City aims to cash in on its reputation for successfully hosting major events
Sheffield could host more major events if plans are approved to develop a new city-wide events strategy.
The city has already accommodated some of the UK’s biggest events in recent years, from Women’s Euros 2022 and the Rugby League World Cup, to the 2024 MOBO Awards, and most recently, the third leg of the Tour of Britain.
Sheffield was shortlisted to host the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest in solidarity with Ukraine.
Sheffield is home to a network of its own home-grown festivals. These include DocFest, which has been in the city for over 30 years, to Tramlines, one of the UK’s longest running, city-based music festivals.
Earlier this year, a new podcast festival, Crossed Wires, was launched in the city, attracting talent from across the UK and beyond to Sheffield.
The city also has a strong track-record for bidding for and hosting world-leading conferences, including the International Coeliac Disease Symposium and the British Association of Paediatric Surgeons.
Esther Britten, deputy director and head of events at UK Sport, said: “Sheffield has been a supportive partner and host to UK Sport funded major events over the last decade.
“Their commitment to not only staging the very best events but maximising their impact on the local community has enhanced the city’s reputation through the UK as a recognised host of the very best major international sporting events, we see them as a key host city looking into the future.”
A proposal from Sheffield City Council to develop a city-wide major events strategy would seek to take things a step further – attracting more events to the city and creating a framework to ensure these events have a lasting, positive impact on local people, businesses and the Sheffield economy.
If given the go ahead, a new plan will be developed, aiming to provide a clearer ambition for events in the city and an action plan to transform Sheffield into a recognised destination for home-grown, curated, commissioned, and nomadic events.
Councillor Martin Smith, chair of the Economic Development and Skills Committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “Events are big business, not just in Sheffield, but across the UK.
“Not only is the economic impact of events significant for the city, but events help us build our reputation and allow others to see and experience Sheffield on a different scale.
“Events bring people together, they celebrate our diversity and all of our local communities, helping to make Sheffield the vibrant place it is to live in and visit.
“Hosting more events, and more diverse events will help us attract more visitors to the city, generate more income, they will bring investment and help us to grow our economy.”
Councillors will be asked to approve proposals to begin development of the Major Events Plan for Sheffield at an Economic Development and Skills Committee meeting on 31 October 2024.
If agreed, the first phase of development will involve engaging with experts in the field and local partners to help identify future opportunities for Sheffield.
