A new report puts substantial figures against culture’s contribution to Cumbria. But from Theatre by the Lake’s community touring to the young creatives struggling to build careers close to home, its most urgent finding concerns the people and connections that make that value possible - and what regional leaders must do to sustain them

At HMP Preston, bestselling crime writer Lee Child is helping to put half a million books into the hands of prisoners across Britain. Clair Challenor-Chadwick visits the Victorian prison to discover whether the power of a good story might help break the cycle of disadvantage, crime and reoffending

As SA Performing Arts Centre marks a quarter-century in Newcastle, its anniversary offers a timely companion to our conversation with Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen: a story about the people, relationships and places that help the North East’s creativity grow

VadaVada’s closure is another blow to Manchester’s queer community, and it happened in just five months

Living costs, the NHS and the economy dominate Britain’s concerns. Behind those national findings lie substantial differences in income, health and opportunity. For the North, the question is how to protect the everyday conditions that allow people to belong, create and participate

Ben Robinson knew Charlotte as his great-grandmother. Years later, her surviving wartime letters revealed a young woman living through love, separation and uncertainty. Here, he reflects on the Yorkshire family archive that inspired his book - and why ordinary lives deserve to be remembered

From the decisions that shape our neighbourhoods to the information we trust, politics runs through everyday life. At Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival, John Curtice, Jonathan Sumption and John Sergeant offer three routes into understanding how power works - and how we hold it to account

The Severn Estuary to the Wash? Above the Watford Gap or Hadrian’s Wall? What about Birmingham? Anything north of the M25 ring road? Molly struggles to draw the line

From remote peatlands in the Falkland Islands to familiar becks in Yorkshire, ecologist David Higgins has spent his career studying landscapes shaped by water. His return to Nidderdale opens a wider conversation about farming, wildlife and how the dale prepares for a changing climate

A brown-capped fungus with bright yellow gills is the subject of an urgent autumn search in Nidderdale. After a dry summer, the Date Waxcap may offer a brief opportunity to discover more about the remarkable life of our long-established grasslands

A woodland walk beneath ultraviolet light offers an unusual way into Yorkshire’s Dark Skies Fringe Festival this half term. Across moor, dale and forest, the wider programme invites us to rediscover the night - and consider what disappears when we light it away

A Sheffield dairy farm known for its milk and ice cream is asking its community to help power its future. Beth explores how Our Cow Molly’s plans for locally owned renewable energy could keep more money in the city - and what it takes to turn ‘shop local’ into ‘invest local’

From grazing infrastructure to a family ice cream business in Lofthouse, more than 250 projects have received Farming in Protected Landscapes support in Nidderdale. Now, farmers and community organisations are being encouraged to bring forward their ideas — even before they have worked out all the details

A celebration of life and growth in urbanopolis highlights the importance of access and education in green space – no matter where it falls

At Hill Top, young tenant farmers Amy Dixon and Dan Fletcher are building a future among Herdwick sheep, uncertain agricultural policy and the legacy of Beatrix Potter. Their partnership with the National Trust reveals why sustaining the Lake District means supporting the people who live and work on its land.

Yorkshire endured just a tenth of its normal July rainfall. Rivers reached historic lows, soils baked and reservoirs retreated - yet much of the groundwater beneath northern England remained remarkably resilient. Is part of the answer to a hotter, drier future hiding in the rocks below us?

From medieval revenants to Bram Stoker’s letters, a free Leeds exhibition traces the undead through folklore, medicine, theatre and forbidden desire - revealing how each age gives its fears a face

Free studio time, materials and professional support will help Alisha K., Madison Marcantonatos and Georgia Scholes develop new work in their own town. At Richard Street Studios, a practical investment asks a bigger question: what would it take for emerging artists to build sustainable careers close to home?

At Chucho’s on Shields Road, Emma and Jesús are preparing to celebrate Día de los Muertos with food, colour and memories of loved ones. Here, they introduce their annual celebration, with Emma reflecting on what the Mexican tradition means to their family

As Northern Ballet brings Cinderella and live orchestral music to Newcastle Theatre Royal, its latest tour offers a reminder of what the North’s cultural institutions make possible - from a first encounter with dance to the skilled work sustained at its home in Leeds

An enormous straw goat, a candle-lit procession and a weekend of music, storytelling and local craft. Ad Gefrin’s Yule Gaderung returns this November with an invitation to gather as the nights draw in

As GemArts and The Glasshouse mark more than two decades of partnership, Friday’s Riverside Ragas concert offers an opportunity to hear exceptional musicians - and consider the patient work that makes South Asian arts part of the North East’s continuing cultural life

Alex Paxton, Laura Bowler and Martin Suckling’s Ivors nominations open a window onto contemporary music’s restless imagination - and the Northern institutions, singers and communities that help give it life

With sitar player Roopa Panesar and tabla artist Kousic Sen closing Milap’s autumn season, Liverpool has an opportunity to hear a musical partnership built over years - and consider who gets to imagine a future on stage