What Is UnHeard Leeds?

Unheard Leeds is a community theatre, arts, and history project by Fall Into Place that will be co-produced by groups from three communities: Unpaid Caregivers, People Seeking Asylum, and Elder LGBTQAI+ People.  

Histories from these communities have gone unheard and unrecorded for too long, so we are going to make a living archive about their experiences in Leeds. We will use theatre, dance, visual art, personal storytelling, and traditional history research to share everyday stories about these communities’ past and how it shapes their present.

Over the next two years, UnHeard Leeds will unfold over three phases. 

Phase 1: Through spring/summer 2026 community groups will work with FiP artists to unpack their histories and make arts and stories about how these events shape their lives today. These sessions will be relaxed, inclusive, and require no previous experience.

Phase 2: Through Autumn 2026 members of all three communities will come together to make an original performance based on what we have learnt together. This will be performed at Leeds Libraries, and perhaps elsewhere. This process is for community artists who want to be part of a public performance.

Phase 3: Throughout 2027 we will work with artists from all three communities to co-create a visual art and storytelling book as a physical archive. We will print 500 copies to be distributed to community spaces in Leeds.  

Also, throughout the project, we will work with our partners at the West Yorkshire Archive Service to record new oral histories to be preserved for the future.   

To get involved, follow one of the following links:

LGBTQAI + Creative Voices recruiting for UnHeard Leeds

Telling Unpaid Carers Stories for UnHeard Leeds (coming soon)

Telling Asylum Seekers Stories for UnHeard Leeds. (group complete)

UnHeard Leeds is supported by our partners Solace, Carers Leeds, MESMAC, Leeds Libraries, West Yorkshire Archive Service, and is funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.