Art At The House’ is a ‘not for profit’ organization formed by artists from the Shepley area with the aim of providing a platform for local artists to showcase and sell their work. This culminates in an annual two-day event in September held at Cliffe House in the village. Most of the year is spent organising and promoting Art At The House which took place on September 20th and 21st 2025. Last year featured a wide range of mediums by over 60 artists, including musicians, poets of all ages from 16 upwards. The event was publicised widely in the local area and social media and as a result was well attended by over a thousand visitors from the local community and beyond. Art At the House hosts a wide range of workshops at affordable prices for community members to have a go at a different range of skills. There are also free events to take part in or to observe such things as a demonstration, listen to local musicians, watch a performance and take part in many other creative activities including eco-friendly and recycling activities. The event is free for visitors and aims to be family friendly and inclusive. Refreshments are available for sale on site but this year, due to a change in contracts by Kirklees, Cliffe House were unable to provide this service. A local catering company provided food and drinks across the site. The event also helps to promote Cliffe House as a key educational venue in the local community, promoting the use of the outdoor spaces and grounds. This year’s event was hugely successful despite Saturday being hampered by heavy rain all day and through the night. Fortunately, the sun came out on Sunday and people from the community and further afield came out in force. The event is gathering a lot of positive attention and is often described as “different” and “the best event we go to”. We have gained lots of positive feedback from both artists and members of the local community.

The company’s stakeholders are residents of and visitors to The Village, and local Artists in the surrounding area. The directors of the company have lived in The Village for a number of years and developed the business model of running this event by talking to Cliffe House, to other active residents and community groups including the village magazine. A feedback form for artists has helped us to design and improve our event each year. We also receive informal feedback from both artists and the community who attend each year, resulting in many repeat visitors. We work closely with Cliffe House representatives to evaluate logistics for future events. Income from the event has been used to buy Events Tents for the following event (2026) as well as signage and advertising with other local businesses. For the first time in 2026, we have been asked by Kirklees for £2000 to use the site for the weekend though we have received significant funding from Kirklees Council (seasons of Culture), West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Kirkburton Parish Council to help us to grow our event. We look forward to reporting on the impact this will have on this year’s event on September 19th and 20th.

No remuneration was received

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration