IOU Hostel
Hebden Bridge
Accommodation
There are 14 single occupancy rooms at IOU Hostel, all en-suite, fully refurbished in 2022. The Hostel has beautiful, spacious grounds and communal spaces for fellow writers to relax and work. There is a large dining and workshop room, with a mix of tables and sofas, that opens directly onto a terrace and outdoor seating area. On colder days the snug is the perfect place to settle down with your writing notebook, complete with a woodburning stove. Free Wifi is available throughout the Hostel.
Food
All your meals are provided during an Arvon courses. Food at IOU Hostel sourced locally and sustainably wherever possible. The seasonal menu is proudly created by Arvon’s catering team. There is no group cooking at IOU Hostel, and all food is vegetarian. You’ll help yourself to a range of breakfast items each morning, and lunch and dinner will be prepared by our staff. Tea, coffee and snacks are always available in the self-service kitchen.
Local Area
The Hostel is located in Hebden Bridge in the borough of Calderdale. Hebden Bridge is a vibrant place with plenty to see and do both in town and exploring the outdoors. Nature walks are easily accessed from IOU Hostel, with walking routes starting from the doorstep including the Pennine Way Hebden Bridge Loop.
Set in the South Pennines, Hebden Bridge is surrounded by footpaths, bridleways and historic pack horse trails. The landscape offers something for all levels of ability. The industrial heritage of the Calder Valley is seen in its hills, on the pack horse trails and derelict chimneys, in the canals linking Manchester and Leeds, and its prosperity shown in the architecture of its towns.
The Calder Valley landscape and the people who have lived and worked here have long inspired creativity in writers and artists. The valley was home to poets Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath, who is buried in Heptonstall Churchyard. Hughes’s home at Lumb Bank is Arvon’s flagship Northern writing house, temporarily closed for redevelopment in 2024.
Find out more about the local area on IOU Hostel’s website.
INFORMATION
Accessibility
IOU Hostel is fully accessible with a disabled car park and step free access to the Hostel door. On the ground floor is an accessible toilet as well as a double accessible bedroom with wheelchair accessible ensuite wetroom facilities.
Disabled Parking is on the Lower Car Park with step free access directly down to the Hostel (please request a space when booking). If you have any questions or concerns before booking, please contact lumbbank@arvon.org
Travelling by car
From Hebden Bridge town centre or Commercial Street, drive up Birchcliffe Road. Please note, the postcode will take you to Chapel Avenue on the left, ignore that and take the next left into Highfield, just after the Birchcliffe Centre (former Chapel).
If driving, please park in the Upper Car Park. The Hostel is located to the rear of The Birchcliffe Centre. From the Upper Car Park, take one of the paths on the left down the hill and find the Hostel at the back of the former Chapel.
Disabled Parking is on the Lower Car Park with step free access directly down to the Hostel (please request a space when booking).
For all car parking please request a space when booking so we can accommodate everyone.
Hebden Bridge Hostel
The Birchcliffe Centre
Hebden Bridge
HX7 8DG
Travelling by train
Hebden Bridge railway station is on the main Manchester Victoria to Leeds line with trains from both cities at regular intervals.
The 595 Bus departs from the station and stops outside the Birchcliffe Centre and Hostel. If you want to take a taxi from the train station, please arrange for a taxi to meet you at the station in advance. Call Hebden Cars on 01422 845555. Please note Uber does not operate in the area.
You can walk to the hostel from Hebden Bridge station. It is about a 15 minute walk, including a 5 minute walk up a very steep hill.
From Hebden Bridge town centre or Commercial Street, walk up Birchcliffe Road. Please note, the postcode will take you to Chapel Avenue on the left, ignore that and take the next left into Highfield, just after the Birchcliffe Centre (former Chapel).
Further Information
The course will be hosted by the team from Arvon’s Lumb Bank and is fully catered (no group cooking), all food is vegetarian.
Please see the accommodation, food and accessibility page for further information.
Contact
Hebden Bridge Hostel
The Birchcliffe Centre
Hebden Bridge
HX7 8DG
Email: lumbbank@arvon.org
For individual team members please visit the Meet the Team page.
IOU HOSTEL TOUR
*coming soon*
COURSES AND RETREATS AT IOU HOSTEL
ARVON NORTH
Learn more about Lumb Bank's redevelopment
Arvon North is an ambitious and transformational capital project to adapt Lumb Bank, one of Yorkshire’s most iconic literary houses, into a beacon of creativity for the North.