What is the Cultural Olympiad?

The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is a four year celebration designed to encourage the widest range of people across the whole of the UK to get involved in the London 2012 Games. This strong cultural offer helped to secure London as the winning host city.

The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad aims to:

• Change the way culture is valued in this country. 
• Engender increased participation in cultural activity.
• Propagate a new younger audience for the games; engaging and then developing their interest through cultural activity.  London won the bid in Singapore on the promise that it could re-engage young people with the Olympics.
• Celebrate the UK’s rich and diverse cultural life.

The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad will provide an opportunity to:

• Engender exemplary cultural activity.
• Encourage community involvement.
• Build new audiences.
• Try something new.
• Think BIG.
• Capacity build and support the professional development of cultural providers.
• Enhance and promote local political cultural policy (around cultural regeneration, sense of place, community cohesion, arts, sport and tourism).
• Think differently about the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.
• Showcase Britain’s creativity to the rest of the world.
• Showcase Buckinghamshire's talent to the rest of the UK.

The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad has 3 core values:

• Celebrate London and the whole of the UK welcoming the world – our unique internationalism, cultural diversity, sharing and understanding.
• Inspire and involve young people.
• Generate a positive legacy – for example through cultural and sports participation, audience development, cultural skills, capacity building, urban regeneration, tourism and social cohesion and international links.