Nature Season in Wakefield

Soak up the Sun! WX – Wakefield Exchange is hosting Helios, a spectacular large‑scale artwork that brings the awe and energy of the Sun into the heart of the city.

Created by renowned UK artist Luke Jerram, this six‑metre‑wide illuminated sphere reveals the Sun’s surface in extraordinary detail, offering visitors the rare chance to explore sunspots, filaments and swirling patterns usually hidden from the naked eye. Stepping beneath the glowing sculpture, audiences can experience an atmospheric fusion of solar imagery, sunlight and a specially commissioned surround‑sound composition that brings the science and mystery of our nearest star vividly to life.

Helios builds on the success of Jerram’s previous installations in Wakefield, including the hugely popular Museum of the Moon. Throughout the summer, the exhibition is the focal point for a whole host of companion activities, including sound baths, yoga, workshops, roller-skating, family activities, storytimes and lots more. Step inside and be inspired to celebrate the Sun’s light, energy and influence on our world through art, science and shared exploration.

Headlining Yorkshire Sculpture Park‘s 2026 programme, Hold to this Earth is a major presentation of work by contemporary Indigenous American artists from Tia Collection.
Running all summer long, this landmark exhibition brings together 67 works by 38 artists, including three significant new commissions, showcasing Indigenous North American art on a scale never seen before in the UK!

The first group exhibition staged in YSP’s prestigious Underground Gallery in its twenty-year history, Hold to This Earth features sculpture, film, photography, painting, ceramics and fibre art highlighting the broad spectrum of work being produced by Indigenous North American artists today.
The exhibition brings together over 60 works by more than 30 artists, whose practices are rooted in deep relationships to land, cultural memory and community, offering a rare encounter with contemporary Indigenous North American art that is unprecedented in Europe.

Image: Copyright India Hobson, courtesy YSP

Step into the enchanting realm of wildflowers and breathe in the summer air on this exclusive Wonderful World of Wildflowers Walk through hidden corners of RSPB Fairburn Ings.

Join knowledgeable guides to discover hidden gems of British wildflowers you never realised were there! Find colourful blooms, delicate petals, fluttering butterflies, and buzzing pollinators – plus exclusive access to hidden, non-public areas carefully nurtured for maximum biodiversity.

Perfect for deepening your knowledge of native flora and discovering their ancient folklore, medicinal properties and uses. Find moments of wonder amid nature’s peaceful, colourful tapestry.

Warm up afterwards with a complimentary hot drink included with each ticket!

Join Nostell‘s Senior Gardener for a series of monthly talks in the Kitchen Garden, running throughout the core gardening season.

Whether you’re a seasoned grower or just getting started with your allotment or veg beds at home, these sessions are packed with practical advice and insider know-how.

Each month, David will share expert tips on everything from caring for fruit beds to growing giant onions, along with seasonal insights and tried-and-tested techniques used on the estate at Nostell.

Upcoming talks include Grow Your Own Veg, A Passion for Potato Growing, and A Bed Full of Roses.

Experience Farmer Copleys‘ incredible Sunflower Field this summer. They’ve planted thousands of sunflowers across a wide range of varieties and for 2026 there are some brand-new photo opportunities throughout the field – perfect for capturing beautiful memories and some great content for your Instagram.

You’ll also be able to Pick Your Own sunflowers to take home, but the hard part is choosing your favourites!

Also this year are some special picnic patches right inside the field. You can borrow one of the farm’s picnic blankets for a refundable deposit and enjoy your favourite Farm Shop treats surrounded by sunflowers – a lovely way to relax and soak up the view.

The Northern Green Gathering is an annual eco-friendly festival that’s all about celebrating our beautiful planet and the vibrant local culture! Enjoy a weekend filled with fun, creativity, and community spirit and come together to embrace sustainability and green living.

Taking place at Newland Park in Normanton over 3 days, get ready to mingle with fellow nature lovers, discover amazing eco-organisations, and meet talented artisans showcasing their work. Enjoy live performances that’ll keep your spirits high, all while learning how to make positive lifestyle changes for our environment. Let’s turn sustainability into a joyful celebration and inspire one another to make a greener tomorrow!

