News, Features and forthcoming Events
Electrification of a Trans Pennine route - but not the Calder Valley line. The Upper Valley Transport Group has called on the Government to go further and commit to electrifying the line through Hebden Bridge, Todmorden, Brighouse and Halifax. Read news item and see Forum thread 1 Oct
Protest songs: Local musicians have volunteered for a special We Shall Overcome weekend (3-4 Oct) at Hebden Bridge Trades Club to challenge the austerity agenda. Read more 25 Sept
Minutes of latest Town Council meetings and committee meetings now online.
Durtanczyc Jewellers and Valet Stores to close this month, after many years of business in Hebden Bridge. See HebWeb Forum
Calder Valley Community Land Trust celebrates its first birthday. This October will see its first AGM and 4 test digs in the now deserted High Street (above Bridge Lanes) Read more 29 Sept
Riverside need a few more votes! Riverside School in Hebden Bridge has been shortlisted for an Award from the M&S Energy Fund. Riverside have asked for £12,500 to buy solar panels. Read more - updated
Second New Mayor this year for Hebden Royd Town Council. Deputy Mayor Cllr James Fearon has taken over from Cllr Karl Boggis who has stood down for family reasons. Read more 25 Sept
Hebden Bridge Steampunk Weekend. 19-20 September. Photo thanks to H Gregg of the After Alice Project - click photo to enlarge
Major new TV drama comes to Calderdale: In the week when more filming has been taking place around Hebden Bridge for the next series of Happy Valley (see above), another major new TV drama is announced for Calderdale. Read more
Community Funding grants Hebden Royd Town Council is keen to hear from local community organisations who need financial support. Read more 18 Sept
Wainsgate Concert: Emma Sweeney Trio: acoustic music at Wainsgate Chapel on Sat 19 September when the Emma Sweeney Trio paid a visit as part of the Chapel's summer concert series. More info
Owen Jones, columnist for The Guardian, spoke at a sell-out event organised by the Arts Festival, packing one of Hebden Bridge's largest venues, the Hope Baptist Church. As a supporter of Jeremy Corbyn his visit to Hebden Bridge was very timely. Read report 14 Sept
Refugee Crisis: Hebden Bridge Collection point opened at the Town Hall at 9am Monday 7 Sept. Read more and see Forum thread 7 Sept
Posters and banners banned in George's Square - 14 month one person Vigil in the Square - Christine Drake has been told by Calderdale not to use "posters, banners, flags and information".
Read news and see Forum thread
Local film producer, Nick Wilding's popular 'Hebden Bridge - A 700 Year Story' receive another showing on Thursday, 10 September. Nick also added a new short film on the creation of the Pennine Way Loop. Read more
St Pol-sur-Ternoise and Warstein visitors. On 27 August, 70 visitors from Hebden Bridge's twin towns of St Pol-sur-Ternoise (France) and Warstein (Germany) arrived to celebrate many years of twinning together. Read more 2 Sept
What's on in September - around 35 events now listed in our events section. Up the Buttress, workshops, talks, village fete, storytelling, open days, film premiere, ward forum, steampunk and much more. What's on
Flood defence schemes update. A programme of work to reduce the risk of flooding in the Upper Calder Valley is making progress. Read more
Calderdale moves Customer First back to the Library. Lib Dems ask why. Cllr Janet Battye gives her reasons why it is a bad move. Read more and see Forum
Little Park to be overshadowed as council gives permission for 8 more flats next to the McCarthy & Stone development - with parking over the river. See Planning Watch and Forum.
Vacancy for Town Councillor filled White Lee Ward: Tony Hodgins has been selected by co-option following disqualification of Conservative Councillor, Nicola May. Read more
Maxine Peake event raised £1,200 for Morning Star at Trades Club, Sat August 8. She read verses from Shelley's epic poem Masque of Anarchy, which Shelley was inspired to write by the Peterloo Massacre. Read more (10 Aug)
The First Film - with Q&A. Was the film industry born in Yorkshire? That's the question asked by David Wilkinson in this enthralling documentary into the origins of cinema. Picture House. 9 Aug. See What's on.
