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Sandwell & Birmingham Mela

Start Date

Location

27/08/22

End Date

28/08/22

Smethwick, UK

One of the five Birmingham 2022 Large Festival Fund recipients, this event is a large community open event celebrating inclusion and diversity in Birmingham and Sandwell held over two days.

Sandwell & Birmingham Mela has been established over the past 9 years and 2022 will see
its 10th birthday. Since inception we have a strong track record and gained a reputation for
commissioning, curating and producing high-quality arts and cultural programming through
a one-off yearly event in July. Since 2013 we have been able to provide different and
increased strands of arts activities as a result of ACE support. Between 2016 and 2019 we
have focused on developing our audience by extending our reach, creating partnerships and
expanding our arts program to different forms. By doing this we are now the biggest Mela in
Europe and have been awarded Best Mela, Best Community Event and Best Outdoor
Production; a benchmark for others. 2018 we ventured into visual arts which was received
very well by our audience of 50,000 along with our outreach workshops which increased by
14% of non- Asian audiences. Our success story has allowed us to program the cultural and
arts activity for the ECB ICC fan zones in West Midlands for 2 years in a row; empowering us
to build our capacity and broaden the City’s cultural and artistic offer to others within a
sports platform. With all this, we have allowed young local talent to develop and gain
national reputation by using the Mela platform to create music and dance that collaborates
with international talent and hubs; resulting in 18 of those who are now professional artists’
touring. We believe our story is an inspiring one; led a small team of volunteers, having
engaged with over 0.5m people, now is the time to step up, activate our future leaders and
celebrate all that we have achieved – creating a legacy. The Mela is a truly inter-cultural
family event with something for every generation and community.

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1

Stakeholder Partners

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60000

Participants

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5

Social Coaches/Facilitators

Legacy Development Goals

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SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-Being

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SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-Being

UN SDGs circle.png

SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-Being

UN SDGs circle.png

SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-Being

UN SDGs circle.png

SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-Being

Videos

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Report

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Gallery

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