A town councillor has been nominated for Best Arts Champion 2022.

Criccieth Town council’s Ffion Meleri Gwyn has been shortlisted for the National Campaign for the Arts (NCA) Hearts for the Arts Awards 2022. The awards celebrate the unsung heroes of local authorities who are championing the arts against all odds.

Cllr Gwyn has been nominated for her work providing inspired leadership to a range of creative and innovative projects, contributing to the wellbeing of the Criccieth community during the pandemic.

Hearts for the Arts said: “Cllr Gwyn embodies the strong community spirit which clearly exists in the Criccieth Town Council area. It is very easy for elected representatives to make speeches and lofty commitments to improving an area; it is much more difficult for them to actually make a difference, and be involved with it personally as Cllr Gwyn has.”

Cllr Gwyn said she was “delighted and honoured” to be shortlisted for the award, adding it was “a tribute to the amazing work and involvement” of many members of the community in so many memorable projects.

“We are living in unprecedented times and it’s fantastic to be able to reach out through our varied creative initiatives to involve hundreds in our bilingual community,” Cllr Gwyn said.

“This has boosted the well-being of all of us.”

Dr Catrin Jones, Criccieth Town Council clerk said: “Cllr Gwyn, as an artist and as a councillor, has made the case for creativity in partnership by setting an example of how, despite all the necessary restrictions, it was and remains possible and beneficial to innovate and create and make art a community adventure. She’s provided inspired leadership on a range of creative and innovative projects, working tirelessly to engage with the community, encouraging people from all walks of life to take part. To successfully launch and accomplish a Creative Strategy every council needs a Ffion.”

Cllr Gwyn is shortlisted alongside cllr Danny Thorpe from the Royal Borough of Greenwich, cllr Mary Huggins, Mole Valley District Council and cllr Susan Hinchcliffe, City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council.

The winner will be selected by a judging panel of key arts industry experts and practitioners, including journalist Krishnan Guru-Murthy, comedian and writer Shaparak Khorsandi and businesswoman Deborah Meaden.

Nominations were received from across the UK for each of this year’s three award categories: Best Arts Project; Best Arts Champion - Local Authority or Cultural Trust Worker; and Best Arts Champion - Councillor.

The Hearts for the Arts Awards were launched in 2016 to highlight the achievements of local authorities continuing their arts services against a backdrop of severe financial cuts.

The winners will be announced on Valentine’s Day.

For more information on the shortlisted nominees visit forthearts.org.uk/campaigns/hearts-for-the-arts