Vintage Car Weekend: 1-2 August. The Rotary Club of Hebden Bridge hosted the annual charity fund raising event. More info
Jeremy Corbyn's bid to be Labour Leader now has the support of Calder Valley Labour Party. (28 July)
Arts Festival thanks HebWeb for its support. "On behalf of the Hebden Bridge Arts Festival board I would like to thank Hebweb for its continued support which helped us attract people… " Read more (27 July)
Happy Valley writer loves Calderdale. "Hebden Bridge is vibrant; there's a lot going on artistically and it's also got great galleries, pubs and restaurants." Sally Wainwright talks of our "dramatic and awe-inspiring" landscape and the influence of local historian Jill Liddington's Anne Lister book. Read her Guardian article
Arts Festival seeks new blood. The Festival Board has launched a search for a new Chair and new Board members who can help the organisation continue to flourish. Read more
SAINSBURYS FIGHT BACK with a judicial review. Despite the application to build a Sainsbury store in Hebden Bridge being rejected by Hebden Royd Council, by Calderdale Council and by the Planning Inspectorate the developers are not giving up. Read more
Camera Club Annual Exhibition winning pictures: visitors were asked to vote for their 3 favourite images in order of merit. Read more and see the 3 winning photos. 6 July
FESTIVAL STREET SUNDAE: 2nd weekend. Some of the nation's top street performers joined in the fun, including Phoenix Nights star Janice Connolly. Read more and see more photos from Paul Clarke
Hebden Royd Town Council annual report and councillors' attendance records both now online.
Car Park Closes: Calderdale councillor Janet Battye has told the HebWeb that she thinks the old Fire Station land should continue as a car park. Read more
Move Parliament to Hebden Bridge, argues Professor Tony Travers in today's London Evening Standard. "With both MPs and peers in Parliament and the Queen in Buckingham Palace facing the possibility of decamping while renovations are made to their historic homes, is it now the time for power to shift in the UK?" To Hebden Bridge? Read article 25 June
BBC News: West Yorkshire Police to get £1.5m to review 'cold case' murders, including that of Hebden Bridge's Lindsay Rimer
Calder Valley MP's snub to climate change delegation. Craig Whittaker refused to meet a delegation from his constituency at Parliament, as part of the national Climate Coalition lobby of Parliament on Weds 17th June, despite previously having said that he would. Read more
Following Hebden Royd Town Council's lead, Calderdale Council has now also become a living wage employer. Employees will receive a minimum hourly wage of £7.85, instead of the national minimum wage of £6.50.
Handmade Parade flies into Hebden Bridge sunshine: Hebden Bridge was blown away by Sunday's Parade, with thousands lining the streets to watch colourful creations soar above their heads. Read more and see photos (8 June)
Photos from 50 years ago: Terry Roberts grew up in Hebden Bridge and has been in touch with the HebWeb to make available some of his old photos. Read more and see photos. (17 June)
Hebden Bridge Partnership - how things get done The Partnership is an umbrella organisation which brings together community groups. At its meeting of 12 October, around 30 groups will speak for 3 minutes explaining just what they do. Read more 2 Oct
Gallivanting on Public Transport: A Bus Pass from Berwick to Land's End - latest talk from the University of the Third Age, with speaker David Whatmough. Read more 30 Sept
Wainsgate Concert: The Bobby Pins - a performance on Saturday 3rd October by May Lester, Gina Walters and Debra Ann Finch – aka The Bobby Pins. Read more 29 Sept
Speed networking comes to Hebden Bridge. Forty three diverse local businesses attended the Speed Networking event organised by the Hebden Bridge Business Forum. Read more 28 Sept
Citadel, a new epic mountain film, premieres at Hebden Bridge Picture House - hosted by Calder Valley Search and Rescue. Read more 23 Sept
SITA becomes SUEZ and keeps council waste contract. Residents in the Hebden Bridge area will be seeing some changes next year, including more recycling options and new vehicles. Read more 22 Sept
Art Fair Planned for early November: The Town Hall's Waterfront Hall will host 20 unique stalls, highlighting an innovative mix of local art, craft and photography available to purchase.
Alternative Secondary School proposed for Hebden Bridge. Hebden Bridge School will be a small, alternative secondary school 11 to 16 year olds, planning to open in the Hebden Bridge area in September 2016. Read more 21 Sept
Acre Mill asbestos site could become a caravan and campsite: Update: The HebWeb has been informed by one of our readers that the scheme will not now go ahead. Read more Updated 22 Sept
Untouchable Things by Tara Guha was launched to a packed crowd at the Town Hall on Friday, 18 Sept. The novel's quirky characters and literary references will appeal to many readers in Hebden Bridge. Read more
Haworth - Hebden Bridge: Launch of Walking Guide. Hebden Bridge Walkers Action has produced a guide to walking between the two towns. Read more 16 Sept
Cragg Vale School saved: A short and sharp campaign to save Cragg Vale Junior & Infant School has halted plans by Calderdale Council to launch a consultation in relation to proposals to close down the school and 'relocate' it to a new site at Calder High School. Read more 15 Sept
Wuthering Bytes: the annual Hebden Bridge one week technology festival at the Town Hall includes exciting events and speakers, including Professor Danielle George who presented the BBC's 2014 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. More info about speakers and events.
