About the Charity
The charity exists to support projects that promote creativity (especially all forms of creative writing) in and around Thanet. How much support we can offer depends on the generosity of our members, the time members volunteer, and any grants or funding we receive.
Thanet Creative, as a Charity, is very much a community-driven enterprise. It is run by our members for both members and non-members alike. However, members gain access to a number of benefits unique to our members (see below for more on that).
For the latest charity news and press releases please see the charity news page.
Open charity membership
Having a solid membership base is important to our aims as it allows us to address governments, local councils, funding bodies, and other large organisations on behalf of our members. The more members we have, the stronger a voice the charity will have for representing the interests of our members and the promotion of creative writing in Thanet.
Subject to a few common sense prerequisites, anyone interested in promoting creative writing in Thanet can become a member of the charity.
Charity Membership has five key benefits.
- The right to attend and vote at AGMs and to stand for election as a trustee.
- The right to apply to have your event or project listed as an official Thanet Creative project. Which means:
- The event or project will be listed and promoted on this site and in other materials published by Thanet Creative.
- Access to financial support (if we have the funds).
- Support and advice.
- Permission to put the words “Thanet Creative presents” on promotional material if you wish to.
- The option to use “Thanet Creative:” as part of your event or group name if you wish.
- The right to sponsor the membership of your friends and supporters.
- An open invitation to all official Thanet Creative events, even ones not open to the general public.
- Priority registration for events with limited places.
Requirements of membership
To be a member of the charity you will need one of the following:
- sponsored by existing members; or
- be present at the foundation of the charity; or
- added by elected trustees
and all of the following
- be interested in promoting creative writing in Thanet
- willing to be a member
- not engaged in activities directly at odds with the aims of the charity
We ask members to make a yearly donation of at least one pound (£1).
A brief history of the charity
The idea that would one day become this charity was first expressed back in 2010 but it would be another three years before that idea blossomed.
Early days
The organisation (formally know as Thanet Creative Writers) was founded in 2013. Thanet Creative Writers formed as a gathering of like-minded writers in Matthew Brown’s living room.
When we outgrew that space, we met at various venues around Thanet before settling on the Chaple pub in Broadstairs and temporarily dropping the word “creative” from our name.
Back to our creative roots
In 2016 we restored the word “creative” to our name because creativity was, and still is, at the heart of all we do. his, we hoped, would also help to distinguish us from another group using a very similar name.
Rather than run events that were as big as humanly possible we elected to hold a number of smaller, more intimate gatherings hosted by members (mostly in their homes). This created a much more relaxed atmosphere – most conducive to creative conversation.
Becoming a charity
Having returned to our roots, we realised that the time had come for the long-discussed transition to a charitable organisation. Since our charity launch on the 2nd February 2017, the organisation previously known as Thanet Creative Writers has also been a charity.
2017 was a year of growth. We established a number of new gatherings, held successful social events for writers and poets, and experimented with a number of new media. For example, helping to launch Author Buzz UK.
On the 8th September 2017 – at our first AGM – we elected, by unanimous vote, to simplify our name to Thanet Creative in order to better express the breadth of creative activity that we hope to support.
2018 saw more of the same with a big summer BBQ and the start of what would become our All Genre Feedback Evening. At our second AGM, our members selected the trustees for the year ahead. Our 2018/19 Trustees feature some familiar faces as well as some new ones.
The future
No one knows what the future will hold – it is a chapter that has not yet been written.
Whatever our future holds, we are confident that as a community we will continue to thrive and grow.