Stage set for Production Park as it looks to expand
Production Park, which houses Europe’s leading live music production studios and is the venue for high-profile musicians to prepare for tours, has received a £250,000 investment to expand its offer.
Ceative England has invested in the Wakefield-based facility, in Wakefield, is a go-to location for the build and design of many high-profile music tours. It also has a keen focus on education.
Created to train the next generation of live industry professionals, Backstage Academy currently delivers degree level education to students in Live Events Production, Live Visual Design & Production and Stage Management and is looking to expand its range of degree courses over the next couple of years. With its base on Production Park, students get to study right at the heart of the action in a true example of industry-led education.
Outreach is also an important element of Production Park’s support for the industry. Backstage Academy will be going out on tour in England & Wales from 22 January to talk to students about the roles available in the live events sector and the routes that can be taken to secure a role in the industry.
Creative England’s investment will help to grow the education element by funding a new 200-capacity lecture theatre and four classrooms, as well as management offices and a social hub. This will mean Production Park can scale up its student operation, and welcome 400 students by 2019; double the current number.
Backstage Academy has also embarked upon the two-year Taught Degree Awarding Powers (TDAP) process to enable them to award degrees in their own right. If approved, the university could be up and running by 2020, making it not only the first university for Wakefield, but the first for live events in the world.
The expanded facilities will also allow Production Park to permanently house more supply chain companies, some of whom have a temporary base in the campus and others who will be completely new arrivals.
