In this episode, we hear from Stacey-Jade Mason, the founder and director of Creative Optimistic Visions (COV), a local organisation who believe we all have the right to feel safe and provides companies and individuals with the tools to enable this via education, training, mentoring, youth and community services for people of all ages.

Stacey-Jade talks me through how COV supports local young people, how the organisation was founded and shares some of the plans for the organisation going forward.

Find out more about the work of Creative Optimistic Visions over at www.creativeoptimisticvisions.co.uk

The episode was recorded in December 2022.

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

In February, Dippy the Diplodocus made the journey to Coventry and their new home for the next three years in the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum.

We speak to Cllr David Welsh, Cabinet Member for Housing and Communities at Coventry City Council to discuss how Dippy the Dinosaur fits in the city’s approach to arts and museums and the vision of bringing world-class exhibitions to the city whilst also celebrating the culture of local communities.

Cllr Welsh talks about how Coventry celebrates and promotes local culture, how local creatives can get in touch to share their ideas, and gives an update on the progress of the former IKEA building.

Ali Wells, Curator at Herbert Art Gallery and Museum then shares the excitement of Dippy coming to Coventry, how the Herbert applied to be the home for Dippy for the next three years, and some of the ideas that the museum has to accompany Dippy itself with workshops and exhibitions.

Finally, Lorraine Cornish, the National History Museum’s Head of Conservation and resident Dippy expert tell us about Dippy’s background, what makes Dippy so special, and shares her thoughts on Coventry as a place of culture and history.

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

In this latest episode of The Cov Pod, we explore some of the reasons that make Coventry one of the must-visit destinations in the UK!

We hear from Cllr Jim O'Boyle on the city's efforts to continue to grow and develop and Paul Jones from Destination Coventry tells us about the formation of the organisation and why hosting attractions such as the Godiva Festival and the city centre ice rink have wide-reaching benefits.

Next, Hannah Jones from Historic Coventry Trust takes us on a journey through the city's rich history, including the restoration of historic buildings such as Charterhouse which is set to open its doors to the public this spring.

Finally, Jess from Coventry Rocks shares why Coventry is an excellent place for young families to visit and the work that goes into collating the various events and attractions taking place in the city in one place!

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

A sit down with the founder and CEO of Coventry's Positive Youth Foundation; Rashid Bhayat MBE.

Rashid is a Coventrian who I hugely admire so it was brilliant to talk about his history in the city, how PYF first began, and why supporting and empowering young Coventry people remains at the heart of the organisation.

I am a big fan of the work of Positive Youth Foundation and have seen over the past couple of years the impact it makes to young local people! Find out more about their work: positiveyouthfoundation.org

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

In this episode of The Cov Pod, I sit down with Corey Campbell, Creative Director at Belgrade Theatre.

We talk about Corey's early career, the story behind Strictly Arts Theatre Company, his role in the Belgrade's key year of Coventry being the UK City of Culture in 2021, and the Theatre's commitment to supporting and promoting community engagement, diversity, and talent development.

Excuse the slightly wonky sound - my mic suddenly decided to not be compatible with my phone so it is recorded directly from the phone!

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

Godiva Festival is a date marked in the diary for almost every Coventrian and this year's music-filled weekend is fast approaching!

To find out more about the decisions behind the festival, I speak to Jon Hogan, City Event Manager at Coventry City Council about how the acts are chosen, the tremendous amount of planning that goes into a festival of this size, and the move to paid ticketing in recent years.

Godiva Festival is known for promoting local music and this year builds on that even more with local acts; Caitlin McCarthy and Idle Noise both playing on the main stage! We speak to Caitlin plus Ben and Dan from Idle Noise about what Godiva Festival means to local musicians, their favourite memories from past years, and how they are preparing for the weekend! You can hear some music from Idle Noise as the outro to the episode!

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

Outro music: Heart Alarm by Idle Noise

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

You will no doubt know that Coventry is a host city for the Commonwealth Games in 2022 but did you also know that city is hosting the International Children’s Games this year.

In August, more than 1500 of the best young sporting talents from around the world are travelling to the city for 6 days of completion across 7 sports.

We kick the episode off by speaking to Cllr Kamran Caan, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Sport, and Jon Hunt, Service Manager Sport, Physical Activity & Wellbeing, Coventry City Council about the benefits that hosting the games brings to the city and how local people can get involved in the games.

I then speak to John Timms, Event Director of the Games who tells me all about the journey of Coventry becoming host city, the huge amount of planning that has gone into preparing for a huge event and the lessons learned since we last hosted the Games in 2005.

Finally, I'm joined by Sophie and Eve, two Team Coventry swimmers who share their excitement in representing the city at the games and share some tips on how other young people in the city can begin to get involved in swimming.

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council. 

In this episode of The Cov Pod, I sit down with Laura McMillan MBE, Director of Audience Strategy, Coventry City of Culture Trust who tells me about her history in the city, how she first became involved with Coventry's bid for UK City of Culture and we take a look at a momentous year for Coventry.

Laura shares why there was a commitment to making sure that co-creation was at the heart of the Coventry 2021 activity and why it was important for new voices to be heard across the city.

We also talk about Laura's recent MBE award as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours and what Laura's plans are going forward.

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

Have you ever wondered what the role of Lord Mayor entails? Or how the next Mayor is decided?

I sat down with former Lord Mayor Cllr John McNicholas during his last week in term to look at some of the highlights and challenges of his time as Lord Mayor from raising money at the Charity Dog Show to the restrictions caused by COVID

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

In partnership with Coventry City Council.

Coordinating fair and well-run local elections is obviously a crucial role for any Council and Coventry is no exception with a huge amount of work taking place to facilitate local people registering their vote.

In this episode, I speak to Martin Reeves, Chief Executive, Coventry City Council, about his role as Returning Officer and the legal responsibility he has to ensure the local election is managed effectively, to Liz Read, Electoral Services Manager, Coventry City Council about the behind-the-scenes planning of both polling stations and election night itself, and finally to Alan Cox, a Presiding Officer who is a member of the public who once a year is called upon to manage a polling station.

Host: Aaron Ashmore

Intro music: Heal in Time by The Institutes

Outro music: Don't Fall Apart by Duke Keats 

In partnership with Coventry City Council.