STONELEIGH ARMS

The Stoneleigh Arms Arts Space will be a community arts space that puts the visual arts at the centre of Leamington Spa’s cultural offering. It will be run by Lighthaus Arts CIC, an organisation with excellent credentials in creating community arts spaces. We will invite and encourage all sectors of society to be part of the visual arts community, offer support and guidance to practitioners, and create an inspiring, must-visit cultural destination for the general public.

We have already created an amazing community gallery at the LSA Art Room. Given the freedom and backing to expand our offerings, we will create a space that is inviting, educational, inspiring and engaging, giving back to the community around us.

OUR VISION

The Stoneleigh Arms will not be the stark white walled art space of old. It will be warm and welcoming, avoiding the intimidating atmosphere of some others. The Stoneleigh Arms will become a living, breathing arts space and cultural destination, showcasing the incredible array of talent that we have in Leamington Spa and the surrounding areas.

OUR MISSION

We aim to diversify access to the visual arts and bring in more areas of our vibrant community to be part of their local arts scene. We believe that access to the visual arts creates bridges between communities, opportunities for collaboration, and benefits the wider community. We will support those who normally feel the arts are “not for them” to discover its benefits.

As a CIC occupying and running this space, we aim to encourage, enable, develop, mentor, inspire, facilitate, empower and support our community - local creative arts practitioners and general public from Leamington Spa and surrounding areas - to engage with the arts.

We will also give support in building a career within the arts through classes and mentoring, with a priority given to:

• People suffering though low socioeconomic or financial hardships
• People on parental leave or parent to a young child /children under 4 years
• People with mental health barriers
• People suffering from institutional barriers
• Care leavers
• Vulnerable adults and young people

We will do this through a number of income streams, including - but not limited to - a members’ gallery, shared artist studio space, private artist studios, events, a retail shop, workshops, a ceramics studio with classes and a number of hireable spaces.