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Summer fun with a new free smartphone app created especially for MK – Discovering MK

Discovering MK is a new smartphone app launching on 31st July 2017. Celebrating MK’s 50th birthday year, the app encourages residents and visitors to get out and explore Milton Keynes, discovering the places and spaces that make this city unique.

Inspired by the Pokémon Go craze, the Discovering MK app reveals an interactive trail of 50 hidden gems around the city.  At each location along the trail, you can unlock information about the landmark, challenge yourself, your family and friends to a fun mini quiz and upload a ‘selfie’ to show you are there.  With a range of competitions and prize draws through the year, we hope you join in and share your selfies on social media.

Developed by Arts & Heritage Alliance MK (AHA-MK) and MK21, the free app, available via Google Play and Apple Store, commemorates Milton Keynes 50th Anniversary and celebrates this unique and diverse city.

We have been able to produce this app for free due to the support of various funders.  This includes a Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) Sharing Heritage grant, awarded to AHA-MK.  This exciting project, Discovering MK, created especially for Milton Keynes has been given £9,000 to develop this app with a cohort of volunteers, to showcase the heritage and landmarks of the city.  AHA-MK thanks National Lottery players, who make HLF grants possible.  Milton Keynes Community Foundation, MK Council and Santander Cycles have also supported the project generously.

Francesca Skelton, Chair of AHA-MK said:

We are delighted to launch this exciting new app inviting residents, families and visitors to share our Discovering MK adventure this summer.  The app features both known, and more hidden, modern and historical landmarks that tell the story of contemporary Milton Keynes and its heritage. We hope you all have fun!

Perfect for family days out and summer fun, the app can be completed on a leisurely stroll or a fast pace cycle ride using MK’s extensive network of redways and the Santander Cycles MK scheme.

You may not realise it, but there are so many unexpected surprises in Milton Keynes. To uncover them all, the trail is split into five areas, exploring Milton Keynes’ modern and heritage buildings, rich history, iconic public art and blooming woodlands and parks.

The challenge has been set – can you unlock all 50 landmarks around the city?

You can share your journey on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using #DiscoveringMK.

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Audience Development Consultant Brief

The Arts & Heritage Alliance Milton Keynes (AHA-MK) is looking for a consultant(s) that can work with a collective of arts and heritage organisations to inform and support development of strategies that diversify, broaden and/or deepen their audiences.

AHA-MK is a strategic forum of arts and heritage organisations in Milton Keynes.  We are a membership organisation that aims to represent, develop and promote the arts and heritage sectors of Milton Keynes.  A key area of our work is audience development.

A group of organisations from our membership have come together to form a collective interested in practical audience development activity.  The collective have attempted some work using surveys and the Audience Finder approach, but are in need of greater support to develop their knowledge and understanding and to make a meaningful difference to their audience development practice.

AHA-MK is looking for a consultant(s) who can work with six cultural organisations to develop audience research techniques, create bespoke solutions to meet challenges and opportunities, and support organisations through implementation and evaluation.  This contract requires a hands-on approach embedding best practice and developing understanding of audience development theory through mentoring and practical experience.

The deadline for applications is: 18th December 2015.

For more information and details of how to apply please download the full brief: MK Audiences Consultant brief final.

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Heritage Open Days, 11th – 14th September

Cowper and Newton MuseumThis year Heritage Opens Days is bigger than ever. With 50 FREE events to choose from you’ll be spoilt for choice.  Use this oppotunity to explore somewhere new, learn about a new place or visit somewhere you have never been before.

Click the link below to view the brochure: http://www.livingarchive.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/MK-HODS-2014final.pdf

The Milton Keynes Heritage Open Days website is here: http://www.mkheritage.org.uk/hodmk/

 

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#MadeinMK launched at MK Gallery ‘Cadences’ preview

Made in MK LogoOur Made in MK summer programme, back by popular demand for 2014, was launched at the MK Gallery ‘Cadences’ preview on 26th June 2014.

Between 26th June and 14th September Made in MK will showcase the unmissable events that are taking place in Milton Keynes.

There are opportunities to come along to exhibitions, workshops, open days, craft events and performances. Made in MK will appeal to all ages and many events will be free. The larger events within Made in MK include the International Festival, MK Festival Fringe and the Walking with Giants Parade, MK Gallery’s summer show, World Picnic, Art in the Park cultural festival Proms in the Park and Heritage Open Days.

In the next few weeks look out for Love Milton Keynes photography exhibition at MK Hospital (http://mkartsforhealth.org.uk), Shakespeare in the Park – 4th July at Willen Lake (http://www.theparkstrust.com), Westbury Fair – 5th July at Westbury Arts Centre (http://www.westburyartscentre.co.uk), MK Museum Country Fair – 13th July at MK Museum (http://www.mkmuseum.org.uk), MK Disability Awareness Day – 13th July at MK Rose (http://www.theparkstrust.com) and much, much more.  Do take a look at our listings page for the whole programme.

To find out more about the full event programme across the summer visit www.aha-mk.org/MadeinMK. You can also follow Made in MK on Twitter using #MadeinMK or find us on Facebook and hear about our events on MKFM.

Made in MK is being co-ordinated by the Arts and Heritage Alliance Milton Keynes (AHA-MK), with support from its members and MK Council.  Media partners are MK Citizen, MKFM and TotalMK.

