Wrexham's Councillors have approved plans to submit a bid for City of Culture status for 2025 and have agreed to explore submitting a bid for city status.
Wrexham Council's Executive Board, meeting today (Tuesday), approved a recommendation to bid for City of Culture and they have also agreed to explore putting in a bid for city status for Wrexham for 2022.
The council last bid for City Status in 2012 but councillors feel Wrexham has a strong case this time round, given it is the biggest town in North Wales.
A report exploring the bid for city status will now be prepared and brought back to a future Executive Board meeting. Deadline submission of any bid for city status is December.
The city status bid proposal has received the backing of local Conservative MP's Sarah Atherton (Wrexham) and Simon Baynes (Clwyd South).
Ahead of the meeting, Sarah Atherton said: “Wrexham is the largest town in North Wales, a regional engine for economic growth and job creation with the largest industrial estate in Wales, an educational hub with excellent centres such as Glyndwr University and Coleg Cambria, and a town with a rich heritage and strong identity.
"Successful city status and City of Culture bids will only further raise Wrexham’s economic, social and cultural profile, bringing in further investment, whilst creating welcomed jobs and opportunities for all.
"Nonetheless, I am mindful of some of the concerns of residents across the town and I will be making sure their voices are heard in this process too.”
While Mr Baynes said: “Maximising the economic and cultural benefits for Wrexham and the wider county borough will be crucial as we recover together as a community from Covid-19.
"Both of these bids represent real opportunities to turbo-charge our local economy, support our culture and heritage and make the Wrexham area a very attractive place for investment and long-term projects.
"So I’m very supportive of the Council’s approach as they start to engage with local groups and residents to determine what this could mean for the future of Wrexham and the wider area. These bids have my full support.”
