Dear readers — Firstly, a warm welcome to those of you reading this as new paid subscribers (that includes you: Tom, Stephen and Laura, thanks for upgrading). Almost 20 new members joined the Exchange on Sunday, making for one of our best weekends since we launched.
As well as writing as our usual Saturday weekend read (which explored a strange and bitter feud in the town of Garforth) Brad also sent an additional Sunday note to readers, which we’d urge you to read if you haven’t yet. It gave an insider’s look into an issue of natural importance to us: how local journalism has been broken. And trust us, after Brad’s eight years at the coalface of regional news, working for the Bradford Telegraph & Argus, he’s seen it all.
Your responses were heartwarming and made us feel like we’re on the right track so far.
- Mrs K Malin, one of our OG subscribers that helped get this whole thing up-and-running, commented: “Keep going guys. I for one appreciate journalism instead of clickbait. It’s well worth paying for. You can earn back the subscription in the time that is saved from not scrolling through junk, adverts, and AI slop!”
- “Felt strangely sad reading this Brad”, was the pensive take from Mark Fairhead, who made the switch to being a paid subscriber, adding: “I’ve really enjoyed you & your colleagues’ work so far. Good luck for this new adventure.” A reminder that comments are exclusive for our paying members, so if you’re itching to get involved, you know what to do.
We’ve also been really enjoying all the messages we’ve been getting in our inbox — in fact, that Garforth story began with a curious Exchange reader getting in touch. In the last week, we’ve had some great feedback, a suggestion that Mia should learn to drive (to which we respond: Uber) and lots of little tips that have been popping up in our stories and news round-ups.
Our vision is to be an exchange — not just us telling you what’s happening, but you telling us what’s happening. So please ping us an e-mail at editor@theexchange.news if there’s anything you think might be interesting. What questions do you want answered about where you live? What’s the most important thing that nobody is talking about? Who is doing great work but not being recognised? We can’t wait to get your thoughts.
The Land Remembers
Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) has been bringing world-class art to the Yorkshire countryside for nearly 50 years, and its latest exhibition - Hold to This Earth - is no exception. It brings together the work of 38 contemporary Indigenous North American artists from Tia Collection and spans sculpture, film, photography, painting ceramics and fibre art - including two brand new pieces, The Land Remembers and Bear's Tipi, specially commissioned for the exhibition.
Hold to This Earth is rooted in stories of land and our connection to it, something you can deeply feel in YSP's 500 acres of rolling countryside. Click below to book your visit.
Images: Hold to This Earth, installation view at YSP, 2026. All artworks courtesy of Tia Collection. Photo © India Hobson
The round-up:
🟢 We solemnly promise you we’re not obsessed with the Leeds Green party, but the drama does just keep on coming at the moment. We reported on leaked documents that cast doubt on Mothin Ali’s councillor cash, the in-fighting, and heated discussions in the Leeds Council chamber. Now, The Exchange has been told by several sources about an alleged altercation at last Tuesday’s members meeting between a senior member of the party and one of the members. One insider says the matter has been reported to the police, so we’re awaiting a statement from them. In response to a request for comment, a Green Party spokesperson said it has “processes in place for member complaints, and it would not be appropriate to comment further”. “We are working together at all levels of the Party to find a resolution”, it added.
Not only that, but there’s been a clampdown on people chatting in Green WhatsApp groups, following an “urgent intervention” from the national party. A source told us there were “warnings in the chats” after The Exchange’s coverage of the Leeds Greens. The latest move means members can’t post any more, and admins have gone through deleting old messages. A few affiliated groups have been kept open (such as the Accessibility and Anti-Racism groups) but a strict no-message curfew is being enforced overnight — perhaps to prevent more intoxicated outbursts emanating from the Nite Trax nightclub…
🚆 We’ve now heard back from Northern Rail on the big question we raised last week: why were they cancelling so many services from Wakefield Westgate? The most recent data we had then showed a huge spike to 8.8% of services being cancelled in July (that has dropped to 8.2% for August). Here’s what they had to say: “Like many other operators, we were forced to cancel a significant number of services over the summer when heatwaves caused issues with the rail network and our trains. We have also been hampered by engineering issues in recent months, and our team is working extremely hard to make more trains available for service so we can minimise cancellations.” They also told us — as a little bonus — that they were looking to phase out the trains from the 80s and 90s and replace them over the next ten years. To which we can all say: Hallelujah.
