Hexham Named the UK’s First Arts Town!!

22 Oct 2026 · @Inness

Hexham has officially become the first and only designated Arts Town in the United Kingdom, and local businesses are being invited to help shape what comes next.

The announcement was made on Saturday 10 October at a packed Community Arts Fair in the Queen’s Hall. It follows more than 18 months of town-wide conversations, public events and engagement with local organisations, businesses and residents.

Who is behind it

The initiative is the brainchild of the Hexham Cultural Forum. The Forum is a partnership of Hexham Town Council, the Forum Cinema, Queen’s Hall, Theatre Sans Frontières, the Library Service, the North-East Museums Service, Hexham Abbey and Hexham Community Centre.

“Hexham is amazing and it certainly punches above its weight culturally,” said Andrew Gooding, Hexham Town Clerk. “With a population of just 12,000, we have a cultural offer more commonly associated with much larger towns.”

The timing could hardly have been better. The day before the announcement, Hexham’s own poetry publisher, Bloodaxe Books, heard that one of its authors, Anne Carson, had been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize for Literature.

Why it matters for local business

The Cultural Forum believes the Arts Town title will shine a light on everything already happening in Hexham, encourage new activity and bring more visitors and money into the town.

The government estimates that the creative industries add £145bn a year in gross value to the UK economy, and the arts have been shown to improve happiness and wellbeing.

“We looked to successful Arts Town models in Europe and North America and realised that Hexham already has all the ingredients needed to make this vision a reality,” said Andrew. “The benefits could be huge.”

Those ingredients include Spook Night, the fireworks, the Lantern Parade, the Christmas Market, music and book festivals, and regular workshops and classes in painting, pottery, drama, music, poetry, writing and media arts.

What happens next

Saturday’s announcement was a soft launch, with a big town-wide arts event planned for Easter 2027. Between now and then, the Town Council is asking for help, especially to fill the quieter months.

“The period between now and Christmas is very busy for lots of groups and organisations, but things go a bit flat in January and February,” said Andrew. “If you have any events, ideas or plans for that period, let us know and we can help promote them. The sky is the limit. In fact, we want to hold a kite festival!”

How you can get involved

Hexham Town Council has set up two ways to support the arts in the town:

  • Hexham Town Calendar. If you run events, sessions, workshops or classes, send details of what, when, where and who to contact to Andrew Gooding, the Town Clerk, and they will be added to the newly launched calendar.
  • Team Hexham volunteering site. www.teamhexham.co.uk matches volunteers with events and organisations, and relaunches in November.

Got an idea? Email the Town Clerk at clerk@hexhamtowncouncil.gov.uk with the subject line “Arts Town ideas”.

At Tyne Valley Connections, we think this is a brilliant opportunity for local businesses. Whether you run a café, a shop, a studio or a service business, there’s a role to play in making Hexham’s Arts Town a success. Come and chat about it at our next meet-up.