Welcome to Norwich – a UNESCO City of Literature, that dares to dream. We are a city built on stories, filled with creative minds who believe that reading, writing and their lifelong benefits should be nurtured for everyone.
We are a city of writers. Renowned figures, from Kazuo Ishiguro and Ian McEwan to Eimear McBride and Sarah Perry, have called this city home. We have a history of radical reform and retain a proud spirit of independence, where creativity thrives in everyday life through the tenacity and imagination of our residents. We are a sanctuary and a haven for anyone living, visiting, or passing through our streets.
Norwich is a city with libraries at our heart, starting with the Millennium Library in the city centre and extending across 46 county branches, all vital hubs of community connection and inspiration. We host the world’s oldest arts festival and the country’s newest book festival, alongside beloved bookshops and a thriving independent publishing scene. We are innovators; home to two universities and two city colleges.
We are a network of over 60 organisations and 150 individuals, united in championing Norwich as a globally recognised leader in literature, and in promoting reading and writing as fundamental forces for positive change in our communities.
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Our programmes
Norwich thrives on a vibrant network of creative organisations, events, practitioners, community groups, bookshops, publishers, and storytellers. We collaborate on projects that inspire creativity and bring stories to life. Image: Norwich Book Benches © Norfolk County Council
Our partners
Discover the people, events, organisations and independent businesses that make Norwich the ideal place for writers to live, think and dream. Image: Norfolk & Norwich Festival © Luke Witcomb
What’s on
We’ve partnered with VisitNorwich to launch a curated City of Literature section on their What’s On calendar, showcasing the city’s vibrant literary events and activities. Explore what’s coming up now! Image: Frozen Light ©JMA Photography
Norwich exemplifies the crucial role played by Cities of Literature in community well-being, growth, and sustainability.
Browse news & opportunities
Writing the Future: Norwich UNESCO City of Literature 2025–30
On Thursday 25 September, Norwich UNESCO City of Literature launched its new five-year plan, ‘Writing the Future: Norwich UNESCO City of Literature 2025–30’ — a bold vision to make Norwich a city where reading, writing, and their lifelong benefits are championed and accessible to all.
Developed through over 80 consultations with creative education partners, Norwich City Council, bookshops, libraries, publishers, and others, the strategy will be delivered by the National Centre for Writing (based at Dragon Hall) with Norwich Business Improvement District, the University of East Anglia, Norwich City Council, and Norfolk County Council Library Services.
Literature professionals announced for International Literature Exchange programme
Browse our residency and retreat opportunities
Would you like to stay and write in a UNESCO City of Literature? Residency opportunities offer writers and translators the unique and valuable gift of time, space and freedom, allowing them to produce their best work.
Our residency programme encompasses in-person and virtual residencies for writers and translators. We work with a wide range of partners and funders to support NCW and Norwich UNESCO City of Literature residencies and exchanges, and we also publicise opportunities for creatives to take part in residencies with sister UNESCO Cities of Literature around the world.
New identity signals new era for Norwich City of Literature
Norwich City of Literature has introduced a fresh visual identity, marking the start of an ambitious effort to redefine the impact of this global designation on the city’s residents, communities, and businesses.
The unveiling, led by the National Centre for Writing in partnership with Norwich City Council and various local organisations, took place during a dynamic evening of music and film at Dragon Hall, the medieval home of NCW. The historic venue was brought to life with a stunning display of words, images, and colours, created in collaboration with Norwich-based arts collective, Klanghaus.
Peggy Hughes, the newly appointed Chief Executive of NCW, emphasised the opportunity to rethink what it means to be a ‘City of Literature’ in Norwich, both for locals and visitors.
‘This is an exciting moment. My predecessor, Chris Gribble, led the bold, ambitious, and successful bid for Norwich to become England’s first City of Literature in 2012. This achievement laid the groundwork for the establishment of the National Centre for Writing at Dragon Hall,” Hughes shared.
Norwich is a fine city. None finer. If there is another city in the United Kingdom with a school of painters named after it, a matchless modern art gallery, a university with a reputation for literary excellence which can boast Booker Prize-winning alumni, one of the grandest Romanesque cathedrals in the world, and an extraordinary new state-of-the-art library then I have yet to hear of it.
About Norwich City of Literature
What is a City of Literature?
Launched by UNESCO in 2004, the Creative Cities Network was established to promote cooperation among cities that place creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their development plans.
Why Norwich?
Norwich has been a literary city for over 900 years: a place of ideas where the power of words has changed lives, promoted parliamentary democracy, fomented revolution, fought for the abolition of slavery and transformed literature. Image: UEA Live © David Kirkham, Fisheye Images
900 years of stories
Creative activity has always sprung from native roots and Norwich famously follows its own instincts. But this cultural wellspring has been fed over nine centuries by an influx of outsiders who have brought in new ideas, new technologies and new talent.
Join the Norwich City of Literature mailing list
Published bi-monthly, the Norwich UNESCO City of Literature newsletter brings you a curated snapshot of the latest news, opportunities, collaborations, events, and fresh creative writing from across the city and beyond.
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Join the Ambassador network
Do host creative and cultural events or activities in Norwich? We want to collaborate with you in celebrating our city’s international reputation as a centre of books, words, and storytelling!
The Norwich UNESCO City of Literature designation is a shared asset that opens up opportunities to grow shared audiences, attract new visitors and customers, and contribute to something truly distinctive about Norwich.
Enter your details below to access the free Ambassador Toolkit, a digital resource available for you to use.
Discover more from NCW
Carousel images:
Norwich Cathedral © Bill Smith
Storytime at Norfolk Library & Information Service © Norfolk County Council
Val McDermid delivers the Harriet Martineau Lecture © Luke Witcomb
A Day of Welcome, celebrated by schools nationwide © A Day of Welcome