York makes bid for Unesco city of media status

The ancient city, loved for its Roman and Viking history, wants to celebrate its achievements in the technology of the future.

Achieving the status would see it join about 25 others around the world in the Creative Cities Network run by Unesco, the UN's cultural arm, which is designed to promote social, economic and cultural development in both the developed and developing world.

Those accepted to the network, which was launched in 2004, are designated creative cities in particular fields, with Edinburgh a Creative City of Literature, Glasgow a City of Music, and Bradford the world's only City of Film. All are required to develop and maintain activities which help make creativity an essential element of local economic and social development as well as and sharing innovation and expertise around the world.

York is looking to become a City of Media Arts, second only to Lyon in France. Its bid is based around the fact a large proportion of the city's businesses work in the creative media arts sector.

York City Council head of arts and culture Gill Cooper said: "Everybody knows York for its history but what many people don't realise is that its creative community is a cultural powerhouse. The universities, digital companies, IT, media, arts, graphic designers – one-in-five of the city's businesses operates in the creative industry Our bid is based around the fact that we want to tell people that York isn't just about Nestle and tourism."

York's bid is being co-ordinated by York@Large, the city's creative partnership.

But the announcement of its plans come in the wake of news that Bradford's City of Film scheme had to scale back its projects because of the recession and now faces seeing its main funding axed, raising questions over whether it can be sustained. Ms Cooper said the team behind the York bid met their Bradford counterparts to see what lessons could be learned.

The Yorkshire Post reported earlier this month Bradford's successful bid to become Unesco's first City of Film last June did not received the financial backing it had hoped for.

It received council funding of 200,000 over two years, along with 15,000 from Yorkshire Forward, which is being abolished, and a once-only grant from Screen Yorkshire. As Government spending cuts bite, the main council funding could now be lost.

Ms Cooper said the York bid will be put together with minimal funding and, if successful, will not need to rely as much on continuing financial support.

"Our whole bid is based around the fact that there is already an infrastructure here surrounding the creative industries and it's about looking at how that can be supported and built upon."

York's bid will be submitted to Unesco next summer, when a nine-month process will begin.

The bid, co-ordinated by Ms Cooper, will be put together by a team which includes Pilot Theatre artistic director Marcus Romer, Matt Lazenby who runs a graphic design company in the city, Tom Sharp who runs an advertising business, and Helen Niven, creative industry officer for Science City York.