UK Town of Culture
(asked on 3rd July 2026) - View Source
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the geographic distribution of Expressions of Interest received.
DCMS received 398 Expression of Interests representing over 400 places from across the UK. I am delighted that so many towns wanted to celebrate their contribution to our national story and to use culture and creativity to tell their story and why they are proud of their community.
A breakdown by nation of the UK, English region and local authority area is set out below. Please note that the listed local authorities may not be the principal bidding partners; this list illustrates the geographical distribution of Expressions of Interest across local authority areas.
Annex a - Town of Culture EOI by nation of the UK and region of England
Region | Count |
England (East Midlands) | 41 |
England (East of England) | 34 |
England (North East) | 20 |
England (North West) | 39 |
England (South East) | 71 |
England (South West) | 59 |
England (West Midlands) | 35 |
England (Yorkshire and the Humber) | 37 |
Northern Ireland | 5 |
Scotland | 26 |
Wales | 31 |
Annex b - Town of Culture EOI by Local Authority Area
Local Authority | Count |
Kent County Council | 14 |
Lancashire County Council | 14 |
Devon County Council | 12 |
Hertfordshire County Council | 11 |
North Yorkshire Council | 11 |
Cornwall Council | 10 |
Derbyshire County Council | 11 |
Hampshire County Council | 9 |
Oxfordshire County Council | 9 |
Somerset Council | 9 |
Lincolnshire County Council | 8 |
Northumberland County Council | 8 |
Nottinghamshire County Council | 8 |
Warwickshire County Council | 8 |
Wiltshire Council | 8 |
East Sussex County Council | 7 |
Norfolk County Council | 7 |
Powys County Council | 7 |
Shropshire Council | 7 |
Suffolk County Council | 7 |
Dorset Council | 6 |
Durham County Council | 6 |
Essex County Council | 6 |
Gloucestershire County Council | 6 |
Leicestershire County Council | 6 |
Staffordshire County Council | 6 |
West Sussex County Council | 6 |
Westmorland and Furness Council | 6 |
Dumfries and Galloway Council | 5 |
Isle of Wight Council | 5 |
Kirklees Council | 5 |
North Northamptonshire Council | 5 |
Surrey County Council | 5 |
Buckinghamshire Council | 4 |
Cheshire East Council | 4 |
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council | 4 |
East Riding of Yorkshire Council | 4 |
Leeds City Council | 4 |
South Gloucestershire Council | 4 |
Worcestershire County Council | 4 |
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council | 3 |
East Lothian Council | 3 |
Gwynedd Council | 3 |
Herefordshire Council | 3 |
North Somerset Council | 3 |
Cambridgeshire County Council | 2 |
Ceredigion County Council | 2 |
City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council | 2 |
Cumberland Council | 2 |
Flintshire County Council | 2 |
Midlothian Council | 2 |
Milton Keynes City Council | 2 |
Monmouthshire County Council | 2 |
Pembrokeshire County Council | 2 |
Perth and Kinross Council | 2 |
Rutland County Council | 2 |
Scottish Borders Council | 2 |
Torfaen County Borough Council | 2 |
Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council | 2 |
Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council | 1 |
Argyll and Bute Council | 1 |
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Bedford Borough Council | 1 |
Birmingham City Council | 1 |
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council | 1 |
Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council | 1 |
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council | 1 |
Bury Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Caerphilly County Borough Council | 1 |
Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council | 1 |
Central Bedfordshire Council | 1 |
Cheshire West and Chester Council | 1 |
City of Edinburgh Council | 1 |
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) | 1 |
Denbighshire County Council | 1 |
Derry City and Strabane District Council | 1 |
East Ayrshire Council | 1 |
Fermanagh and Omagh District Council | 1 |
Fife Council | 1 |
Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Halton Borough Council | 1 |
Hartlepool Borough Council | 1 |
Inverclyde Council | 1 |
Isle of Anglesey County Council | 1 |
Isle of Wight Council | 1 |
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Medway Council | 1 |
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council | 1 |
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council | 1 |
Moray Council | 1 |
Neath Port Talbot Council | 1 |
Newport City Council | 1 |
North East Lincolnshire Council | 1 |
North Lanarkshire Council | 1 |
North Lincolnshire Council | 1 |
North Tyneside Council | 1 |
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council | 1 |
Renfrewshire Council | 1 |
Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council | 1 |
Rochdale Borough Council | 1 |
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Shetland Islands Council | 1 |
Slough Borough Council | 1 |
South Ayrshire Council | 1 |
South Tyneside Council | 1 |
Southend-on-Sea City Council | 1 |
St Helens Borough Council | 1 |
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council | 1 |
Stoke-on-Trent City Council | 1 |
Swansea Council | 1 |
Swindon Borough Council | 1 |
Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Telford & Wrekin Council | 1 |
Thurrock Council | 1 |
Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Vale of Glamorgan Council | 1 |
Wakefield Metropolitan District Council | 1 |
Warrington Borough Council | 1 |
West Berkshire Council | 1 |
West Lothian Council | 1 |
West Northamptonshire Council | 1 |
Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council | 1 |
Wokingham Borough Council | 1 |
Wolverhampton City Council | 1 |