Brush up on your ideas: Erewash launches Street Art project

Which art subjects and styles would you like to see in Erewash? To make the attractive borough even more welcoming, Erewash Borough Council is investing £50k from the Erewash Investment Fund to team up with artists by commissioning street art murals. 

As part of this project, the council is inviting residents to share their ideas about the subjects and art styles they’d like to see. The short online survey takes just a few moments, and needs to be completed before Friday 14th November by clicking here.

Councillor Mark Alfrey who is Lead Member for Environment said: “This street art mural project will help us invest in art within Erewash. The visual art will be displayed in the public domain and is quite different from graffiti. Artists will engage and work with communities around the locations for the murals to deliver art with a captivating subject that speaks to the local area. Not only will this work enhance the beauty of our towns, we hope to encourage a sense of pride in these areas.”

Street art murals are very different to graffiti. While graffiti is often created anonymously and without prior permission, street art murals call on artists to depict local history and notable members of the community, helping to express the identity of the area with input from locals.

This project will focus on locations in Ilkeston and Long Eaton initially. The results of this survey will be published in early 2026, along with an update on where residents will be able to keep an eye out for the murals.

The Erewash Investment Fund is a £2 million fund designed to invest in Erewash’s communities, helping to build a stronger, safer, more vibrant future for all residents. An initial £700,000 has been dedicated to the fund as part of phase one to invest in the community.

The fund will also support the addition of more street cleaning staff and neighbourhood wardens, as well as an upgrade to street furniture and more.