Creative Bay of Plenty was founded in 1969 as the Tauranga Arts Council and is the arts and culture umbrella organisation covering Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty. In partnership with our local councils and with the support of regional and national funders (in particular TECT), we support and advocate for the growth of arts, culture and creativity due to their significant contribution to the vibrancy and wellbeing of communities, as well as their positive impact on economic growth and prosperity.
We have a focus on making connections, capability building, advocacy and promoting creatives and their activities. Working closely with local government, schools and educators, iwi, other non-profits and umbrella organisations, funders and the private sector, we focus on ensuring a vibrant, expressive, and diverse sense of creative community to enhance quality of life through the arts. We consider our vision and mission to be essential for a healthy city and region—with arts, culture and heritage seen as a driver of social cohesion and community wellbeing.