Calderdale Council budget - have your say. How do you think Calderdale Council money should be spent, and what do you think our priorities should be for the future? Read more
Blackshaw Head's Village Fete: Photos by H Gregg as part of the After Alice Project. See more photos and read background to Saturday's fete
Happy Valley Collective: New Hebden Bridge label's first release to support Macmillan. Read more 4 Sept
Calder Valley Voices welcomes anyone interested in joining in for a 'taster session' and consider membership for this term. No audition, so no worries on that score. Read more 2 Sept
Charity collectors break rules: Radio 4's You and Yours has highlighted how fundraisers for the RSPCA in Hebden Bridge broke charity rules by failing to reveal how much they charge the charity for the service. Read more 1 Sept
World premiere for Arts Festival first short film commission By day Kevin Boniface was posting letters, but after his shift he was making his half hour long film, The Rookery. Read more - Saturday, 5 Sept.
Magna Carta - A (Mostly) Light-hearted look at 800 Years of History by the University of the Third Age (U3A). Read report 1 Sept
Northlight Art launch new Autumn term programme of Art and Craft courses. Classes for all - from the terrified to the gifted! Read more
Hebden Royd and hilltop parishes - there's still time to have your say. Online consultation.
Kilimanjaro challenge - Earlier this month, Drew Whitworth from Hebden Bridge climbed the highest mountain in Africa to raise over £1000 for Calder Valley Search and Rescue. Read more
Local History Talks - the winter programme starts in September and includes: when Oxford University came to Hebden Bridge, the lost Kingdom of Elmet, the further history of Calrec, the suffragette census boycott, connections to the Magna Carta, conscientious objectors of the First World War and much more. See What's on
Mayor Karl Boggis read the peace declaration on the 70th anniversary of Nagasaki atomic bomb, 9 August, by the Old Bridge. The white dove flew in, right on cue. More info with brief report and photos of the event.
Overgate Hospice Furniture Shop Opened, at Shepherds former car showroom. Saturday 1 August.
Young actors on set in Heptonstall during the making of new 8 part ITV drama series, Jericho. Photo by Rob Costello, part of the After Alice Project. (28 July)
Blackshaw Head Methodist Chapel is 200 years old. On Sunday, 12 July, a photo from around 1908 was recreated. Read more and see larger versions of both photos.
Norman Hurst: Graham Packham and others remember their friend, Norman Hurst, who died at home Friday, 3 July. If you wish to add your memories of Norman, who lived round here for over 40 years, see this Lives Remembered page.
Book Launch: All Our Own Work, Andrew Bibby's history of the HB Fustian Manufacturing Coop at Nutclough Mill. Launched Sunday 5 July. Read more
Arts Festival - Above: photos from Craig Shaw of first couple of days of Arts Festival: Poet Lemn Sissay and part of the trail of decorated trees throughout the town centre 28 June
Hebden Bridge writer, Peter Riley, short-listed for for this year's Forward Arts Foundation prize for Due North, worth £10,000. Read more (12 June)
HebWeb Quirky Small Ads:
As well as services, and houses and homes offered and wanted, recent ads have included campervan, Mediterranean apartments, smallholding for sale, meditation for modern life, squash coaching, yoga, massage and fiddle tuition. See our Small ads page.
Calderdale Planning Committee has turned down an application to build 14 apartments towards the bottom of Heptonstall Road. See Planning Watch.
Handmade Parade report - in the sunshine - more photos
Nicola May, the only Conservative councillor elected to Hebden Royd Town Council has been disqualified for not accepting the post within the prescribed time period.
Rainbow over Hebden Bridge
5am, Saturday morning, 30 May
photo: Mike Barrett - click to enlarge
Around 230 people turned out to question 6 of the 7 candidates standing for election in the Calder Valley constituency.
HebWeb Election Section: for news and discussion of the May 2015 General Election in the Calder Valley
HebWeb also available on the slightly shorter hebdenbridge.uk as well as hebdenbridge.co.uk
650 Years on the South Pennine Moors by David Nortcliffe: an account of life over the centuries on the moors above Hebden Bridge. A brief history of what was the western end of the ancient township of Wadsworth - a Pennine Pens eBook. Read more (19 May)
New 2015 Hebden Bridge Visitors' Guide Published: The 2015 Guide, which points out all the places and sites visitors should not miss, is available throughout the town and for download here on the HebWeb. More info
All Our Own Work, new book from local writer, Andrew Bibby - how Nutclough Mill was home to one of the first Workers' Coops. The fustian workers' co-operative started in 1870 and ran for 50 years, each year profitable. More info about the book and its launch. (3 June)
HebWeb on Twitter - The HebWeb now has over 2000 followers.
