5 May 2026
Laura Dyer, MBE, is the first speaker to be announced for next month’s NRTF conference at Wolverhampton Arts Centre.
Laura is Deputy CEO, Place, Engagement, and Libraries at Arts Council England.
She will deliver a keynote speech on Wednesday 10 June.
“We are thrilled to host Laura.”
Laura leads on the growing agenda around local government, devolution and place-making, as well as overall leadership of all five of the Arts Council’s area teams and its library development team.
NRTF Director Abigail Reeve said: “I am delighted to announce the attendance of Laura Dyer at the National Rural Touring Conference in June.
“Touring is under deep review by Arts Council England and the Rural Touring network, arguably the most connected touring circuit across the UK, is thrilled to be able to host Laura to further deepen understanding of the interventions and development areas that are tackled by our Rural Touring partners.
“It is also exciting to be able to host Laura as the new Arts Council England strategic framework is released, offering Rural Touring artists and programmers an opportunity to investigate how this may influence their work over the coming planning period.”
The 30th edition of National Rural Touring Forum’s flagship Conference comes to the heart of England from 9-11 June. TICKETS are available HERE.
The rural touring community across the UK will descend on Wolverhampton Arts Centre to champion rural and small-scale touring.
Before joining the Arts Council, Laura Dyer was Chief Executive of East Midlands Arts Board. Until 2010, when she became Executive Director Midlands and South West, she held the post of Executive Director, East Midlands.
During her time in the East Midlands, Laura led a capital development programme which transformed the region’s cultural landscape, with a total investment of over £130 million creating six new arts and cultural facilities.
After postgraduate studies at Essex University, Laura started her career in the arts in a number of theatre and community arts companies before moving into large outdoor events programming at the Garden Festival Wales. She went on to work for local authorities in Norfolk and London.
Laura joined the Arts Council in 2003 and is a member of its Executive Board.