Future Local Lab
Local Government Explained
Local Elections England: 2026Local events and activities: Case studies and resources for local government
Sid Hayward, LGIU
Curated case studies on some of our favourite local festivals and events from around the globe, plus resources on some of the issues the events sector faces in 2024. Examples this week come from Northern Ireland and Ireland, the US, and Australia.
Curated case studies on some of our favourite local festivals and events from around the globe, plus resources on some of the issues the events sector faces in 2024. Examples this week come from Northern Ireland and Ireland, the US, and Australia.
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Policy innovation and inspiration examples from the local government sector
Northern Ireland: Award winning cultural festival works to develop intercultural relationships
Belfast Mela was launched in 2007 to provide a shared, inclusive space for all of the city’s communities to express their cultural identity and celebrate diversity, and has since become one of Northern Ireland’s largest arts festivals, with up to 60,000 visitors taking part. The Mela, partly funded by Belfast City Council, brings together music, dance, arts and food from across the world, and has received awards for its community and cultural importance. This year’s festival is based on a theme of “People, Place and Planet”, and will bring together over 200 events, workshops and activities.
Belfast City Council / ArtsEkta / Community Relations
USA: Florida festival supports urban arts programming from front porches
Jacksonville Porchfest is a free live music festival held annually in Historic Springfield, Florida. First launched in 2014, the porchfest sees musicians from a wide variety of genres perform across front porches throughout the historic Jacksonville district. The festival is run by a non-profit dedicated to improving the quality of life in the district, with the proceeds of the Porchfest benefitting arts programming in the neighbourhood. It also aims to bring attention to Springfield’s historic architecture and revitalisation efforts, alongside local food and drink businesses.
Jacksonville Porchfest
Ireland: Festival celebrates origins of Halloween
The ancient pagan festival of Samhain (‘summer’s end’) is celebrated each year at the Púca Festival in County Meath, Ireland. Some of Ireland’s most historic places bring their own unique twist to the celebrations, be it illuminated castle walls and an “Arrival of the Spirits” procession in the heritage town of Trim, or a foraging walking tour on the Hill of Ward. Celebrations of this festival are believed to have been going on for over 2,000 years. Now, the contemporary Púca Festival offers four nights of music, comedy and Halloween spectacle, blending street performance, live music, outdoor theatre and a celebration of Samhain folklore.
Púca Festival
Australia: Melbourne’s Food and Wine Festival hosts the ‘World’s Longest Lunch’
Held annually since 1993, the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival sets out to promote Victoria’s food and wine culture while playing host to local food heroes and unique dining experiences for the public. The ten-day festival opens with its signature ‘World’s Longest Lunch’, where a celebrated local chef serves an extravagant three-course lunch across more than 600 metres of table in a central Melbourne park. Other events include the new ‘World’s Longest Brunch’ and a dinner series from some of Melbourne’s greatest chefs named “Dan”, alongside 300 other pop-up dinners, bake sales, Q&As and more.
Melbourne Food & Wine
Report: Soundcheck: Insights into Australia’s music festival sector
What social, cultural and economic challenges is the music festival industry facing post-pandemic and amid rising operational costs and extreme weather events? This report examines the scope and scale of the industry in Australia, and provides a first-of-its-kind benchmark for measuring and understanding the sector now and into the future.
Report: Visitor Attractions and Events: Responding to Seasonality
This paper explores the issue of seasonality in the tourist sector. It tackles how attraction managers in particular can develop and run special events as a tool to address seasonality. As part of this, the report finds, the local community must be a key source market for special events.
Report: Cornerstones of culture: Commission on Culture and Local Government
This report brings together evidence of how local culture contributes towards more resilient places, social mobility, addressing health inequalities and inclusive economic recovery. It argues that local culture can help deliver these agendas and underlines the vital role that councils have to play in supporting local cultural infrastructure and as organisers.
Resource: Donut Advisory Toolkit (Events)
This tool aims to help local authorities in the UK assess an event’s community, accessibility and environmental sustainability impacts. Developed by an industry consultant and environmental sustainability groups and supported by Cheltenham Borough Council, the toolkit helps councils ensure they are meeting their commitments to climate as well as other social priorities.
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