I am a small business owner, one of over 50, who work from Aire Street Workshops. This space has not only provided me with the opportunity to build my business but also to flourish within a community of over 150 creative individuals. However, our livelihoods are under threat as Leeds City Council plans to sell these workshops without offering any help or support and without considering alternative options.

Aire Street Workshops is more than just a building; it's an incubator for creativity and entrepreneurship in Leeds. The proposed sale with no viable alternatives will lead to job losses as well as seriously damaging the city's vibrant creative sector. 

The creative industries in Leeds contribute significantly to local economy growth and many successful growing business began their journey in Aire Street over the last 43 years.

We ask that Leeds City Council halt their plans for selling Aire Street Workshops as it is an attack on the existence of small business within Leeds - a city which purports to be the ‘City of Culture’, the council have chosen to evict 50+ small independent businesses; businesses who help shape the culture of Leeds in 2024.