#WestYorkshireArchiveService

Independent Spirit: A Heritage Framework for Leeds
5th June 2026
1 min read

New Leeds Heritage Framework Celebrates City’s Independent Spirit

A new blueprint setting out how heritage can help shape the future of Leeds has been launched. Independent Spirit: A Heritage Framework for Leeds brings together organisations from across the city’s heritage sector to establish a shared vision for the years ahead. The framework outlines how the city’s heritage can bring people together, strengthen…
Alex Pearson, archives assistant with West Yorkshire Archive Service with the copy of the Leeds Charter
20th February 2026
3 mins read

Leeds’ historic Royal Charter saved from becoming a lampshade

One of the most important documents in Leeds’ history was rescued from an unlikely fate as a makeshift lampshade, city archivists have revealed, as preparations continue for a major exhibition celebrating 400 years since the city was granted its royal charter. The one-of-a-kind copy of the Leeds Royal Charter, delicately inscribed centuries ago —…