Black History Month 2026

This Black History Month, we hosted a Cultural Exhibition at Creative Together, our co-production centre in Manchester. Black staff, volunteers and people we support across the country contributed artwork, clothing, portraits, instruments and more – each piece representing cultures, communities and identities.

We launched this exhibition on Wednesday 21^st October, with 61 attendees joining us from across the country. People travelled from Grimsby, Wakefield, Huddersfield and beyond to celebrate Black culture and honour Black communities.

EDI Development Lead Akeisha Brown shares insight into how the exhibition came about and why celebrating Black cultures from across the world is so important.

After hearing the theme for Black History Month 2026 – ‘Honouring our Communities’ – we found ourselves having lots of conversations about what this meant to us personally. We talked about Saturday night dominoes and Sunday morning reggae; we shared our Saturday soup recipes and tips about our hair routines. We spoke of memories of our elders, and reminisced about old patois sayings we heard growing up.

With each discussion, we reflected on how a simple theme opened the door to such rich conversations and stories. We thought, if these are our experiences as two Black British women of Jamaican heritage, just imagine the stories and memories held by other Black people across Creative Support? So, the idea for the Black History Month Cultural Exhibition was born.

Our aim for the exhibition was to provide Black people a space to honour their culture by sharing parts of their experience that felt most meaningful to them. We hoped to represent Black communities from across the world, and showcase the richness and diversity of our experiences.

Creating the Exhibition

In the lead up to Black History Month, we invited Black people from across Creative Support to share personal items or creative works that felt culturally significant to them. Whilst we hoped there would be some interest, we were genuinely touched and surprised by the response we received. So many staff members, people we support and volunteers came forward to share pieces. This included artwork, poetry, treasured items, photos, family heirlooms, dance, handmade clothing, photography and so much more.

Week after week we were moved by the heartfelt pieces that came to us. Although each piece represented just a small part of an individual’s culture, as the exhibition grew, it began to tell an even bigger story of the ways our cultures have travelled across countries and continents, and continues to be expressed proudly in the UK today.

The Co-produced Sculpture

As well as individual submissions, we wanted to create something together. With the support of Creative Together, we decided to co-produce a sculpture to represent diversity and honour our communities.

In the 7 weeks leading up to the exhibition, we held weekly creative workshops which were open to people we support, volunteers and staff across our services. Each week, people contributed to the sculpture in a myriad of ways, including: drawing, braiding, papier mâché and sculpting. The final creation is a work of art that we are incredibly proud of.

A key part of the process was co-producing the hair for the sculpture. Whether through a loc, braid, twist or textured strand, each contribution celebrates the diversity and beauty of Black hair. It represents the different textures, lengths, colours and styles that afro hair can be worn in, celebrating the uniqueness of every person and the beauty that comes from embracing our differences.

The Launch Event

After plenty of planning and preparation, we held the launch event for the Black History Month Cultural Exhibition on Wednesday 21^st October. The event brought everyone’s cultural pieces together in a proud visual display of unity and diversity.

Esther, a Support Worker in Huddersfield, reflected: “[The exhibition was] so beautiful. I come from a very far distance across the oceans and just [as my] project says, because I have changed my borders does not mean I have let go of my culture or let go of what has brought me thus far. I am glad that [our Black community is] being celebrated here today.”

The day was a huge success, filled with creativity, food, music and joy. During the event, attendees got involved in creative activities such as beaded jewellery making and Carnival inspired masquerade crafts. People learnt how to play traditional African instruments while food and drink flowed throughout the day, music was played loud and proud, and of course there was lots of dancing!

“I really enjoyed the music and dancing,” said Shelley, a person we support in Manchester.

“Black History Month has made me reflect on my background, my ancestors and my routes. I am so happy that I am apart of [this], that I am able to … share my story, share my culture, my food, clothes that I wear, and types of songs that I sing. I want to do it again and again,” said Safiyat, a Support Worker in Grimsby.

Reflections

One week on from the launch event and we’re still so pleased and proud, not just of the exhibition itself, but of the whole journey taken to get there. It truly blew us away, and was a beautiful representation of the talent, creativity and diversity in Black cultures across the world.

We are grateful to everyone involved and would like to give a special thank you to everyone across the country who contributed a creative or cultural piece, helping make this exhibition a reality:

Anna Alele, staff member, Tameside

Chinelo Elenwa, staff member, Tameside

Emeka Ufondu, staff member, Salford

Chidiebube Nwanko, staff member, Tameside

Cranleigh Court staff team, Wigan

Creative Together members and staff, Manchester

Kike Sobajo, staff member, Manchester

Victoria Mambu, staff member, Stockport

Ruth Chime, staff member, Stockport

Joyce Dinbian, staff member, Bradford

Dan, a person we support, Leeds

Fayme Munnings, staff member, West Berkshire