News

Au revoir to Walk the Plank, Dec 23

After nearly two and a half years, Helen finally wrapped up working on the multi-award-winning Green Space Dark Skies and its legacy. Managing the Press & Comms for this major commission has been a career highlight, even though it was one of the most complex and politically sensitive projects she's ever worked on. But the relationship with Walk the Plank will continue...

Everyday is a learning day, Jul 22

Being busy is a state of mind, but sometimes you can do do too much. Helen decided in a moment of unclarity, to commit to doing a PhD in Film - while working full-time (that arts sector full-time as well). So after seven years of work, plus Covid, Helen finally collected her third degree on a wonderfully sunny day in Warwick. 

Andrew heading off for new adventures, Mar 22

Palmer Squared, that most cunning of consultancy names, was created when Helen [Palmer] started to continually find herself turning work down as she was too busy, all the way back in 2005. While bemoaning this ‘nice problem’ to her brother Andrew [Palmer] it occurred that there might be a solution – make a sole trader into a duo. So Andrew handed in his notice at the marketing and branding agency he was at and we set up a partnership. That quickly became a limited company. To cut a very long story short, we’ve worked with over 120 clients from solo producers to start-ups to national museums and massive national and international festivals. Massive. And Helen became Dr. Palmer somewhere in there too. Not sure where she fitted that in. 

This has taken us all over the country, and occasionally in need of a passport. The culture and heritage sectors have changed a lot since we set up and so has our practice. Now, in 2022, we have found ourselves working in two distinct ways – with places and with organisations. Helen’s heart remains with the individual organisations and projects that make the cultural sector fire. Andrew has increasingly worked with places and destinations, notably as part of Creative Tourist (now CTConsults). So we’ve called time on the ‘team of two’. Palmer Squared will continue to be a busy-busy and Helen’s associate network (basically, everyone) will be working with her in the coming years no doubt. Andrew continues in his role as a Director at CTConsults, working with places to achieve transformation through brand, place-making, strategy, digital and design. And all still with culture very much at its core too.

We continue to be a part of the same cultural and creative sector, working in new ways that continue to connect. We’re still based in Manchester, and the Palmer Squared name continues to signify a great place to explore cultural and audience development. 

Back to the USSR, Nov 19

International work often comes in the form of invitations to exchange knowledge and explore best practice. As well as invitations to speak in Australia, Andrew was asked by the British Council to deliver a keynote at the Ural Industrial Biennial in Yekaterinburg in central Russia. The Biennial shared some interesting DNA with British Ceramics Biennial through its roots in industry. The extensive exhibitions centred around an optics factory (everything from microscopes to missile guidance) which retained a sense of its Soviet history. The cultural exchange with colleagues from across Europe was wonderful – we event had one speaker from Moscow using Manchester as a case study for culture-led regeneration.

Working with the big players is fine, but... Mar 19

One of the things that makes our practice tick is the variety of people and organisations we get to work with. Through training events and general getting about, we meet and get to work with some of the most interesting, but often under-the-rader cultural players. Their impacts on their audiences and partners is no less profound thoughs. So thanks to the poets, micro-museums, regional agents for change, specialist service providers, tiny touring companies and all the others that have made our life more interesting recently.

The last throw down, Nov 18

After a decade as co-directors of British Ceramics Biennial, we have decided to step down as we pursue other areas of work. It’s been an incredible time, working with an amazing team, led by the inspirational Barney Hare Duke, from before the first festival through to the most recent, record-breaking event. It will be strange turning up to the 2019 festival as a punter, but with so much happening now in Stoke-on-Trent it’s an exciting time for BCB. We’ll miss you, we love you, we’re only up the M6.

Talking shop, Nov 18

We can be quite chatty when the mood takes us. In the past few months we’ve been invited to talk at a number of seminars, conferences and events around the UK. It’s fascinating to see how the agendas for audience development and cultural tourism, amongst others, are contributing to regeneration, community engagement and place-making more and more powerfully and directly. We’ve talked about marketing the arts in Manchester to a Chinese delegation. We’ve talked about unlocking heritage potential in Northern Ireland. We’ve coached the next generation of arts marketers. We’ve even debated how to make some of our northern English towns ‘great places’ (or perhaps ‘even greater). It’s great sometimes just to go and discuss what’s going on, and what might come next, through the networks and platforms that our cultural communities have. Let’s keep talking!

The Royal 'we', Oct 18

Who is the best arts organisation in Liverpool in terms of audience development – how effectively they can engage with so-called ‘hard-to-reach’ potential audiences? Take your time. No? Well, by any sensible metric the answer is the Royal Court, right in the city centre. Their audience profile reflects their whole city’s demographics and they do it by talking the same language, delivering a great experience and driving real innovation and energy into new projects, like Boisterous Theatre Company– the only theatre company in Liverpool specifically dedicated to BAME communities. As they would say, they’re boss at what they do. But they can get that message out better with some of their stakeholders – funders, partners, the arts sector, the city. So we’ve been helping with that, and picking up a bit of Scouse along the way. 

Art is good for you, Sep 18

Health and wellbeing is rightly a major item on any progressive arts organisation’s agenda. But only one arts organisation takes this on to consume their whole purpose. Sick! Festival has moved up from Brighton to make its home in Manchester, and we spent a bit of time with them as they sought to put down roots as quickly as possible – mapping the landscape, making the right partnerships, understanding their new audiences, and building their team. We expect the incredibly passionate Sick! team to give the festival scene in the city and region in the coming years a massive shot in the arm.

