Yorkshire Celebration at Oakwell Hall is back and bigger than ever!

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Outdoor festival with a crowd gathered in front of a stage where a musician plays guitar. The event is set in a park with trees in the background. A "BAR" tent and a striped tent are visible to the side, alongside banners for "Yorkshire Day."

We are inviting residents and visitors to Oakwell Hall & Country Park on Sunday 2 August 2026 for a major celebration of all things Yorkshire. This free, family-friendly festival offers a full day of music, food, creativity and community pride in the stunning historic parkland.

This year’s event will be the greenest yet, supported by a free shuttle bus from Birstall, off site recycling, reduced printed materials, green energy, and expanded bike parking to encourage sustainable travel. Sustainability also shapes the wide range of workshops and activities.

Running 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM, the popular annual celebration features a packed programme for all ages, set against the backdrop of the much‑loved Grade I listed Elizabethan manor and gardens.

Live Music and Entertainment

The main stage and gardens will host a lively lineup of local talent, featuring performances from The Crescendos, Penny, Hebble, Hardeep Sahota, Land Lubbers, Al’s Django Party, Flat Cap Brass, and more.

A band of five musicians poses outdoors in front of a rustic stone wall. They hold various instruments: a trombone, a tuba, a drum set, a trumpet, and a saxophone. The setting is a grassy area with rolling hills visible in the background. The sky is partly cloudy, adding to the scenic backdrop.
Outdoor festival with a crowd gathered in front of a stage where a musician plays guitar. The event is set in a park with trees in the background. A "BAR" tent and a striped tent are visible to the side, alongside banners for "Yorkshire Day."

Showcasing the Best of Yorkshire Makers

The Yorkshire Makers’ Market returns with over 50 stalls offering a diverse range of locally made products, including hand-turned wooden items, baked goods, dog toys, honey, soaps, fruit ciders, skincare, beauty products, Yorkshire artwork, and handmade jewellery.

New for 2026

The Poetry Takeaway arrives at Oakwell Hall, with Yorkshire-born poets Jo Bell, Matt Abbott, Erin Bolens, and Jack Collins serving personalised poems from their creative van.

Yorkshire Rose Dog Rescue will host a Dog Show inviting four-legged friends to compete in several categories from waggiest tail to golden oldie, to best in show and many more.

The Larkin About space will host the Great Yorkshire Games, led by two larger-than-life Yorkshire farmers. Expect gloriously daft sporting contests including Welly Toss, Sheep Herding, Hobby Horse Show Jumping, Yorkshire Tea Bag Throwing, and Three Peaks Mime, encouraging audiences of all ages to join in and compete for Yorkshire glory.

Members of the 20th Batley Scouts and Explorer Scouts will lead the crowd in campfire songs.

Boom Chikka Boom will bring high-energy family fun with dance routines, bubbles, parachute mayhem, and festival vibes.

Pif-Paf will round off the day with their surreal and educational Bee Cart, featuring Bombus and Borage and their extraordinary inventions inspired by the natural world.

Festival Vibes

Oakwell Hall will be transformed with a display of Summit Flags from the Tour de Yorkshire art project from 2014, created by artists Wendy Meadley and Helen Davies alongside local schools and community groups. WOVEN team will bring the colour and fun as they yarn bomb with some knitted trees around the site.

A lively outdoor festival scene with people relaxing on the grass, some sitting on picnic blankets or folding chairs. Colourful market stalls with yellow and purple canopies are visible in the background. The crowd is engaged in conversation and appears to be enjoying the sunny day.
A lively outdoor gathering on a sunny day shows a crowd of people sitting on the grass. A woman in a pink outfit holds a fluffy dog while wearing sunglasses. Nearby, a woman in an orange dress stands, capturing a photo. Various people sit and chat, some holding drinks, with colourful tents in the background.

Nature & Play Field

Families can explore outdoor play, bushcraft, and nature-inspired making. Pif-Paf’s “Right to Play” returns with its 20-metre interactive world of imaginative play, a huge hit last year with hundreds of children.

Ian’s Mobile Farm will bring goats, sheep, donkeys, alpacas, pigs, rabbits, guinea pigs, poultry, tortoises, and ponies, along with talks about animal care and opportunities to brush, stroke, and feed the animals.

Children’s Activities

Children can build cycling confidence with beginner and advanced sessions from Little Bikers.

Growing Works will create a safe, inclusive woodland space for families and children with SEND/SEMH, offering nature exploration, mindful activities, outdoor yoga, crafts, and mini-meadow making with peat-free compost and wildflower seeds.

ArtiFaces will offer face painting throughout the day.

Creature Connections will provide hands-on encounters with tarantulas, millipedes, snails, scorpions, and other fascinating mini creatures.

The Friends of Oakwell Hall team will return with their popular pop-up crazy golf.

A bustling courtyard outside a stone building, with crowds of people mingling. The building has large arched doors painted in muted turquoise, open to reveal a well-lit interior. Blue and white bunting decorates the space, and a green gate is visible in the foreground with a sign that reads "The Courtyard."
A lively outdoor festival scene with a large crowd gathered around tents. People of all ages socialize, walk dogs, and enjoy the event. The backdrop features a rustic brick building, and the sky is clear and sunny.

Creative Activities and Workshops

Visitors can contribute to a collaborative giant doodlewall mural and try the potter’s wheel with Oakwell Hall’s artist-in-residence, Natasha Jackson Ceramics.

Fearless Arts will run bug and beastie-making workshops using wood and recycled materials, alongside marshmallow toasting and shelter building.

Wildwood Outdoor Education will offer nature-based games and activities, wildflower seed bomb making, a plant-themed sensory area, bee pollination play, and a Botanical Scavenger Hunt.

Museum in a Tent will display objects from the Kirklees collections and run Yorkshire-themed activities and Charmaine Straker-Purvis will teach Yorkshire dialect and phrases throughout the day.

Bakers are invited to enter the annual Cake-Off competition, featuring Yorkshire-themed showstoppers or traditional Yorkshire bakes.

Food and Drink

A wide selection of street food and refreshments will be available from: Friends of Oakwell Bake Sale, Hugh’s Food, VeeDeb Camper Bar, Pure and Natural Cuisine, Spuds & Puds, Istanbul Kitchen, Buzzibarista, A Taste of Italy, Claireabellas Sweets, Blue Sky Baker, Snow Cones, Nomadic Pizza, Yorkshire Craft Beers, and Oakwell’s own Willow Café. Visitors are welcome to bring a picnic and enjoy the beautiful grounds.

Rachel Spencer-Henshall, Deputy CEO of Kirklees Council and Executive Director for Culture, says:

“Our Yorkshire Celebration at Oakwell Hall is one of the highlights of our year, and I’m thrilled to see it return bigger, greener, and more inclusive than ever. This event brings together everything we love about Kirklees – creativity, community spirit, and pride in our Yorkshire heritage. It’s a day where everyone is welcome, and I can’t wait to see families, friends, and neighbours enjoying the festival together.”

Event Details

Date & Time: Sunday 2 August 2026, 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM

Location: Oakwell Hall & Country Park, Nova Lane, Birstall

Entry: Free

Parking: Free parking at Colliery Field (via Nutter Lane). Free disabled parking for Blue Badge holders at the Visitor Centre car park (Blue Badge must be displayed).

For full details and updates, visit the Creative Kirklees website or follow us on Facebook.

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