24 hour barn raising in Leeds celebrated as 300 women come together for construction

Celebrations abounded on Monday as over 300 women, girls and non-binary people marked the 24-hour construction of a festival barn in Leeds.
Victoria Finan
By Victoria Finan
Published 2nd May 2023, 17:31 GMT
Updated 2nd May 2023, 17:32 GMT
The building of The WOW Barn on Cinder Moor, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, by over 300 Barn Raisers from across West Yorkshire women, girls and non-binary people including professionals in construction, architecture, engineering, building and STEAM, as well as novices and DIY enthusiasts over a 24-hour period. Picture By Yorkshire Post Photographer, James Hardisty. Date:1st May 2023.The building of The WOW Barn on Cinder Moor, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, by over 300 Barn Raisers from across West Yorkshire women, girls and non-binary people including professionals in construction, architecture, engineering, building and STEAM, as well as novices and DIY enthusiasts over a 24-hour period. Picture By Yorkshire Post Photographer, James Hardisty. Date:1st May 2023.
The building of The WOW Barn on Cinder Moor, Woodhouse Lane, Leeds, by over 300 Barn Raisers from across West Yorkshire women, girls and non-binary people including professionals in construction, architecture, engineering, building and STEAM, as well as novices and DIY enthusiasts over a 24-hour period. Picture By Yorkshire Post Photographer, James Hardisty. Date:1st May 2023.

The Women of the World (WOW) Barn has been built as part of the Leeds Year of Culture 2023 celebrations to “break down the barriers that remain to women and girls when contemplating a career in construction at every level.”

Located on Cinder Moor in the city’s Hyde Park, it will become a focal point for events as part of a festival hub.

Professionals in construction, architecture, engineering, building and STEAM, as well as novices and DIY enthusiasts, all came together over a 24-hour ‘Barn Raising’ to create the impressive structure.

It will be used to host Leeds’ first WOW Festival on May 13, as well as a programme of evening events throughout the month.

Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin was among those celebrating the construction, leading the crowd in three cheers.

She tweeted “Only 24 hours to build a barn… and we did it! Congratulations to the women, girls and non-binary people who made this happen.”

According to organisers, the WOW Festival “celebrates everything that women, girls and non-binary people do, and takes a frank look at what prevents them from achieving their potential.

“There’s talks, culture, music, food, workshops and more, with activities for the whole family to get involved in – from learning plumbing skills to visiting our WOW Marketplace.”

Jude Kelly, chief executive of the WOW Foundation, and Kully Thiarai, creative director of Leeds 2023, had previously talked about the importance of the barn in raising awareness of the lack of women working in construction.

Writing in the Yorkshire Post, they said: “History has shown that women have amazing talents in all areas of life, but circumstances and attitudes often conspire to stop us excelling or even just joining in.

“We know that despite being more than capable, it was challenging for women to become architects, town planners, transport experts, plumbers, roofers, bricklayers: our cities have mainly been designed and built by men alone. Women still need an equal place at the table.”

Construction themed events will form a focal part of the WOW Festival – which will fittingly conclude with a traditional barn dance.

Girls as young as seven will be invited to build their own bird boxes to encourage an interest in construction, and a plumbing workshop called All Cisterns Go will be led by Hattie Hasan MBE, CEO and Founder of Stopcocks Women Plumbers.