Topical Talk Festival

Topical Talk Festivals offer school children the opportunity to connect with peers across the world, engage with leading professionals and topic experts and gain recognition for their school on a global stage.

Festivals are global discussions between schools and leading topic experts on the biggest news stories and issues of our time: from socio-political topics like racism and equity to sustainability and the "climate crisis". Each Festival is packed with inspiring activities, online events and awards for thoughtful conversations and ideas.

The next Festival will take place between January 22nd and March 28th 2024.

You asked and we've listened! To accommodate as many schools as possible, Festival 2024 will run over a ten-week period. You'll have more flexibility to take part as suits your school.

Facilitate a classroom discussion for one hour per week
Select and teach a one-hour lesson on a different topic in the news each week. Our Topical Talk Festival resources provide everything you need to start engaging classroom discussions.

Encourage students to join global discussions on a safe online platform
After each lesson, students log on to the Festival Student Hub to share their ideas and opinions with other students from all over the world. Explore the discussions from Topical Talk Festival 2023.

Engage with events and topic experts
Students can ask questions to topic experts, take part in live lessons and are supported in their online discussions by volunteers from several corporate organisations.

Help students have their say
In the last few weeks of the Festival, students select a topic they have discussed to create their own Standpoint. A Standpoint is an opinion piece in written, audio or video format. Standpoints are entered into the Standpoint competition.

The Festival is suitable for students aged 10-16 with B2 level English or above. It is open to all government-funded schools and costs £299 per class of 34 students.