Festivals are ambitious by nature. They bring together culture, community, place, and economy, often at scale, often free to attend, and often under scrutiny from funders and stakeholders.

Whether the focus is audience growth, community engagement, economic benefit, or long-term legacy, we bring clarity, insight and rigour. If you want to hear from real audiences and deliver real change, we’ll figure it out with you.

Festival Client Highlights

Here are five festivals we’ve supported, illustrating the breadth of scale, ambition and creative focus we work alongside.

We Invented The Weekend (WITW)

Salford Quays / MediaCity,  a free two-day festival celebrating the invention of the weekend itself, rooted in place and industrial heritage.

With 60,000+ visitors and 200+ free activities, the festival blends large-scale programming with community participation.

• Audience profile and geography
• Economic impact and local spend
• Community engagement across activities
• Legacy planning for future editions

National Festival of Making (NFOM)

Blackburn, Lancashire, a free family festival celebrating “making, from the kitchen table to the factory floor”.

With 100+ workshops, artist commissions and performances across 20+ venues, it connects culture, skills and manufacturing heritage.

• Participatory and workshop outcomes
• Maker-economy and skills impacts
• Place-based manufacturing identity

British Textile Biennial (BTB)

A contemporary art festival across East Lancashire exploring the legacy and future of the textile industry.

Blending heritage with global artistic practice, the festival reframes textile innovation for modern audiences.

• New narratives of craft and heritage
• Audience reach across towns
• Contribution to cultural regeneration

Pendle Festival of Culture

Nelson, Lancashire, a vibrant community festival celebrating people, environment and culture.

• Engagement of diverse communities
• Participatory arts outcomes
• Local stakeholder and partner feedback

Yorkshire Festival of Story

Produced by Settle Stories, a hybrid storytelling festival connecting live and online audiences globally.

• Digital reach and global engagement
• Participation across formats
• How storytelling drives reflection and change

Why This Matters

When festivals operate at this level. free access, diverse programming, significant visitor numbers and community outcomes, credible evaluation is not optional.

• Demonstrating impact to funders and partners
• Attracting future investment
• Securing long-term stakeholder buy-in
• Shaping sustainable legacy beyond a single edition

Good evaluation doesn’t slow festivals down. Done well, it strengthens the story, sharpens delivery and builds confidence in what comes next.