🏙️ There’s been some disquiet in The Exchange’s neighbourhood over proposals to build a 24-storey block of flats on Meadow Lane, just near Leeds Bridge. One reader who lives very nearby told us that only one information leaflet was put through the front door of her block, despite it containing 93 apartments, and questioned whether this was a deliberate attempt to avoid complaints. Another objector to the scheme asked on Reddit: “Am I being an unreasonable NIMBY dick here?” (to which the consensus view of Redditors seemed to be a very firm yes). It’s early days for the scheme, and a formal application has yet to go in, with a public consultation ending on Wednesday. Our (not very informed) take: Leeds needs more flats and south of the river is an obvious place to put them. But no-one is going to be fooled by the in-keeping design of the first few floors into not noticing the hulking great block rising out of it.
🏛️ The sale of Pudsey Town Hall to a developer for £575,000 plus fees has been approved by Leeds City Council, despite lengthy battles to have the building listed and to pull it into community ownership, the West Leeds Dispatch reports. Manchester-based developer AGHA Group is adding the charming Pudsey building to its portfolio of character properties. LCC says that it received a total of five offers on the property, which it is selling in an effort to square the budget — an endeavour being carefully watched over by WLD’s excellent “cutswatch” series.
The big picture:
A beautifully-framed view of St Giles’ Church in Pontefract, angled from the wooden bench in the Buttercross — photographer Reda Karina, who you can follow on Instagram here, makes texture the star of the show.
Home of the week:
Want to gaze upon one of Leeds city centre’s most impressive pieces of architecture from the comfort of your own home? This two-bedroom apartment on Crown Street has “striking” views of the Leeds Corn Exchange (it’s right outside the window) and bonus, you won’t have to see the garish yellow brickwork of the apartment block from the inside. Yours for £200,000.
Catching up and coming up:
Gaming and eating recommendations have been flooding in since Mia’s writer’s edition went live on Wednesday, landing her with the age-old problem of needing enough spare time and lunch money to work through them all. Meanwhile, Brad chronicled the surprisingly contentious backstory to proposals around establishing a Parish Council in Garforth. The ensuing battle has been compared to the Miners’ Strike, and involved AI-generated flyers, rival Facebook groups, and the publication of detailed dossiers on individuals involved in promoting the idea. Read on for the full story.
Things to do:
🛜 Leeds Digital Festival launches today, looking something like UKREiFF for Leeds’ booming tech sector. It’s an absolutely massive two week schedule of events all over the city, but we like the look of “The Great AI Productivity Lie” tomorrow at 5pm, “How Not to Launch a Podcast”, 3pm on Thursday; and “Love → Building on Fire,” on Wednesday at 8pm, which promises data visualisations of the rail network and how it’s being used.
🌺 If your garden/patio/window box is looking a bit forlorn at the turn of the season maybe it’s time to up your skills at Meanwood Community Centre’s Autumn Flower Growing Group. This free practical weekly event, led by artist Elnaz Yazdani, meets on Mondays at 5pm and provides hands-on gardening advice plus tea and coffee. Dress for the potting shed and expect to get soil under your fingernails.
🎨Check out local artists on your lunch break at the Round Foundry Art Show at Marshall’s Mill 1-2pm all this week, culminating in a closing party this Friday at 5.30pm. All details here — the event is free, but donations appreciated for Women’s Aid.
