastructure and support for creative SMEs and cultural entrepreneurs to develop and grow.
- The student and graduate creative talent in the area lacked clear pathways to stay locally and contribute to the cultural economy.
- Key areas required cultural regeneration, meaning public arts and creative place-making were not yet embedded in the social fabric of certain localities.
- A need existed for stronger cultural education, creative skills development, and research‑informed leadership.
Keele Deal | Culture was formed to address these priorities by aligning partners around shared goals: anchoring creative culture in local life, boosting SME growth, enhancing creative education, and embedding cultural engagement in place-based regeneration.
Partnerships
Keele Deal | Culture exemplifies the power of university–community partnership, bringing together a wide range of partners from across the region’s cultural landscape. Core partners include:
- Stoke-on-Trent City Council
- Arts Council England
- Stoke Creates CIC – established in partnership with Keele Deal Culture and now operating as a Cultural Compact to develop a shared vision for arts and culture in Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire
- ArtsKeele – providing a vibrant arts program including art exhibitions, music, poetry, and public lectures at Keele University
- New Vic Theatre, Appetite, the V&A Wedgwood Collection, and the Ironbridge Gorge Museums Trust – representing live performance, community arts, heritage, and museum learning.
- YMCA North Staffordshire
- Local arts organisations, schools, and creative freelancers
The initiative’s collaborative approach has helped secure major investment, including an Arts Council England Cultural Development Fund Capital Grant for a heritage-led cultural regeneration project. Keele has played a leading role in Stoke Creates CIO, the city’s Cultural Compact, shaping place-based strategies and funding bids in partnership with the cultural sector.
Research and Innovation
Keele plays a leading role in driving cultural innovation and creative growth across the region, with research and development embedded at the heart of its approach.
- Cultural policy: The Keele Institute for Social Inclusion (KISI) affiliated to Keele Deal Culture, supports inclusive cultural governance, co-developing research-informed strategies with local stakeholders.
- Creative business support: Creative SMEs benefit from Keele’s enterprise support, including incubation space, research collaboration, and specialist advice on innovation and growth.
- Student and graduate engagement: Keele’s students contribute to the cultural workforce through placements, internships, and creative commissions.
- Collaborative research funding: Academic community partnerships have led to new funding for co-produced projects that explore heritage, identity, and place.
This integrated approach positions Keele as a driver of cultural research and development, embedding innovation into the region’s long-term creative growth.
Impact
Keele Deal | Culture has delivered significant cultural and economic value:
- Engagement: 265,000 people participated in 165 cultural events supported through the Deal
- Enterprise: 86 creative businesses supported, with a focus on innovation and growth
- Funding: £241,000 in cultural funding unlocked for local partners
- Policy & leadership: Key role in forming Stoke Creates CIO, and shaping the city’s Cultural Compact
- National recognition: Enabled successful major grant bids, including Arts Council funding for cultural infrastructure projects
Together, these outcomes reinforce Keele’s role as a civic university championing inclusive, place-based cultural regeneration. The Deal continues to provide a platform for transformative collaboration, connecting creative people, organisations, and ideas across North Staffordshire.
