About us

The Forum is a unique space in the city centre, built for the benefit of the public across the east of England. Our iconic building is here for everyone, and is at the heart of city life. We support creativity, learning and exploration through our programme of free events and festivals.

Since opening in 2001, The Forum has welcomed more than twenty-five million visitors. Home to one of the busiest libraries in the country, The Forum is a cultural hub providing fantastic free events for the city and county. The Forum produces and coordinates:

Norwich Science Festival - one of the country’s leading science festivals

Norfolk Heritage Open Days - part of the nationwide free heritage festival, Heritage Open Days

Norwich Games Festival - a celebration of games of all kinds for all ages

Norwich Book Festival - for every kind of reader, and brings nationally renowned authors to England's first UNESCO City of Literature

We previously presented:

Norfolk Makers Festival - a festival of creativity and crafting

Organisations from across the region also host events inside and outside the building - from markets, fairs and exhibitions to community celebrations, charity events and live performances. The Forum also works closely with partners to support big city events, including Run Norwich, Norfolk & Norwich Festival, and Break's GoGo Trail.

Anybody is welcome to hire The Forum building to hold their own event. Our Venue Hire business gives everybody the chance to hold an event in our busy building: we offer affordable prices, including a not-for-profit rate, flexible spaces, and an expert venue hire team.

The Forum Trust is an independent, self-financing educational charity that runs and manages The Forum building and creates a year-round programme of free events.

We receive no regular public funding, and our work is supported by our commercial activities including The Forum car park, venue hire and renting space to our tenant organisations - Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, Pizza Express, Café Bar Marzano, On the Stall City and BBC East.