Help us find a new home!

We hope you enjoyed our recent jam packed Woven program!  Things are quietening down a bit over the summer, naturally workshops tend to be quieter over the summer period but we’ll be back with more from mid September, Kim is working on programming things in now!  We do still have our monthly socials, Stitch Social Thurs 24th July and 8th August, Sew Queer 19th August and Holmfirth Stitch Social (at FairTrader) 13th August.  We also have a Mountmellick Irish Heritage Embroidery with Louise Goult Thurs 11th September 6-8, Knitting for Beginners with Kim (Stitch 149) Sat 13th September 1-3, Crochet for Beginners with Frances (This Crafty Octopus) Sat 20th September 12:30-3 and Visible Mending with Kim (Darn It! Workshops) Weds 24th September 6-8.

But onto the big, real reason we’re posting today.  It’s a long one so get yourself a cuppa and I’d be really grateful if you can read it to the end.  We’ve shared this statement on facebook and instagram and we’d really appreciate you commenting, sharing and tagging anyone you think may be relevant or may be able to help.  The more people this can reach the more likely it is we can find a new space.  We’re so proud of what we’ve created, we’re so grateful for the support you’ve all given us so far, and we don’t want 2026 to be our last year:

While we haven’t had confirmation of our date for leaving the Piazza yet, the latest news is it’s likely to be between March and June next year, which means we need to start planning our next steps.

We’re looking for new premises, we’d love for Thread Republic to stay in the town centre, staying accessible to a wide range of people of diverse ages and backgrounds, keeping our contribution to the area focused directly here. But as a business that puts sustainability and affordability before profit, and is run purely by volunteers, we can’t afford a standard commercial let and know we may have to look elsewhere.

We’d love to hear of any spaces that may be viable for us. We need a lot of storage, and level access is desirable. We’ve loved having a pop up, but we want to grow this and have a sustainable and stable future without having to move lots again, disrupting the community we’ve built and the momentum we’ve gained in developing our programme and services.

This is also a call to use us while we can! Make use of this space that we’re so proud of - any money spent will help us with the move and future rent.

We’re so grateful to all the support we’ve had so far. Temporary Contemporary, West Yorkshire Print Workshop and the Piazza team have been amazing in supporting us with the spaces we’ve been in so far. And, of course, all our fantastic regulars, workshop leaders, suppliers, members and donators that make up the Thread Republic community.

Unfortunately, we’ve tried to encourage the council to build us into the new plans for Our Cultural Heart without success. It’s clear that the existing community organisations are not a priority in developing this new space. It’s almost as though we’re being cleared out to make room for something new, despite the fact we’re already providing the services that will need to be built up from scratch.

Over the last three years, we have built an organic, grassroots cultural heart where we’re based, and have responded to the needs of the local community and developed accordingly.

While research claims that 31% of people don't have a chance to engage with their community or meet people from different backgrounds, we have helped Huddersfield buck this trend, creating a diverse, community-focused organisation that makes a real difference to the people that come through our doors.

All we want is to continue this work, and keep bringing grassroots, demand driven activities and resources to our town centre.