The Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages returns from 6 January to 31 March 2026 with our biggest and best programme yet!
Registrations are open now, so do explore this year’s Festival programme and please share widely across your school networks. Teachers are encouraged to pick and mix from FREE events, classroom activities and competitions to build skills and celebrate diverse languages, cultures and global connections.
- Our entire programme of activities is FREE, with in person live events open to all schools across the North East Combined Authority area: Newcastle, Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Gateshead, Sunderland and Durham. Click here to download the 2026 Festival What’s On programme for North East schools.
- There are also lots of activities also available to schools across the UK – Click here for the 2026 UK Schools’ Festival Programme
- Schools internationally can get involved in activities with their North East or UK partners and are also invited to join the ‘Together we Fly’ world friendship art project
In 2025, 428 schools and nearly 94,000 children and young people took part in the Festival. The 2026 expanded programme offers many more FREE live and online events, multilingual creative projects, competitions, workshops, university-led and language and careers activities. The programme is designed for children and young people aged 3–18. From exploring languages through sport and music to world cultures, storytelling, films, quizzes and careers sessions, the Festival aims to inspire curiosity, inclusion and confidence in communication.
International School Award webinar: If schools are interested in using Festival activities to support your progress with the British Council’s International School Award, they sign up for a webinar with Festival Coordinator, Declan Baharini: Click here to register for the webinar 4-5pm on 27th November on Microsoft Teams. Find out more about the Festival and ISA here.
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