Leyburn is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England, sitting above the northern bank of the River Ure in Wensleydale.

The current Member of Parliament since the 2015 general election is Rishi Sunak, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Leyburn is situated approximately 19 miles (31 km) west of the county town Northallerton, on the northern banks of the River Ure, near to the eastern border of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, at the edge of a valley or dale known as Wensleydale, which takes its name from the village of Wensley, 1.8 miles (2.9 km) to the west.

According to the 2011 United Kingdom census, the ward of Leyburn (including Harmby) had a total resident population of 2,554, with 1,335 females and 1,219 males.

The market place is home to several shops, pubs, and restaurants, including national retailers Co-op Food and One Stop, as well as notable independent businesses such as the department store Milners of Leyburn, which opened in 1882 and is currently in its fifth generation of family ownership, and Campbell's of Leyburn, a grocers dating back to 1868.

[13]Other businesses and industries located outside the market place include a local brewery,[14] a chocolate maker[15] and a Royal Mail delivery office.

[18] According to the 2011 United Kingdom census, the economic activity of residents aged 16–74 was 43.5% in full-time employment, 5.0% in part-time employment, 21.0% self-employed, 3.1% unemployed, 2.2% students with jobs, 2.0% students without jobs, 19.7% retired, 0.4% looking after home or family, 2.1% permanently sick or disabled, and 0.8% economically inactive for other reasons.

[21] Leyburn Shawl, an escarpment of about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) in length is located to the west of the town, it provides panoramic views of Wensleydale and links to footpaths towards Preston-under-Scar and Castle Bolton.

According to legend, Mary, Queen of Scots, upon fleeing captivity in nearby Bolton Castle, dropped her shawl en route to Leyburn.

[41] The town is served by two local newspapers, North Yorkshire editions of the daily Northern Echo and the weekly Darlington & Stockton Times both published by Newsquest.

Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North East and Cumbria and ITV Tyne Tees from the Bilsdale TV transmitter.

Leyburn has appeared in various television programmes including The Department Store: Milner's, on BBC Four in 2008, and the 1960s-set drama series Heartbeat.

The Dales Festival of Food and Drink was initially set up in response to the severe economic fallout experienced by the area after the 2001 foot and mouth crisis.

[42] In 2019, after continuing to lose money, it was announced that the last festival was to be held in 2020, however as a result of cancellation owing to the COVID-19 pandemic,[43] 2019 was the final event.