Sheffield’s Off the Shelf Festival has been awarded funding from Arts Council England’s National Lottery Project Grants programme, ahead of the 2024 festival later this year. The funding grant, to the sum of £75,675, will “empower the festival […] to provide a diverse and an engaging programme of over eighty live and online events”. This year’s programme will mark the 33rd year of the festival.
In an announcement yesterday, the literary festival took to its website and social media to celebrate the grant, saying: “We’re so grateful to have received Arts Council England funding! This means a BIGGER & BETTER festival this October with our most diverse programming EVER. Get ready! We’re dropping festival highlights for early bird sales very soon…”
The University of Sheffield’s Director of City, Culture and Public Engagement Professor Vanessa Toulmin, in response to the news, said “We are deeply grateful for the vital support provided by Arts Council England and this grant is a game changer. The University remains committed to fostering our vibrant cultural scene, and Off the Shelf plays a pivotal role in this effort. The festival offers a programme that caters to a wide range of interests and tastes, providing a unique and enriching experience for all of Sheffield’s incredible communities. We can’t wait to share the full programme with you soon!”
The Off the Shelf Festival is an annual literary festival taking place across Sheffield. The event, which contains events of various formats including book talks, presentations and collaborative programmes with local, national and international figures. The festival has been attended by a vast array of literary figures, as well as speakers from other fields, including Sheffield Poet Laureate Danaé Wellington, environmentalist Chris Packham and now Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves MP. It is also an opportunity for local writers and artists to showcase their work, particularly with the continued support of Slambarz in this year’s programme. The Arts Council England Funding will be partially used to support Hidden Figures, celebrating Black history and curated by Ruth McDonald, Sheffield’s Race Equality Commissioner. With an interactive exhibition in Sheffield’s Winter Gardens, it aims to highlight Black contributors in science, music, design and dance.
Director North for Arts Council England Pete Massey described Off the Shelf as “a cornerstone event […] [giving] a fantastic platform for writers, poets and thinkers from around the globe to connect with audiences in Sheffield. I’m really pleased that we are supporting this year’s mix of live and online events which both the local community and visitors can enjoy”.
With less than three months remaining until the festival returns to the Steel City, preparations are well underway for the 33rd edition of the renowned festival’s return, and with Arts Council England’s funding secured, is set to be one of the biggest in the event’s history. Whilst the festival’s programme is not set to be unveiled until September, the countdown to the event has begun and many will be waiting in anticipation of this year’s guest announcements.
The Off the Shelf Festival takes place in venues across Sheffield from October 7th to November 3rd