The Northern Green Gathering is a community-focused, environmentally conscious festival celebrating sustainability, local culture, and green living. The event will bring together local residents, eco-organisations, artisans, and performers to promote environmental awareness and inspire positive lifestyle changes.

Time’s Scythe is an installation by British artist Nicola Turner that breathes new life into Yorkshire Sculpture Park‘s 18th-century Chapel.

The installation has been created inside the chapel using recycled wool and horsehair, which is hand-stitched inside mesh to create the work’s bulbous tendrils. Beginning outdoors, the work spills from the Chapel bell tower and enters through an upper window, before cascading over the balcony to fill the gallery space. The natural earthy smell of the wool creates a tactile, sensory experience as you walk amongst and around the flowing tentacles.

Discover the history of Sandal Castle on this tour around the castle grounds and ruins.

Wakefield Museums & Castles volunteers will take you on a fascinating journey through five hundred years of history on a guided walk and talk around the beautiful castle grounds. Learn about history where it happened, and dig deeper into the various theories concerning one of the most important battles of the Wars of the Roses, as you take in the stunning views across Pugneys Country Park and the Calder Valley.

This tour is part of Heritage Open Days.

Friarwood Festival is a family friendly, community music festival, raising funds for the upkeep and maintenance of Friarwood Valley Gardens in Pontefract. Enjoy local bands and artists, delicious street food, bars and plenty of kids entertainment, all set in the beautiful green surroundings of the Valley Gardens.

At this year’s festival, expect a fantastic main stage line up, and acoustic stage, kids’ rides and entertainment, bars, hot food and sweet treats!

What better way to celebrate the natural wonder of our district than by boat? Best Yorkshire Boating is offering trips along Wakefield’s historic canal network.

Experience the beauty of the canal aboard the historic Apollo. Built in 1929 Apollo is a fine example of how a working narrow boat should be. Spend some time being the cargo in the open hold of this spectacular vessel. You can engage with navigation and history as much as you like with the guidance of our local expert skippers, or just sit back and relax. The choice is yours.

Choose from 90 minute boat trips from Knottingley, 90 minute boat trips from Castleford, or to really soak up the atmosphere, take the whopping 4 hour trip from Castleford!

Connect with ancient folklore on this ceramics taster at The Art House and welcome the spirit of nature by creating your own Green Man ceramic mask, along with the guidance of local Ceramicist Abbie Brewer of Sunshine Child.

You’ll begin with a short introduction to the basic techniques, followed by hands-on guidance to sculpt leafy faces from clay. You’ll learn basic ceramic hand-building techniques, how to add character through surface details and coloured slip.

Work will be glazed and fired through The Art House’s kiln and available to collect approximately 3 weeks after the workshop.

Take in the splendid sights and sounds of the reserve and enjoy the birds of RSPB Fairburn Ings on this relaxed Birding for Beginners walk.

Perfect for those new to birdwatching, enjoy a gentle stroll around the reserve, learning how to spot and identify common species, use binoculars effectively, and build confidence in recognising birds in the wild.

The session finishes with free hot drink in the Visitor Centre.

Celebrate the start of autumn at The Hepworth Wakefield and enjoy a weekend in the company of some of the UK’s finest independent designers, makers, store owners and producers all set to get you ready for the change in the season.

You’ll find over 70 stalls selling artisan food and drink, blankets, books, candles, ceramics, home and kitchenware, plants, prints, textiles, vintage items and seasonal produce.

Plus family activities in the galleries and garden, live music, street food and discounted exhibition entry.

Discover the stall holders at The Hepworth Wakefield Harvest Festival.

Unleash your inner crafter at this fused glass garden scene workshop at Lakeside Creative Arts Centre!

Create your very own autumn themed tile using shaped glass pieces. This event is perfect for unleashing your artistic side and learning the art of glass fusion. Claire Myers of Cherry Tree Glass, an experienced glass fuser, will guide you through the process of selecting colourful glass pieces and arranging them together to create an autumn garden tile. No cutting or grinding involved!

