Principal photography commenced on 22 September 2014 with filming taking place in Richmond, Twickenham, Morden and former HMP prison Latchmere House in South-East London.

[5] It was reported by Screen International at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival that Urban Hymn had been picked up for theatrical distribution in the U.K and Ireland in selected cinemas nationwide.

[9] It was announced in Variety that the film would also be available On Demand platforms including AT&T U-verse, Comcast, DirecTV, Spectrum, Amazon Instant, iTunes, Dish Network, Vubiquity and Vudu.

[12] Toronto Film Festival Director, Piers Handling, called Urban Hymn "a searing and moving portrait of a pair of disenfranchised teen girls, grounded by a sharp script and sensitive, naturalistic actors".

"[14] The Guardian wrote that Urban Hymn was "Heart-warming social realism, with a great couple of lead performances (from Isabella Laughland and Letitia Wright)".

[15] Alan Hunter of Screen International reviewed the film favorably saying "The appeal of Urban Hymn lies in a heartrending, human story that is told with care and concern".

[16] Stephen Dalton, from The Hollywood Reporter wrote it was "hugely refreshing to see a rare British movie whose key cast is almost entirely female, with a rising young black talent as the main star.

[21] Mike McCahill of The Guardian awarded the film 3 stars calling it "a mixed bag, but one that comes good in its closing stretch, working its way towards a place of quiet power".