Cheltenham Festivals has today announced that it has reached a record-breaking number of children during its landmark 80th anniversary year, marking a major milestone in the charity’s mission to create meaningful and lasting change through access to culture.
Through its four internationally renowned Festivals – Jazz, Science, Music and Literature – and its year-round outreach and learning and participation programmes, the charity has enabled more than 80,000 children and young people across the UK to experience the joy of arts and cultural experiences.
The announcement comes as Cheltenham Festivals draws to a close its 80th anniversary year, celebrating 80 years since the inception of its founding festival, Cheltenham Music Festival, which began with three post-war classical music concerts in 1945 and is now part of one of the UK’s leading festival organisations and arts charities.
All images by Still Moving Media
Changing lives through culture
Across the year, Cheltenham Festivals has dedicated its programming and year-round outreach to changing lives through culture, instilling a lifelong curiosity for music, science and literature in young people across the country and beyond. For many, this marked their very first experience of attending an arts or cultural event.
The campaign saw significant growth across key programmes supporting access to the arts for children and young people, including:
- SEND activity – new for 2025, Attivo’s expanded Partnership with Cheltenham Festivals enabled more that 700 children with special educational needs and disabilities to access culture in a relaxed and inclusive environment, from attending bespoke Literature and Science workshops to experiencing live music at the very first relaxed Concert for Families at Cheltenham Music Festival.
- FameLab Academy – more than 9,000 children took part in the schools-focused science communication competition as it celebrated its 10th anniversary, marking a decade of inspiring young people to engage with science and develop their communication skills in a fun and engaging way. As of 2025, more than 30,000 young people have benefitted from the programme, thanks to the continued support of EDF.
- Reading Teachers = Reading Pupils (RTRP) – Cheltenham Festivals’ flagship Reading for Pleasure programme impacted more than 19,000 school children through their teacher's participation in the programme. Pupils read more
high-quality children’s literature, engaged more with authors and developed their confidence in talking about the books they read.
- The Future of Reading – in response to declining rates of reading for pleasure among children, Cheltenham Festivals brought together authors, illustrators, poets, educators, and industry leaders, including experts from Empathy Lab, Inclusive Books for Children and the National Literacy Trust, alongside Waterstones Children’s Laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Comics Laureate Bobby Joseph, and author Sharna Jackson. The conference sparked dynamic discussions on creativity, inclusion and the future of storytelling in schools and beyond.
- DataFace – increasing from 1,200 participants in 2024 to 2,828 in 2025, more students than ever were empowered to explore real-world issues through data interpretation and creative visualisation.
- Over 21,000 children attended Literature, Jazz, Music and Science events across the four Festivals as part of Cheltenham Festivals school programmes.
Sarah Cooksley, Head of Learning and Participation at Cheltenham Festivals, reflects on this year’s campaign: “Arts and cultural experiences have the power to change how children and young people feel about themselves and their futures. These opportunities can improve wellbeing, build confidence and open up new ways of thinking about the wider world. What we do is about more than Festivals alone, it’s about creating year-round opportunities for young people to be creative, be heard and discover that their ideas and voices matter.”
The next chapter for Cheltenham Festivals
As the charity reflects on the impact of its milestone year, it is looking ahead to the future. In 2026, Cheltenham Festivals will explore the power of stories, offering fresh ways for audiences, artists and communities to connect with storytelling and understand the world around them as part of the National Year of Reading.
As the organisation looks ahead to its future, Cheltenham Festivals has also announced the appointment of three new Trustees to its Board to support in the next chapter of the charity’s future:
- Fiona Richards, who brings extensive experience in finance, governance and operations, having held senior roles at Deutsche Bank, Deloitte and BP plc. Fiona has served on several charity boards and is a Cheltenham Festivals Life Patron.
- Janey Dillon, who has over 25 years’ experience in finance, business strategy and operational leadership, including founding and leading a luxury e-commerce brand and holding senior positions at Fidelity, HSBC and Mirae Asset Securities. She brings strong expertise in governance, financial oversight and sustainable growth, with a passion for philanthropic strategy and impact investing.
- Simeon Quarrie, who is an award-winning tech founder and keynote speaker, former Google and YouTube advisor and a member of the Creative Advisory Group. Simeon has been recognised as one of the BIMA 100’s most influential champions for change and as one of Great Britain’s top creative entrepreneurs to watch.
Alongside these developments, the charity has also confirmed its new 5-year strategy due to be revealed in May 2026, setting out its vision and ambitions for the future.
Ali Mawle, Co-CEO at Cheltenham Festivals, reflects on the charity's 80th year: "We're thrilled to have reached more than 80,000 children in our 80th year, sparking a lifelong curiosity for the arts for many young people. This year has shown what is possible when our communities, artists, Partners and Festival-goers work together to celebrate arts and culture in its widest form. We couldn’t do it without their support and as we celebrate what we’ve achieved, we are excited to begin writing our next chapter.
Dates for your diary
- Cheltenham Jazz Festival, 29 April – 4 May 2026
- Cheltenham Science Festival, 2 – 7 June 2026
- Cheltenham Music Festival, 3 – 11 July 2026
- Cheltenham Literature Festival, 9 – 18 October 2026
For more festivals in Cheltenham head to - Your 2026 guide to Cheltenham festivals