More Cumbrian bids for Town of Culture 2028
Kirkby Lonsdale Town InformationAnother location in Cumbria is bidding to be Town of Culture 2028, with the winner awarded a £3m prize.
Market town Kirkby Lonsdale will enter the contest, saying: "For nearly 1,000 years this town has been a gathering place, and that spirit of welcome and belonging is at the heart of everything we are proposing."
The competition runs alongside the existing UK City of Culture contest, which was won by Bradford in 2025.
It joins Kendal's bid and Carlisle's City of Culture application. Meanwhile, Westmorland and Furness Council said cultural organisations in Barrow had expressed an interest in bidding and it was looking for who best to lead its submission.
Kirkby Lonsdale is on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park close to the Lake District, and boasts sites like Ruskin's View.
The town council said it had played a "quite but significant role" in England's national story as a centre for trade, craftsmanship and rural life.
Robin ReeMarie Batty who is leading the bid for the Kirkby Lonsdale Town Team said she was optimistic about its chances.
"This bid belongs to every single person who calls Kirkby Lonsdale home and to everyone who has passed through and felt something they couldn't quite explain," she said.
Towns can submit an expression of interest until 31 March, with the shortlist of towns expected to be announced in the spring.
Those short-listed will get £60,000 to help develop their full bid application.
The two runners-up for the town bid will receive prizes of £250,000 each.
The prize money would be used to deliver elements of their bid.
