Blog

Children playing musical instruments in school

Pupils at Greenmount School are enriched by arts and culture opportunities

This blog has been written in collaboration with Greenmount Primary, who prioritise cultural and creative arts experiences for their pupils. We are shining a light on the efforts of the school, in support of Child Friendly Leeds Wish 7. Wish 7 – Children and young people know about things to do and places to go…
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Young people performing on stage with Brave Words Theatre

Inspiring Creativity through Arts & Culture – Brave Words Theatre

In 2024, Brave Words were the well-deserved recipients of our Child Friendly Leeds ‘Highly Commended’ award in the category ‘Leeds 2023: Inspiring Creativity through Arts and Culture’. The work that Brave Words does in the community directly supports Child Friendly Leeds wish 7. Wish 7 – Children and young people know about things to do…
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Family walking towards inflatables in a park

The 2025 Child Friendly Leeds Summer Guide!

The 6-week summer holidays are back and we are so excited to bring you our Child Friendly Leeds guide, giving you free and low-cost ideas of things to do across the city. We will be adding events to this page throughout the holidays, so keep your eyes peeled! Low-cost activities are marked with a *…
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Abbey House Museum Leeds

Abbey House in the running to be named UK’s Best Small Museum for families!

The Kids in Museums 2025 shortlist for the best museums in the UK has been revealed, and Leeds features on the list! The museums on the list are viewed as the most “welcoming, fun and accessible to all ages.” The categories:Best Accessible Museum, Best Small Museum; Best Medium Museum; Best Large Museum; Best Museum Youth…
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Expert panel from event

Special introduction from Olympian Alistair Brownlee at Leeds Active Travel Ambassador event

What is the Active Travel Ambassador (ATA) Program? The Active Travel Ambassador (ATA) programme provides young people aged 11 to 16 with the confidence and skills to address transport issues affecting their school community. With support from an ATA Coordinator and school staff, ATA teams research and develop behaviour change campaigns, focusing on active travel…
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Celebrating active travel during Walk to School Week 2025

This year’s Walk to School Week took place 19 to 23 May. As part of our focus on Wish 6 (safe and easy travel) we are reflecting on the success of the week across the city! The week was equally busy and fun for our Connecting Leeds road safety trainers and mascot, Arlo the owl.…
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Children waiting to cross a road

Keeping Leeds children safe as they travel to High School

At this time of year, children in Year 6 are getting ready to go to High School. It is an exciting time and many children this age are really looking forward to their increased independence and travelling to school with friends rather than caregivers. However, 11-15 year olds are the most likely to be injured…
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A child making a speech to an audience of schools

Leeds Children’s Mayor hosts event for 20 schools

On Wednesday 4th June 2025, something very exciting happened at Leeds Civic Hall — the Leeds Children’s Mayor, Esosa, from St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School, hosted her very own Primary Summit! Esosa invited Year 5 pupils from 20 different primary schools across Leeds to join her for the day. The aim? To learn about the…
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A large group of people outside stood behind a vegetable patch

Thousands of Leeds residents take part in climate action

More than 6,000 people have joined together in local communities to address the climate crisis, thanks to Climate Action Leeds Community Grants. What is Climate Action Leeds? Climate Action Leeds is a 5-year programme funded by The National Lottery Climate Action Fund. It provides a way for people, organisations and communities to come together to…
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Child Friendly Leeds – May half term picks

Read on to see the full details for Child Friendly Leeds’s May half term picks: Family Jazz Play24 May 11:00 to 15:00 The PLAY Tent and Leeds Jazz Festival Presents ‘Family Jazz Play’ on Cookridge Street. A free family paly event with no need to book, you can just pop in! Family Friendly event &…
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Child looking through self-made binoculars outdoors

What will Leeds look like in 2030?

This blog was written by Paul Chatterton, Professor of Urban Futures in the School of Geography at the University of Leeds. The Climate Emergency In 2019 Leeds City Council declared a climate and ecological emergency to tackle the pressing issues of rising carbon emissions and the loss of nature. It was an exciting time. Thousands…
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Children at a school enacting a clean air protest

Empowering young people to take climate action at Southroyd Primary

We first featured Southroyd Primary for their work around climate action back in 2022, but they’ve been on the journey for longer. We asked them to give us an update on the amazing progress they’ve been making as a Primary school in Leeds which wholeheartedly prioritises climate action and sustainability. It is wish 5 in…
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