Following on from Bolton, Rochdale is now taking the reins as it has been awarded the title of Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture for 2025/26. Revealed at the town hall yesterday (February 27), it will see the borough handed £50,000 to support a year long programme of events, activities and improvements to cultural institutions.
The Town of Culture accolade is handed out every year to different borough’s across the region and celebrates Greater Manchester’s art, culture and heritage. Bury took the crown in 2020 and 2021, followed by Stalybridge in 2022, Stockport in 2023, then Bolton in 2024, the reign of which is coming to an end, passing over the baton to the Greater Manchester town of Rochdale.
Councillor Neil Emmott, leader of Rochdale Borough Council, said: “I’m thrilled Rochdale will be Town of Culture for 2025/2026. We’ll be drawing audiences from across Greater Manchester and beyond to enjoy a fabulous programme of new events and activities as well as amplifying our existing offer and recently transformed town hall square and centre.
“We have an amazing community spirit here, with exciting and varied attractions and an array of local talent to help us produce something very special. We’re well connected and have iconic cultural venues that will provide a stunning backdrop to the wonderful year ahead. This grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority culture fund will help to develop an inspiring line-up of events and activities celebrating Rochdale’s culture, history and future.”
Rochdale’s year will build on the towns cultural history and international reputation as the home of the co-operative movement with more than 35 arts organisations bringing together an ambitious programme of festivals, exhibitions, events and performances. Showcasing the very best local talent, Rochdale’s year is promising to put ‘people power’ centre stage, with residents helping to plan, develop and deliver a line-up of creative activity alongside a number of major events including the popular free days out for families.
Events planned for Rochdale, Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture, include the Feel Good Family Picnic, an exciting new urban arts festival, the Street Eat food and drink festival, a lantern parade, Ignite Fire Festival, live music, a new people’s gallery, the Merhaba Halal food festival, Pride parade and many more to be revealed including major international collaborations.
A Poet Laureate and Young Poet Laureate will be commissioned to capture the spirit of Rochdale and celebrate the year. There will also be plenty of opportunities for children and teenagers, with a young producer’s scheme, staging Rochdale’s first ever Youth Arts Festival in spring 2026.
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham said: “Rochdale is a place with a rich cultural history so it is great to name it Greater Manchester’s town of culture as it’s town hall and town centre enter a new era. Rochdale submitted a fantastic bid for this which was incredibly exciting and ambitious while being firmly rooted in its local talent and deep history. We are definitely going to see the very best of what Rochdale has to offer over the next 12 months and people will come from far and wide to see it.”
Rochdale’s Town of Culture programme will run from 1 April 2025 until 31 March 2026. You can discover all the upcoming events in Rochdale, Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture for 2025/26 here.