Castlegate festival returns to city with free events - from guided tours to crafts
This is what to expect from Castlegate Festival 2026
Sheffield’s Castlegate Festival returns this weekend with nine days of free events, including live music, markets, family activities and tours of the city’s historic castle site.
The tenth Castlegate Festival runs from Saturday, September 12 until Sunday, September 20, with events taking place across Castlegate, Victoria Quays and the surrounding city centre.
Most Castlegate Festival events are free, although some require advance booking and some workshops or activities charge a fee.
These are some of the key events and dates to know.
Saturday, September 12
The festival gets off to a busy start with a special Quayside Market at Victoria Quays, running from midday until 9pm.
The market will feature street food, local crafts, live music and a pop-up bar, alongside free family games and entertainment. It is being held as a special edition of Quayside for the Castlegate Festival, celebrating the area’s community and creative scene.
Visitors arriving by bike can also get a free service from the Sheffield Community Bike Project between 1pm and 4pm.
At the National Videogame Museum on Angel Street, Together We Play! will give players and fans the chance to take part in drop-in activities and explore an exhibition bringing together personal videogame stories, memories and interactive experiences. Sessions run from 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm, with activities suitable for all ages.
Over at Exchange Place Studios, Arts Catalyst and the Al-Wah’at artist collective will run a free workshop from midday to 3pm exploring Castlegate’s natural environment. Participants will map the area’s ecology through foraging, sensing and image-making. The workshop is open to all ages but requires booking.
For a more hands-on afternoon, Get Crafty with Arts in the Right Place at Raccoon Studios runs from 1pm to 5pm. Activities cost between £3 and £12, with options including making a Bauhaus-inspired placemat or tote bag and lithography printmaking for adults and over-14s. There will also be a free exhibition.
Canada House will open from midday to 4.30pm, giving visitors the chance to see plans for its transformation into Harmony Works before the building closes for major refurbishment. There will be a photography exhibition, Memory Café, refreshments and information about the project’s future.
The evening sees the Castlegate Festival Launch Party at Raccoon Studios from 7pm until late. The free, over-18s event will feature an open mic, cabaret from singers to circus performers, a live band and DJs, with freshly baked pizzas available.
Sunday, September 13
On Sunday, Quayside Market, Together We Play! and Canada House events each return.
Monday, September 14
The week begins with a free guided history walk, They Lived in Castlegate, from midday to 2pm, starting at Lady’s Bridge.
The walk will be hosted by Simon Ogden, and discuss some of the most influential people to have lived in the city, like Victorian criminal Charlie Peace, and industrial giantess Ella Hudson Gaskin.
The event is free, but must be booked via Eventbrite.
Tuesday, September 15
Free Grey to Green tours will take place from 2pm to 4pm, starting outside Sheffield Crown Court on West Bar Green.
The tours look at the transformation of the former 1.6km dual carriageway into a green linear park, and must be booked ahead of time.
For those that can’t make Tuesday, there is also another midweek tour on Thursday, September 17, and Saturday September 19.
Saturday, September 19
The festival’s final weekend brings a packed programme of events.
At SADACCA’s Hall on the Wicker, Culture, Craft and Community will run from 11am to 7pm. The free event is aimed at young people and will feature music, dance, talent showcases, arts, crafts and creative displays, with free refreshments available.
Visitors can also drop into Castlegate Festival Radio at 42 Waingate, the former Tap and Barrel pub, between 11am and 4pm.
The station will be broadcasting across the weekend, with visitors invited to meet the team, share their stories and get involved. It can also be heard on DAB channel 9C and online.
At Canada House, visitors can see plans for the building’s future as Harmony Works, including a photography exhibition and Memory Café. The building will soon undergo a major refurbishment to create a new music and community venue. It is open from midday to 4.30pm, with free entry and no booking required.
The same venue will also host Reinventing No.2 Haymarket, where S1 Artspace will showcase plans to transform the former Yorkshire Bank into its permanent home, including galleries, studios and a basement bar.
Visitors can also share memories of the building, which has previously housed a Yorkshire Bank, Stock Exchange and original post office.
For history enthusiasts, Sheffield Castle archaeology tours will explore 900 years of history at the site of the new Castle Hill Park. Free tours run throughout the day, led by Wessex Archaeology and Friends of Sheffield Castle, and include the remains of the castle and uncovered River Sheaf.
There will also be a free Skate Jam at Marioland on Exchange Street from 1.30pm to 4.30pm, with extra ramps, obstacles, a best-trick competition and DJ. No booking is required.
Nearby, Raccoon Studios will host a Craft Fair and Art Sale from 1pm to 6pm, with crafts, artwork, family games, a lucky dip and tombola, alongside pizza and African and Caribbean food.
The day finishes with Turn Up the Volume, a free music party running from 6pm until 2am across Delicious Clam, Panke Social and Plot 22.
Sunday, September 20
The festival comes to a close with a final day of markets, art and activities across Castlegate.
The Pollen Market with a Difference will take over Grey to Green from 10am to 4pm, bringing plants, flowers, homewares and crafts to the area.
There will be more live music, street food and free activities for children, including a climbing wall.
At Exchange Place Studios, Printing Castlegate will showcase artwork created by Sheffield College students and primary school pupils through workshops inspired by the new Castle Hill Park.
The free exhibition runs from 10am to 4pm.
At 42 Waingate, Future Memories will explore the past, present and future of Castlegate and the former Tap and Barrel pub.
The free interactive exhibition, open from 11am to 4pm, will include plans for a new community arts and media centre and creative workshops.
Visitors can also join Sheffield Castle and River Sheaf: Past, Present and Future tours at midday or 2pm.
The free, 45-minute walks will explore the changing Castlegate quarter and the recently ‘daylighted’ River Sheaf, with both tours suitable for all ages and accessible to everyone.
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