Bradford 2025: how I made a difference

I'm Maleehah, and I'm in my final year of LLB Law. I've had many experiences during my time at the University of Bradford and wanted to share my involvement with Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture.

What is Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture?

The UK City of Culture is a government-led program that runs every four years and selects a city to showcase its vision for culture-led regeneration. In May 2022, Bradford won and was given the title of City of Culture 2025 by the Department of Culture, Media and Spaorts.

Bradford is one of the youngest cities in the UK (34% of Bradford's population is under 25 years old) and City of Culture will put young people at the centre of its mission. We'll see Bradford create more youth opportunities to help young people. These initiatives include apprenticeship programmes, Youth Panels, and Young Creative programmes. It will welcome artists, singers, and creative entrepreneurs into the district. 

This cultural relandscaping will boost both economic and social aspects and will be remembered for years to come.

Volunteering for Bradford 2025

I joined the Youth Panel in January 2024. The purpose of the Youth Panel is to contribute to the governance and decision-making of Bradford 2025.

My role involves attending Bradford 2025 meetings with staff and external partners. I also attend sub-committee meetings with the Programme and Engagement Committee - these meetings focus on how Bradford 2025 can improve its engagement for the year ahead. These meetings often involve discussion on plans in the making and the chair allows the Youth Panel to scrutinise the ideas for change.

My motivation for volunteering was that I wanted to impact Bradford on a larger scale. I have also been involved in the University of Bradford Union of Students, by organising cultural events and implementing policies for student safety during South Asian Heritage Week.

My activism experience in the Union pushed me to apply to be on the Youth Panel Board. I liked the idea of being able to give my opinion during committee meetings. I enjoy constructively scrutinising individuals and looking for ways to make Bradford better. The arts sector has allowed me to appreciate artists' work and learn more about the processes of expressing yourself through the use of art.

My highlights of Bradford 2025

One of my highlights was when I was invited to attend the Yorkshire Asian Business Dinner at Cedar Court Hotel. I enjoyed networking with businesses in Bradford and speaking to people about their expertise. The event allowed me to build connections in the legal and property sectors. Similar to this, the Board away dinner was another great networking opportunity to speak to Trustees and Kirsten England about everyone’s involvement in Bradford 2025 City of Culture.

The launch part of City of Culture 2025 was my favourite highlight by far and all my colleagues' hard work in organising the launch event paid off. There were some amazing artist collaborations that received media attention, politicians attended and information on some of the upcoming events was released.

It has been an honour to be part of the rollercoaster of getting the city involved and ready for 2025.

What have I taken away from this?

I have learned the power of speaking and sharing ideas in team meetings. Often, we think our voices are not relevant to a meeting but you would be surprised how addressing one point can lead to ten further ideas people develop on. Without vocalising ideas, none of that is possible. The biggest lesson from volunteering is speaking my mind freely and not being afraid to ask for support from my colleagues. This has made me feel empowered to contribute to team meetings.

I have made a great number of connections from the Chair of Bradford Council to Politicians, Lawyers and partners working in the Arts and Business sector. It has broadened my network system when applying for legal roles.

I found a new hobby within art and poetry and have gained more understanding of the arts. I attended the exhibition launches of Plants of the Quran and Where it Began by Omar Yousuf Zadaby and these exhibitions will always hold a special place in my volunteering experience.

What impact has this had?

This experience has had a massive impact since its launch in September 2024 and has led to countless networking opportunities. The profile of the Youth Panel has reached the Government and I was lucky enough to have met Lisa Nandy MP and other influential people. I was given the opportunity to contribute to the decision-making of the Board Committee meetings and was able to contribute my ideas to the subcommittee meetings for engagement and programme.

Want to experience some of the exciting things happening in Bradford?

Discover the events taking place in Bradford 2025.