Hereford named one of the UK’s top emerging creative cities

Affinity’s UK Creative Cities Report 2026 assessed 50 cities across the country, awarding Hereford an overall creative score of 66 - 16 points above the national benchmark of 50.

Creatives in the city can benefit from comparatively low monthly rent and utility costs - nearly three times more affordable than London - making Hereford an attractive destination for up-and-coming talent.

The city also performed particularly strongly for its access to cultural venues, including galleries and museums, alongside 20 green spaces and a high concentration of creative agencies for a city of its size.  The city achieved one of the UK’s highest scores for access to creative space, placing within the national top 10 with an index score of 77.6.

Hereford further benefited from public arts funding, with more than £1.7 million invested across the area during 2024/25.

The findings reflect Hereford’s growing profile as a place where artists, designers and other creative professionals can combine an ambitious working life with access to culture, community, green space and a more affordable lifestyle.

This echoes the decision of many Hereford College of Arts graduates to start their professional careers in the city or wider areas - having moved to the city from across the UK to study on one of the college’s 13 undergraduate degrees or four postgraduate courses.

The report concluded that smaller cities can offer creatives an increasingly attractive alternative to larger urban centres, where high rents, competition for space and other living costs may create barriers.

Each of the 50 cities were ranked against three equally weighted areas: access to creative spaces, access to professional opportunities and affordability. More than half of the cities studied exceeded the national benchmark, which the report identifies as evidence that creative activity is becoming increasingly distributed beyond the UK’s largest established centres.

For creatives working with clients, employers or collaborators across different locations, digital and flexible working can now make it possible to build a nationally-connected career while remaining rooted in a smaller city and its creative community.

Hereford’s strongest performance came in its access to space and cultural infrastructure.

The report recorded 9.8 creative locations per 10,000 residents in Hereford. These include venues such as museums, galleries, theatres and live music spaces. It also recorded 3.1 green spaces and 0.5 coworking locations per 10,000 residents, alongside arts funding equivalent to £277,986 per 10,000 people. 

The Affinity findings suggest that education, cultural provision and affordable access to space all contribute to a city’s ability to attract and retain creative talent and Hereford College of Arts HCA sits at the heart of the city’s creative community along with the other members of Herefordshire’s Cultural Partnership.

Through live projects, public events, work experience and professional networking, the college is central to connecting creative professionals from across the region with the next generation of emerging artists, designers and performers.

Those opportunities and networks support students to develop the skills, professional connections and confidence needed to build sustainable creative careers - while giving employers the opportunity to identify and work with emerging creative talent.

The study was published on 8 July 2026, using data correct as of May 2026.