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Join us on the 5th March…

…for ‘Celebrating our Post-War Architectural Heritage’ with James Smith and ‘Learning About Commissioning’ with Richard Hollinshead at City Discovery Centre (MK13 9AP) on 5th March.

Download the AHA Flyer 05 03 14 for full details.

With an encyclopaedic knowledge of New Towns and their development, James has completed signature projects in communities such as Corby, Milton Keynes, Hatfield, Luton, and most recently Harlow. Picking out often unnoticed or overlooked architectural detail; James’ photography looks at the cityscape in a brand new way. 

Richard currently acts as Public Art Officer for Milton Keynes Council (during Louise Izod’s maternity leave), and is Senior Lecturer in Sculpture and Spatial Practice at the University of Northampton. His talk will focus on the use a small number of case studies to open a discussion about the commissioning of public art for heritage sites.

Members meeting starts at 10am, for non-members James will begin at 11.15am.  Lunch is included.

Please RSVP to: aha-mk@milton-keynes.gov.uk

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Made in MK 2013 Highlights

Black Feathers MK Arts Centre

  • Made in MK took place between 28th June and 15th September 2013.
  • Through this project the Arts and Heritage Alliance – Milton Keynes (AHA-MK) provided the collective marketing umbrella for 150 events across the Borough of Milton Keynes – these included workshops and courses, exhibitions, dance, heritage activities, performance and fringe activity in the public realm.
  • Activities were delivered by over 40 organisations from AHA-MK and Milton Keynes Heritage Association (MKHA) membership and beyond.
  • Over this three-month period Made in MK attracted nearly 50,000 attendees.
  • MK Festival Fringe, Proms in the Park and the Arts and Culture Festival (in Campbell Park) all recorded increased audiences in comparison to last year
  • AHA-MK commissioned five new artworks, designed to celebrate Milton Keynes, which were displayed in and around the city centre during the summer
  • Through working with media partners MKFM and MK Citizen we ensured that Made in MK received significant press coverage and Destination Milton Keynes hosted all our listings online.

The level of collaboration and co-operation shown by our members and partners continues to impress us – we are working hard to make this process as easy as possible.  SoC 2012 was a pioneering year, which proved to the sectors the value of working together on a large-scale joint venture and Made in MK has allowed these relationships to develop even further.  By pulling together in this way, MK arts and heritage organisations are able to achieve a critical mass, and promote a cultural offer that spans the Borough.

Drawing Machine

Funding for this project came from four sources:

  • Arts Council England with match funding from the MK Collection
  • We secured £5,000 from MK Community Foundation to allow us to offer 5 commissions to artists (and further commissions were offered by MK Festival Fringe), with a brief to celebrate Milton Keynes and engage members of the public.
  • MK Council also provided funding for the production and distribution of marketing materials, in recognition that we were continuing the legacy of SoC on a significantly smaller budget.

Organisations involved in AHA-MK have told us that they were very pleased to be involved in this project:

‘Made in MK’ provided a strong legacy for the 2012 Summer of Culture programme, contributing to Milton Keynes’ aspiration to be distinctive and World Class.  (David Hill, MK Council) 

The Gallery was delighted to support the ‘Made in MK’ campaign.  Thematically, it linked perfectly with our summer exhibition and events programme ‘MK Calling’ (Katharine Sorensen, MK Gallery)

‘Made in MK’ played an important role in helping to bring many of the disparate creative programmes across MK together into one cohesive audience offer. (Jessica Rost, MK Festival Fringe)

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Annual Report 2012 -13

Godiva Awakes

AHA-MK exists to promote, develop and represent the arts and heritage of Milton Keynes.

How do we do it?

We promote, lobby and represent… We support, develop and train… We network, share and inform… Above all we collaborate.

This year our members have contributed to:

  • Over 5,000 inspiring events in Milton Keynes
  • 1,241,370 visits made to them
  • £18,250,000 of turnover
  • 1,600 workshops for participants of all ages
  • 1,700 volunteering opportunities

With a mission to bring together organisations that create exciting experiences in art and heritage, AHA-MK promotes Milton Keynes’  unique identity to local,regional and national audiences.

Achievements 2012 – 13
  • Contributed to a successful Summer of Culture, which drew in 161,000 attendees and produced a total economic impact of £6.4m gross.
  • Supported MK Festival Fringe in delivering their biggest festival yet, including street performance, theatre, dance, music, workshops and the first ever MK Walking with Giants Parade.
  • Advocated on behalf of members, e.g. by contributing to MK Council’s consultations on assessing the community’s health and well-being, business rate relief, and the development of a Local Infrastructure Plan.
  • Celebrated members’ work and their venues through Heritage Open Days and Arts and Heritage Open Places.
  • Secured Arts Council England funding to develop a Summer of Culture legacy project to encourage cross-programming and cross-marketing.
  • Delivered CPD sessions addressing the interface between museums and the arts, digital engagement, audience segmentation, how arts and heritage organisations can best work with schools, the Summer of Culture legacy, and the joys and sorrows of governance.

 

AHA-MK Annual Report 2012 – 2013
www.aha-mk.org / chair@aha-mk.org
All information relates to the accounting year April 2012 – March 2013