The workshop includes all materials and refreshments and no previous experience is needed.

You will create one piece measuring 15cm x 10cm. Following the session your work will be taken away to be fired off-site and a wooden stand added. You can collect the completed piece from Lakeside Creative Arts approximately a week later.

Discover Batty! at Theatre Royal Wakefield. Have you got a wild side?

Batty has, she dreams of running barefoot, wild swimming, of talking trees, strange animals and the scent of the seasons turning. In fact she’s starting to wonder if she might be a witch…

Join Batty and her companion Wildthing for gossip, gay abandon, exquisite tenderness and raucous stories (with a side order of ranting), as they explore the magic and power of ageing.

This new production from Victoria Firth & Company explores the wildness – as opposed to madness – of women, and how our feral side can reconnect us to ourselves and our environment.

Poop-Poop! Welcome to the Riverbank! Step out of the sun and into the cool, rustling reeds of the River Calder. Noisy Cow Theatre Co invites you to leave the modern world behind and join Mole, Ratty, and the formidable Badger on Kenneth Grahame’s classic adventure that has captivated hearts for over a century.

The Wind in the Willows at the National Coal Mining Museum takes place across the changing seasons, from the warmth of spring to the chill of winter; from the gentle magic of a picnic on the water to the dusty, high-octane chaos of the open road. But the Wild Wood is stirring, the Weasels are plotting, and the rather flamboyant Mr. Toad is about to learn that while motorcars are fast, the consequences of a stolen ride are even faster.

Join these woodland friends as they overcome their individual hardships and embrace one thing – their alliance and devotion to each other. Whether you are six or sixty, there is a seat for you at the table. Just mind the oars, watch out for the stoats, and prepare for a “simply topping” time at the theatre!

Ten years after Angela Harding’s first exhibition at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, she is welcomed back in winter 2026.

A Chronicle of Birds and Beasts marks a momentous moment in Harding’s career, showcasing her enormous talent as one of the most recognised printmakers and illustrators working in the UK today.

This new exhibition celebrates he extraordinary ability to capture the vitality and poetry of the natural world through her distinctive printmaking and illustration style, adored by art, nature and book lovers alike. It will feature many new works, including a special triptych of large-scale prints, Entrapped Eagle, Waking Fox and Tapestry of Birds printed by master printmaker, Dan Bugg of Penfold Press in Selby.

Many of these new works are inspired by a recent trip to Fair Isle, where she spent nine weeks as an artist in residence. There will be 24 small oil paintings, along with book illustrations and works created for The Wilding Project with Isabella Tree and Poet Laureate Simon Armitage. Armitage and Harding will work together to respond to the exhibition’s title, creating an illustration and poetry, for an exclusive limited edition print.

Find peace and creativity in nature with this Hapa Zome workshop at RSPB Fairburn Ings.

Immerse yourself in the gentle rhythm of this ancient Japanese art: carefully select leaves and wildflowers, then hammer their natural pigments onto fabric to create beautiful, one-of-a-kind botanical prints. Enjoy a calm, restorative outdoor experience surrounded by beautiful blooms, birdsong and the living landscape.

Small groups offer space for quiet reflection and deeper connection.

Ideal for those craving peaceful creativity, and those who love discovering the intricate beauty of local flora up close.

Complimentary drink included afterwards.

Landscape architect and designer of The Hepworth Wakefield Garden, Tom Stuart-Smith will be in conversation with the gallery’s Cultural Gardener, Katy Merrington, exploring the techniques you can use to slow succession down and create gardens that are resilient for the future. They will share ideas around soils, substrates, plant combinations and ongoing care.

On the day, a pop-up plant stall (open 10am until 5pm) will allow you to purchase and take home herbaceous perennials grown by Cliff Bank Nursery in an exciting collaboration with The Hepworth Wakefield. There’ll also be a specially curated selection of bulbs and garden books for sale.