The Stables: It is a constant challenge to ensure businesses are aware of the opportunities the venue can offer through a partnership, says its CEO and artistic director Monica Ferguson.
Advertising Feature
published in association with
CULTURE plays a key role in the infrastructure that powers the growth of a city, region and nation. It is a powerful draw for people looking for places to live, work and play with the UK arts sector contributing £49 billion gross value added in 2022 – on a par with the food and beverage sector and higher than telecommunications.
Its role alongside that of employment, housing and transport is central to the appeal of Milton Keynes and the wellbeing of its citizens.
However, historic underinvestment in culture and heritage was recognised in 2009 by Arts Council England which partnered with The Stables to turn the spotlight on the value of investing in the City’s arts sector.
The Stables, one of the UK’s leading music venues and part of Arts Council England’s National Portfolio, was founded as a charity in 1970 by renowned jazz musicians Sir John Dankworth and Dame Cleo Laine. Its vision: to engage the widest range of people with music in all its diversity.
Today it presents around 350 concerts and 250 education sessions each year, investing in the development of young people and new generations of artists and audiences. In 2010 in response to the Arts Council’s challenge, The Stables launched IF: Milton Keynes International Festival, using the city as a stage and creating a partnership between the public, private, education and charity sectors which has generated significant inward investment, economic returns and positive PR.
“The Stables has always had a good relationship with businesses,” says its chief executive and artistic director Monica Ferguson. “But it is a constant challenge in a fast-growing city to ensure businesses are aware of the opportunities we can offer through a partnership and the benefits that can deliver for the business and the wider community.”
Large corporates based locally, including Audi and Domino’s, have used The Jim Marshall Auditorium at The Stables for product launches and staff conferences. Smaller areas such as Stage 2 – where aspiring artists cut their teeth – are also used for meetings and networking events.
Sponsorship opportunities also abound from naming rights of spaces within the venue to programme strands and events. Milton Keynes law firm Neves Solicitors, for whom family law is a leading area of expertise, has seen an opportunity to sponsor this year’s Christmas show A Christmas Tail.
“A family law firm connecting with a family audience makes perfect sense for them,” says Monica.
“There is a whole range of things we can do to package sponsorship opportunities that align around a particular target group. Due to our diverse programme of music, comedy and family shows, our audiences are aged five to 95 with a broad demographic and geographic reach.”
Excitement is starting to build for the 2025 edition of the biennial IF: Milton Keynes International Festival, organised by The Stables and backed by Milton Keynes City Council and Arts Council England. Next year’s will be the eighth since the inaugural festival in 2010, attracting upwards of 90,000 people over ten amazing days.
“IF is a very different beast,” says Monica. “It has a unique brand with a high profile regionally, nationally and internationally.” Much of the programme presented is free to attend and IF has attracted attendances of around 10,000 for its large-scale spectacles, particularly the opening and closing events.
Again, sponsorship opportunities abound. Chartered accountants MHA sponsored the opening show of the 2023 Festival. Xscape and Midsummer Place sponsored roving events around the city centre. MyMiltonKeynes Business Improvement District sponsored the hundreds of volunteers who supported visitors to the Festival.
centre:mk has been a huge supporter since its inception and headline sponsor since 2016. In 2023 it co-commissioned and staged the visually stunning and thought-provoking installation The Place Between by Rebecca Louise Law and sound artist Jason Singh in Middleton Hall. The project was featured on Radio 4’s Today programme and received global media coverage, helping to increase footfall for the centre. Such was its impact, The Place Between earned a Gold Award at the 2024 International CSR Excellence Awards as well as accolades in national and regional placemaking awards.
“Thank you and your team for all the help and support for our event yesterday. A really excellent venue with a fantastic team. We’ve really enjoyed working with you once again.”
Pim van Baarsen, CEO, Silverstone Technology Cluster
Kevin Duffy, centre director at centre:mk, says: “We have been working with the Festival since its inception and our recent collaboration on The Place Between commission perfectly illustrates how a highly successful retail destination like centre:mk can have a role to play in delivering unique experiences which challenge what we expect of our immediate environment.”
Business buy-in to the Festival is essential. In 2010 the public sector investment in the Festival was 81% with a turnover of £1 million. In 2023, public sector investment had dropped to 70% on a turnover of £1.8 million.
“With Arts Council funding at standstill since 2014, the pressure over the last decade to raise investment from Milton Keynes has grown and next year looks set to be the toughest yet,” says Monica.
“A key question for me is how much businesses value the impact of the Festival – not just over the ten days but its legacy year on year. It brings new visitors into the city, delivers significant positive national and international PR, delivers community engagement with challenging issues such as climate change and conflict and it promotes health and wellbeing with a healthy dose of fun and extraordinary events.
“The Stables is an iconic local venue that brings people together and serves the community. Supporting their work allows us to give back for their efforts, as well as gain more customer reach.”
Viktoria Hrytsayenko, Planet Tools UK
“We know that businesses have expressed challenges in recruiting staff. We have the evidence to show that the Festival is helping to drive positive perceptions about Milton Keynes in the media and has actually encouraged people to move here permanently.”
The Festival makes an important contribution to the economy, delivering £6.7 million gross economic impact in 2023. It has been recognised internationally – with the award of an EFFE Label 2024/2025 from the European Festivals Association, confirming IF as one of Europe’s most remarkable festivals. As the 2025 Festival’s planning momentum increases, the search for sponsors and supporters from the business and wider community intensifies.
Talks for the 2025 Festival are ongoing to secure artists from across the UK and abroad. Festival Central will again be in Campbell Park with the Spiegeltent hosting music, comedy and circus throughout the ten days. Monica is hoping to unveil several UK premieres of new work by artists from across the globe.
“We work with every potential sponsor to explore how we can help each other through a partnership. Understanding each other’s needs is important. For the business, that can mean additional footfall, PR, fulfilling a CSR or ESG policy or direct engagement with audiences and communities through product placement or research.
“For the Festival it can be a cash sponsorship to ‘in-kind’ support with things like accommodation for artists, logistics and equipment. From buying hospitality packages for staff and clients to hiring The Spiegeltent for a unique conference setting during the day or encouraging staff to join our volunteers, everything helps.”
Find out more at
Contact development@stables.org for more information on conferencing, sponsorship and advertising opportunities
………………………………….
Stay connected with local business through Business MK. Join our exclusive community for the latest news, insights, updates, features and thought leadership.
Stay informed – subscribe now at bit.ly/3MZiqzQ. Unsubscribe at any time.
