Key Points
- Danielle Marshall has been appointed as the director of Croydon’s Creative People and Places (CPP) programme.
- The initiative is backed by £750,000 in funding from Arts Council England over a three-year period running from April 2026.
- The consortium managing the project aims to raise an additional £180,000 across the three-year duration.
- The Croydon CPP consortium comprises Stanley Arts, the Asian Resource Centre of Croydon, the Croydon BME Forum, and Croydon Council.
- Marshall’s professional background includes roles at Circulate London, Battersea Arts Centre, The Albany, the 2022 Commonwealth Games, and Wandsworth’s 2025 Borough of Culture programme.
- The programme aims to place cultural decision-making authority directly into the hands of historically under-represented local communities.
Croydon (South London News) November 6, 2026 – Former BRIT School student Danielle Marshall has been named as the new director of Croydon’s Creative People and Places (CPP) programme, a £750,000 initiative financed by Arts Council England. Formed in April 2026, the local CPP project is governed by a consortium consisting of Stanley Arts, the Asian Resource Centre of Croydon, the Croydon BME Forum, and Croydon Council. The three-year scheme aims to transfer cultural decision-making authority to local populations that have historically been under-represented in artistic leadership. In addition to the main funding provided by Arts Council England, the managing consortium confirmed that it hopes to secure a further £180,000 in supplementary funding over the course of the three-year delivery period.
- Key Points
- Who Is Danielle Marshall and What Is Her Professional Experience?
- What Are the Stated Objectives of the Croydon Creative People and Places Programme?
- What Is the Background of Croydon’s Arts Funding and Public Cultural Delivery?
- How Can This Development Affect Local Residents, Artists, and Community Groups in Croydon?
Who Is Danielle Marshall and What Is Her Professional Experience?
Danielle Marshall brings an extensive background in cultural project management and community arts production to her new position as director of Croydon’s CPP. Having attended the BRIT School during her early education, Marshall subsequently spent six years serving as a producer for Circulate London, another initiative funded by Arts Council England.
Her career history also encompasses work as a producer for the cultural programme surrounding the 2022 Commonwealth Games hosted in Birmingham. Furthermore, Marshall has held professional positions at both The Albany and Battersea Arts Centre, where she managed co-creation initiatives alongside creative development schemes aimed at young people, local communities, and independent artists. Most recently, Marshall served as the cultural producer for Welcome to Wandsworth during that south London borough’s designation as London’s Borough of Culture in 2025.
What Are the Stated Objectives of the Croydon Creative People and Places Programme?
The primary framework of the Creative People and Places model, as established by Arts Council England, is designed to empower local communities to take charge of cultural choices within their immediate geographic areas. According to official statements from Arts Council England, the project is structured to put “cultural decision-making in the hands of some of Croydon’s historically under-represented communities.”
Commenting on her appointment, Marshall stated:
“Growing up locally, I know how much creativity exists here, and how much can go unrecognised.”
Addressing her ambitions for the multi-year programme, Marshall added:
“I’m excited to work with Croydon’s communities to build an ambitious cultural programme that reflects the borough’s energy, talent and imagination. Communities historically under-represented in cultural decision-making will lead decisions about the programme, with opportunities for everyone to take part. I want us to create ambitious, relevant work that makes space for unexpected ideas, with local people holding real influence.”
Institutional backing for Marshall’s leadership has been expressed by the leadership of the managing consortium. Louisa Bartlett-Pestell, Chief Executive Officer of Stanley Arts and Chair of Croydon CPP, described Marshall as “the ideal person” to steer the £750,000 initiative.
Arts Council England further outlined the core ethos of the scheme, confirming that “CPPs are empowering local people to pursue the art they want, where they live.”
What Is the Background of Croydon’s Arts Funding and Public Cultural Delivery?
The establishment of the £750,000 CPP initiative follows previous public-funded cultural ventures in the borough. The organisations forming the current CPP consortium—Stanley Arts, the Asian Resource Centre of Croydon, the Croydon BME Forum, and Croydon Council—were previously central to delivering Croydon’s London Borough of Culture programme in 2023.
That year-long cultural scheme was launched three months behind its initial schedule. During its delivery, the 2023 programme faced scrutiny over its allocation decisions, which included rejecting a funding application from local station Croydon FM on the grounds that it was “too ghetto,” while allocating municipal cultural funds to a business group to commission and display a herd of decorative plastic giraffes across the borough.
The current CPP scheme represents the latest major investment by Arts Council England into Croydon’s municipal arts infrastructure, seeking to restructure how public cultural funding is allocated and managed at a grassroots level from April 2026 through to 2029.
How Can This Development Affect Local Residents, Artists, and Community Groups in Croydon?
The appointment of Danielle Marshall and the rollout of the £750,000 Creative People and Places programme stand to directly impact several key demographic groups across the borough of Croydon over the next three years:
Local Community Members and Under-Represented Groups
Resident groups that have historically been excluded from formal arts management will gain direct access to decision-making boards and participatory funding processes. This shift means local residents will have formal authority over which cultural projects receive financial support, potentially shifting public arts offerings toward events and mediums that more accurately reflect the borough’s multicultural demographic.
Grassroots Artists and Cultural Organisations
Local creatives, performance artists, and youth workers may encounter expanded opportunities for project commissioning, co-creation programmes, and professional development. Given Marshall’s background at Battersea Arts Centre and The Albany in facilitating youth-led art, local practitioners may see increased structural support for grassroots, community-focused proposals.
Public Stakeholders and Local Taxpayers
For the wider public and institutional stakeholders, the execution of this project will serve as a measure of institutional accountability. Following the mixed reception and delivery delays associated with the 2023 Borough of Culture, the performance of the current consortium in managing public Arts Council funds will determine whether the CPP framework successfully delivers transparent, community-led cultural value through 2029.
