Huddersfield Literature Festival has won the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Award at the inaugural Yorkshire Post Tourism Awards 2022.
The prestigious awards were held at Headingley Stadium in Leeds and comprised 17 categories recognising the achievements of touristic organisations across Yorkshire.
Hudd Lit Fest, as they have nicknamed themselves, was the only literature festival among the finalists and the only Kirklees-based organisation. It’s a huge achievement for the festival which has been bringing high-quality literature events to Huddersfield since 2006.
The festival was also a finalist in the 2022 Kirklees Diversity, Equality, and Innovation Awards earlier this year, proving that not only is the organisation fully committed to creating a diverse and inclusive festival, but that the work they are doing is being recognised as being at a high standard.
Festival director Michelle Hodgson, who has been leading the festival since 2013, said: “We are thrilled to bring this prestigious award home to Huddersfield.
“We were up against some tough competition and it was wonderful to have our long-standing commitment to accessibility and inclusivity recognised by such prestigious awards.
“Our next festival will showcase a wide representation of voices and we will be working closely with Kirklees Local TV to increase our hybrid offer, as part of our ongoing commitment to accessibility.”
With the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, and other challenges the country faces this year, access to exceptional arts and culture events is crucial for wellbeing and emotional resilience.
A study conducted by UCL stated that during the pandemic: “The arts were proactively adopted by many as part of supportive coping styles to help them manage the stress of the pandemic.” With a new set of challenges facing us this winter, the role of the arts is going to be just as critical.
Not only are Hudd Lit Fest committed to accessibility across their annual programme of events and inclusivity in their communications and festival structure, but they’re also tackling the financial access to events.
By keeping as many events as possible free of charge or low-cost, they are ensuring that no one, even those struggling financially this season, should be without access to exceptional cultural offerings.
The festival will return in spring 2023 with a diverse programme of venue-based, online and hybrid events. The theme of ‘Music’ will run through the festival programme to tie in with the Kirklees Year of Music 2023 initiative.
Events will be available to view and book through the Festival website with further information at www.huddlitfest.org.uk/