New Mayor for Town Council: The Annual Meeting of Hebden Royd Town Council took place at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Mytholmroyd. Cllr Karl Boggis was elected as the new Mayor of Hebden Royd. Read more (22 May)
Pennine Loop Launch: The launch, Saturday 25 April, of the Hebden Bridge Loop fn the Pennine way was a huge success. Over 200 people joined the series of walks through the day. More info, photos and audio clip from Will Sutcliffe (89) Click photo above to enlarge
Long-lost letter from John Lennon to Hebden Bridge's Steve Tilston inspires an Al Pacino movie. Sent to the folk-singer in 1971, the letter didn't arrive for 34 years but now the story has inspired Hollywood film Danny Collins. Read Daily Mirror article (7 May)
Pace Egg Play 2015 - read more
More photos
Guardian Northerner: What the UK can learn from Hebden Bridge? The BBC's Mind the Gap asks how London's success can be replicated elsewhere: Claire Donnelly argues that our small town could have the answer. Read more
Hebden Bridge, the UK's second city, BBC article by Evan Davis. "Hebden Bridge is an inverted city with a greenbelt centre and suburbs called Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool." Read the article
Small Ads - I just wanted to let you know that through my small ad on your site I found my ideal new home, meeting all my requirements. Thank you very much for such a great resource
Small Ads - "We placed a job ad on the Hebweb recently, intending to keep it there for 2 weeks, but we had to take it down after 3 days due to the huge response generated"
Small Ads: "Ad posted Monday, lease to be signed Saturday and tenant moving in Sunday. Thanks HebWeb."
"Unbelievable result Hebweb. So many enquiries in response to the small ad on your site and now have lovely new tenants. What a success - Thank you Hebweb."
Hebden Bridge: more plaudits - Last year's Valley of Lights won APSE's best community and neighbourhood initiative, and the Old Gate pub restaurant is Yorkshire Post's "Pub of the Week".
Britain's favourite market town? Hebden Bridge has been shortlisted in the 'Britain's favourite market town' category in the BBC Countryfile Magazine Awards 2013. Read more
HebWeb uses Google ads to help cover its costs and they vary for each user. This has worked well for many years. However, please let us know the url of any ad thought to be inappropriate. If we agree, the ad will be blocked.
Guardian Northerner: Hebden Bridge the UK's coolest place? The Yorkshire Paradise has won its fourth accolade in a decade. Born, brought up and living here, Rachel Pickering is loyal, but has one or two cautionary thoughts.
Small Ads - "I am very pleased to say the response was terrific and both properties are now let." (Less than a week)
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More from Hebden Bridge Web
- Accommodation - from bed and breakfast to self catering, a range of places to stay in our area
- Archive - news and discussion going back to the mid 90s
- Bloggers and columns - a section where you can read regular pieces by selected local bloggers.
- Books - of interest to people living in Hebden Bridge and area
- Contact info
- Discussion Forum - hundreds of messages every year on matters of concern to those who live in Hebden Bridge and the surrounding hills, villages and valleys
- Emails - a directory of local email addresses
- Events: a selection of local events
- Features
- Five hundred words on Hebden Bridge - one of the 500 years of the Hebden pack horse bridge projects
- Green Pages
- Hebden Bridge info - some basic information about Hebden Bridge with links to some features which have been written about our town.
- Hebden Bridge 500 - celebrating 500 years of the bridge
- History pages - links to local history websites, together with a selection of articles remembering times past.
- Lives Remembered - thoughts and comments on the death of a selection of local people
- Mailing list
- Maps - several maps of the town and area, including Google maps.
- Neighbours/twins - links to websites of surrounding towns and our twin towns in France and Germany
- News: Dozens of news items are posted every month; many are unique to Hebden Bridge Web, coming from our growing number of correspondents. Others may also be covered elsewhere but can be found on HebWeb many days earlier.
- News Highlights of 2012
- Photos - many galleries of photos, including some by well known local photographers
- Planning Watch - details of controversial developments are posted here.
- Radio and video samples relating to our area
- Search HebWeb - search the thousands of news, features and discusssion on the entire Hebden Bridge Web in seconds.
- Small ads
- Tourist Info
- Useful sites - a range of site which we think local people will find useful, rail and bus timetables, ofsted reports, local doctors, etc.
- View from the Bridge
- Web Design from Pennine Pens
- Websites Listings A-Z: listings of a large selection of Hebden Bridge websites
- Websites List - by category: listings of a large selection of Hebden Bridge websites
- What's on/Local events: a selection of local events
- Where to stay - from bed and breakfast to self catering, a range of places to stay in our area
Please e-mail us to report dead links, inaccuracies, suggestions and comments. Thanks. The Hebden Bridge Web (Hebweb) is published by Pennine Pens and started in the summer of 1995.
