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The Sheffield culture guide written by in-the-know locals

Migration Matters Festival

Migration Matters 2024, photo by Smart Banda

In 2007 Sheffield became the UK’s first City of Sanctuary – a place that welcomes asylum-seekers and refugees, that offers a hand to people in need of safety. Held around Refugee Week each June, Migration Matters Festival is a celebration of diversity and the positive impact migration and refugees have in Sheffield.

The festival launched in 2016, the year of the Brexit referendum and Syrian refugee crisis. Each year the Migration Matters programme brings communities together over fantastic, globe-spanning variety of theatre, music, dance, workshops, exhibitions, and more.

The lineup for the tenth Migration Matters Festival in 2025 includes:

  • Electronic legends Asian Dub Foundation
  • Mercury Prize-nominated singer songwriter Nadine Shah
  • British-Moroccan comedian Fatiha El-Ghorri
  • A closing party with mesmerising Tanzanian musical dynasty The Zawose Queens

See our top picks from the 2025 programme.

See the full programme for more.

Festival passes are on sale now at a sliding scale of ticket prices, giving you access to any and all of the events.

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Andrew Hunt

An artist painting people caught in moments of tenderness and silence.

Lick of Paint

Sat. 6 September 2025 — Sun. 7 September 2025

A weekend-long mural and street art festival. Bringing together local and international talent to transform the city's walls, underpasses and empty corners with powerful, high-quality public art.

Curious Adventures in Colour and Light

Sat. 26 July 2025 — Sun. 27 July 2025

Millennium Gallery

Discover the spectacular scientific principles of colour, light and vision in a series of family-friendly hands-on activities with contemporary artist and photographer, Graham Fudger.

Back to the Bones Festival

Sat. 12 July 2025

Sheffield General Cemetery

The annual Sharrow Festival sadly isn't happening this year due to lack of funds. To raise money for the festival's future and keep up the community spirit, Back to the Bones will bring bands to two stages in Sheffield General Cemetery.