Electric Pink Voices – Storytelling through film and song
We’re thrilled to announce that Electric Pink Voices has received National Lottery funding to continue for another two years! This vital support means we can keep singing, growing, and connecting through 2025 and 2026 — with a powerful new focus on storytelling through film and song.
Over the next two years, we’ll be exploring LGBTQ+ history, culture, and identity through a creative programme that blends music-making with film nights, and conversations. We’ll look at stories from across the community — both local and global — using our voices to express resilience, pride, and solidarity.
We’re especially excited to partner with the Blackpool Film Festival to create a new strand of sing a long events, combining music and film to spark dialogue and celebrate queer voices past and present. These events will give us the chance to connect with the wider community, learn from each other’s stories, and bring joy to the heart of the town.
This project is rooted in Blackpool’s LGBTQ+ Village Quarter and supports the town’s wider regeneration efforts, including Blackpool Council’s Be Who You Want To Be campaign. We’re working closely with local partners including Blackpool Libraries, Aunty Social, and Queer Amusements, to share resources, build community, and reach those who need support the most.
Together, we’ll keep creating space for LGBTQ+ people and allies to come together, share their voices, and feel seen. We know this work matters — especially in a town where creative, inclusive spaces can be hard to find. Thanks to this funding, Electric Pink Voices can continue to be a lifeline of connection, joy, and pride.
If you’re curious about what we’re up to, want to sing with us, or get involved in any way, keep an eye on our updates — this is just the beginning of a brilliant new chapter.
Electric Pink Voices – Voices Weaving
Phill was invited to musical direct Electric Pink Voices creating new music making, led by Creative producer Holly Hunter and composer Michael Betteridge.
Electric Pink Voices participated in this high-quality co-creation project that provided more young writers with the opportunity to write for choral music, as well as develop skills in co-creation facilitation.
Electric Pink Voices co-created a new queer choral work that will feed into Holly and Michael’s Voices Weaving digital songbook, which will represent and reflect the range and breadth of what community singing is in the UK today.
Electric Pink Voices – Know Your Neighbourhood
Phill is creative producer and musical director for Electric Pink Voices, Blackpool’s LGBTQ+ choir, previously supported by Creative Lives, who managed a major new grants scheme for voluntary creative groups in England, as part of the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund created by the UK Government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Know Your Neighbourhood aims to increase volunteering, tackle loneliness, and improve community wellbeing in priority areas across England. Creative Lives distributed 16 partnership awards throughout the two-year programme, totalling nearly £750,000 of new investment in everyday creativity.
With this support and capacity we have partnered with:
The Old Electric. Blackpool’s newest community arts space, providing a unique location for creativity just a stone’s throw from the town’s iconic promenade. Offering shows to enjoy, activities to take part in, opportunities to learn, develop and grow, plus many more experiences besides, our purpose is to ensure that arts and creativity is accessible for all Blackpool communities.
Leo&Hyde. Leo&Hyde are a futuristic arts company, working in music, theatre and digital across the North West. From queer VR musicals to AI sci-fi walking tours, to outdoor projection, their work seeks to push boundaries – and this is true of their cutting-edge community engagement programme too. Their queer-led team will be able to deliver a wide range of enticing new workshops that will stand-out to the target participants.
Blackpool Central Library. Blackpool Library Service is a local authority run library service which serves the people of Blackpool. They operate an At Home Library Service for those, who through age or infirmity, are unable to access our libraries. Libraries reside at the heart of communities and are a vital point of connection, diversity, and empathy. They are a trusted and safe space, welcoming to all. They have valuable connections throughout the town, beautiful spaces to accommodate group activities and skilled and experienced staff to help support the project.
Through the choir, the project will be closely followed to evaluate the impact of everyday creative activity on combating loneliness and increasing wellbeing. Creative Lives will share the important learning and robust evidence gathered from this fund across the sector.
Robin Simpson, Chief Executive of Creative Lives said: “Creative Lives is a national charity that celebrates, encourages and champions people expressing themselves creatively in their everyday lives and practising their creativity socially with other people. We are excited to see how our Know Your Neighbourhood Awards will deepen public understanding of how and why being creative with other people can decrease loneliness and increase wellbeing.”