Pump up the spa town, Jul 18

One of the areas we have always like to work is in audience development when capital plans are afoot. Often with major multi-million developments, a museum or heritage attraction takes the opportunity to re-evaluate and re-energise how its engages with its audiences. And it doesn’t have to be a landmark development either. This year we had the delightful experience of working with the small but perfectly formed Royal Pump Room Museum in Harrogate as it seeks to transform itself inside and out. We could immediately see how its place within the wider Harrogate Spa story was pivotal to how the town grew, and so our plans included lots of creative partnerships spanning community, health & wellbeing, heritage, arts, food & drink and tourism. The new Museum will be a great example of how one of our country’s great little museums can continue to have a big impact in its community.

That was 2017, Dec 17

2017 has seen a fabulously diverse group of new clients – some completely new, some old friends. Following similar work in Manchester and Liverpool, we have advised a group of Birmingham’s most dynamic arts festivals about how to work better together and build their profile. Working in clusters is clearly the way to go – we worked with major performance spaces from across England to help them develop international theatre – theatre without borders.

Heritage has been prominent this year, with audience development support for capital projects in Yorkshire – at Elsecar in Barnsley and now the Royal Pump Room Museum in Harrogate. Very different projects, but each with massive potential. And we will always leap at the opportunity to work with museums and galleries, and this year that has seen capital projects mix with strategic communications consultancy and direct mentoring, from the small independent to the scale of a national museum. 

A new home for cultural tourism, Jul 16

We had to make mention of our other family - Creative Tourist - the UK's leading cultural tourism consultancy. We've just opened our first official standalone office in the heart of Manchester's Northern Quarter. Pop in any time. That is, when we're not jetting off to Reykjavik, Copenhagen or Woolwich.

Mining for audiences, Jun 16

We are delighted to be working with the National Coal-Mining Museum for England, helping to develop the visitor offer in the bits that aren't the wonderful underground tour. The site is huge and full of surprising stories about coal and coal-mining communities. The new leadership team is developing an exciting masterplan to make the attraction more audience-focused at every touchpoint – a great starting point for any museum.

Getting creative, Mar 16

One of the most important arts initiatives in the UK recently has been Creative People & Places, where new programmes of cultural engagement have been set up in some of the least engaged parts of the country. We've had the pleasure of getting involved in various different ways with the teams in St. Helens, Burnley, Blackpool and Stoke-on-Trent. All very different, all doing exciting and hopefuly perception-changing, behaviour-changing, life-changing work. 

Time for access to ramp up, Jan 16

Over the past year, we've (well, Andrew) has had the privilege of working with Visits Unlimited. A new start-up social enterprise, they are dedicated to one simple aim – to make day out visits to culture, heritage and tourism attractions great for everyone, and that means families with disabled kids as well. They can offer training and support in a variety of ways, and uniquely have an extended 'family' network which makes sure they understand the needs of this big and often untapped market. Check out what they're up to on their blog – www.visitsunlimited.org.uk/blog.

Liverpool = festivals, Jan 16

The mighty Liverpool Biennial – the contemporary arts biennial for the UK – asked us to stand in as interim head of marketing & comms for the latest edition (the most ambitious yet). Suckers for punishment, we said yes. We've also been busy working with another 18 of the city's top cultural festivals as they explore how to work together for their individual and collective advantage in an increasingly competitive and crowded marketplace.

Heritage never stays the same, Nov 15

We've been fortunate to be working with a variety of heritage capital projects recently, whether developing launch campaigns, audience development plans, training staff in marketing or assessing development plans. This has included a literary house, a country estate's gardens, an urban civic building and a Norman church. The ability for heritage to recalibrate and reinvent is amazing, creating cultural relevance and a new place in local communities and the wider visitor offer.

Speaking openly, Nov 15

We like what we do. We like to spread the gospel of the value of the arts, audience development, cultural tourism and so on. So we are delighted when people actually invite us to do just that. Whether it's Birmingham Festivals, Creu Cymru, the Prince's Regeneration Trust, the Arts Marketing Association, Marketing Lancashire or the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, we'll be there. And we have been. 

Return to Happy Valley, Sep 15

We worked on the audience development, marketing, branding and major events business planning for The Piece Hall in Halifax a few years ago. That massive team effort secured the funds to transform the Hall and Square, so look out for the new Piece Hall, launching in 2017 - perhaps as the Tour de Yorkshire flies through.

The business of the arts, Oct 14

Andrew was invited to speak by Yorkshire Contemporary Visual Arts Network at an event for 90 budding cultural entrepreneurs recently. Following our project management of a year-long programme in 2013 to help artists and arts professionals contribute to the region's visual arts economy (in other words, make money from art), we wanted to encourage the next wave of graduates and emerging artists as they seek to make a living from their practice. 

Where's the oldest museum service in the country... and why it matters, Sep 14

Well, the answer is Warwickshire. Strangely fitting when you think about it. Shakespeare country, the heart of England. We couldn't resist the opportunity to work with our long-time associates Vishalakshi Roy and Helen Dunnett with Heritage Culture Warwickshire as they plan their audience and organisational development for the coming years.