LIVERPOOL is in the midst of a cultural revolution according to the world’s leading creativity expert.

Sir Ken Robinson, who grew up in the city in the 1950s and now advises governments on culture and creativity, made the claim during a landmark meeting yesterday.

He addressed more than 60 political, business, art and culture leaders on how the city can build on the Capital of Culture success.

One of his main thoughts was how Liverpool had revolutionised itself from the bottom up and was continuing on a “culture revolution”.

Sir Ken said: “This year has clearly been a fantastic success in lots of ways. It’s easy to forget that two years ago there was a lot of scepticism, a lot of teething problems.

“There has been a frustration for a long time and a sense of decline but this has moved forward and the city is buoyant and a great, fun place to be.

“It’s one thing to have a party, one thing to have a year of culture but, to make a big change, you need to engage different groups and build on the success.”

He added: “When times get hard, that’s the time to be creative, not when things are going well. Liverpool has created a real buzz, the number of tourists shows what the city can do.

“The revolution in the city has turned things on its head and people’s expectations have risen.

“There are different cases and people want to work for themselves and build a good future, send their children to good schools, it all links together.”

He said culture was linked to urban planning and said: “Art is not a luxury, it’s about every sort of music, visual arts and how it connects with the city.”

He said money was often used as an excuse for not doing things, but insisted that it can be done without spending a lot of money.

“These are hard choices but I’m urging leaders to think and use examples which show that everything affects everything else.

“There is pride in the city and we need to make sure that is sustainable.”

The meeting was chaired by Phil Redmond, creative director of the Culture Company, and was attended by members of Liverpool’s Arts Regeneration Consortium.

After the address, the mayor of Liverpool, Cllr Steve Rotheram, said: “Sir Ken is saying there needs to be conversation about how Liverpool can sustain momentum. He never talked about a legacy, he talked about sustaining momentum which is what we need to do. A legacy lasts 12 months but Ken was talking about five, 15 years. In Liverpool it needs to be organic.”

OPINION: PAGE 6

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