Connect Community Choir – Singing by the Sea
Through the fundraising initiative SpaceHive, Connect Community Choir reached their target to offer free, joyful musical sessions to connect the generations in Lytham St Annes, reducing loneliness through the power of music and sharing memories, culminating in an uplifting theatre performance of songs, memories and laughter.
Loneliness and social isolation are challenges faced by many members of our community. Through ‘Singing by the Sea’, we’ll run a series of workshops with our older members, some of whom are living with dementia, and primary school groups. We’ll play and discuss members’ special songs, evoking positive memories and sharing life stories throughout the creative sessions, improving everyone’s confidence and wellbeing in a safe and supportive space. The newly formed group will chat and learn each others’ songs and gradually form friendships through singing and playful activities. They’ll create a unique new playlist and share stories through a public performance at our local theatre to celebrate their co-produced creative work. A videographer will digitally document the process and produce powerful mini shorts to be premiered at the final event forming a legacy to inspire future cross generational singing projects.
What we delivered:
- Workshops bringing together primary children with older members from a wellbeing choir
- Capturing the friendships formed and creating digital video interviews that feed into a production
- Co-producing a performance in a local theatre, sharing the stories and music from across the united cross generations
Why it’s a great idea:
The project : Connected members from the community, from young to older, giving participants a ‘sense of belonging and fun’ especially members feeling isolated, lonely or excluded in any way, by providing artistic opportunities for people to express themselves creatively in a safe, supportive and empowering environment. • Created a support network through the arts for members who want to boost their wellbeing and/or are experiencing loneliness, grief, physical and mental health conditions • Remove the barrier of commercial pricing which can exclude people on low incomes, as our activities are free, donations welcomed • Built confidence and self-esteem and provide opportunities for members to share their work in performance • Upskilled participants in their chosen art form • Reduce anxiety and improve health through a range of relaxation and mindfulness techniques and exercises at the start of sessions
Steps to get it done:
- Partnering with our local primary school class
- Delivering Soundtrack by the Sea creative sessions, collecting stories and songs
- Digitally capturing cross generational conversations
- Curating the music chosen and teaching the choirs
- Forming the cross generational choir for rehearsals
- Producing an aspirational performance for friends and family
We want to build on the research that has proved the social and health benefits of producing cross generational music projects: – Foster Inter-generational bonding and social connections – Offer opportunity for older people to share their life experiences and wisdom with younger generations – Young people will gain valuable insights and empathy from engaging with older individuals – Both age groups will have enhanced mental wellbeing through the power of creativity and self-expression – The project will reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation among our older members – Increase confidence and self-esteem of everyone -Develop a sense of purpose and fulfillment for everyone – Promote a sense of community and belonging among diverse age groups -Increase understanding of and appreciation for different perspectives and experiences – Improve communication skills and teamwork abilities across generations – Strengthen the overall wellbeing of the community by addressing mental health challenges
Connect Community Choir – Playlists for Life
Funded through Fylde Council, Phill and Jayne will be delivering training to create ‘A playlist of personally meaningful music supporting members mental health and wellbeing.’ Playlist for Life is a music and dementia charity. The vision is simple: they want everyone with dementia to have a unique, personalised playlist and everyone who loves or cares for them to know how to use it.
Over two decades of scientific research has shown that listening to a personalised playlist can improve the lives of those living with dementia. In fact, listening to music that is personally meaningful has many psychological benefits, meaning anyone can benefit from a playlist. Personalised playlists can:
- reduce anxiety
- improve your mood
- make difficult tasks more manageable
- evoke memories that can help families and carers connect.
Playlist for Life harnesses the powerful effects of personal music to help anyone who is affected by dementia, their families and carers. Whether it’s the music from a first dance, lullabies from childhood or a theme tune from a favourite TV show, music has the ability to take us back in time and remind us of our past, giving you that flashback feeling. Sharing your songs and memories can help people living with dementia connect with family, friends and carers.
Phill Fairhurst 