Light Up Wakefield returns this weekend!

Taking place across the city centre this weekend (21-23 November), this annual free festival from Wakefield Council invites residents and visitors alike to enjoy Wakefield in a whole new light. 

The Christmas Light Switch On will take place at 5:30pm on Friday 21 November in the Cathedral Precinct.

Also on Friday, there will be a fantastical Lantern Parade moving through the heart of the city. Starting at 6pm on Brook Street, the Parade - which includes majestic puppets, disco stilt performers, brass bands and community lanterns - will be around an hour long travelling via Wood Street to Coronation Gardens.

Across all three days, visitors can enjoy the Light Trail, which is bigger than ever before with fun, unique and interactive elements allowing visitors to take direct part in the installations. A free trail map can be picked up at WX Wakefield Exchange - the Light Up Wakefield Event Hub. There is also a digital map available on the Experience Wakefield website.

More information on the event programme can be found at expwake.co/LightUpWakefield

Cultural venues across Wakefield are also hosting fantastic fringe activity alongside the main festival.

Alongside their installation ‘The Public Dream’ by Emma Bolland, visitors to The Art House can also enjoy free glow-in-the-dark creative activities in their Light Lab - perfect for all ages.

The Hepworth Wakefield are in the party spirit with their Opening Party, where they’ll be launching two new exhibitions, as well as their Festive Market preview.

Visitors can also meet Santa at his grotto in Trinity Walk, with their ‘Trinch’ also out and about causing mayhem.

Find a full list of fringe activity at expwake.co/LightUpFringe

Opening times:

• Friday 21 November, 4pm-9pm
• Saturday 22 November, 5pm-9pm
• Sunday 23 November, 5pm-8pm 

Travel Information:

There are numerous off-street and on-street car parking spaces in Wakefield city centre. A full list can be found on the Wakefield Council website at expwake.co/CarParksWFD. The most convenient accessible parking is at Trinity Walk Shopping Centre or The Ridings Shopping Centre. 

There are two trains stations in Wakefield city centre, with Wakefield Westgate the closest to the main festival site. Train provider Northern are providing train fares priced at £2 to attend the event. These can be purchased on their website or the Northern App, up to three days before the event.

It is an approximately two-minute walk from Wakefield Bus Station to the Event Hub at WX Wakefield Exchange. 

Accessibility Information:

The Council are passionate about providing an enjoyable experience that is accessible to all. There will be staff, security, first aiders and contractors available to offer assistance throughout the event. You can find them in Hi-Vis or Wakefield Council Uniform, look for ‘EVENT STAFF’ on their backs.

There are accessible toilets, baby changing facilities and changing places facilities at WX Wakefield Exchange.

Audio Description of some of the sculptural installations will be available via QR code at the installation sites. BSL Tours are available although please note pre-booking is essential.

There will also be translations of the Light Trail installations available from the Event Hub and online in Polish and Urdu.

An Easy Read Guide can also be found on the Experience Wakefield website.

To access these resources and for more information please visit expwake.co/accessibility