Call for Events

Be a part of the next Edinburgh Science Festival

Edinburgh Science Festival is the longest running public celebration of science as a Festival, taking place over 16 days across the Easter holidays. Each year we welcome around 150,000 visitors who enjoy a diverse programme of workshops and shows for families, and inspiring discussion events for adults that explore the cutting-edge of science.

The 2027 Science Festival runs from Saturday 3 – Sunday 18 April, and explores the theme Dreamers – a celebration of innovation, creativity, and the courage to imagine a better future. It is about the human ability to look at the world as it is, imagine what it could become, and use creativity to solve global challenges in empowering and equitable ways.

Our open call for events is now live! We welcome event submissions from researchers, authors, educators, performers, artists, community groups, organisations and individuals. As part of the Festival, you will benefit from an event listing, Box Office support and the Festival-wide marketing and PR campaigns.

Deadline for submissions is midnight on Sunday 13 September, and successful applicants will be contacted in mid-October.

Be part of the programme

There are a number of different ways to be part of the Edinburgh Science Festival programme:

Your visitor attraction or charity organisation is running an event in your own venue

Increase attendance to an event you’re delivering by including it as part of our programme.

Listing your event in the Festival costs £500 +VAT, and includes the following benefits:

Event listing on the Edinburgh Science Festival website and brochure
Marketing pack and assets to help promote your event
Box Office services
General Festival marketing campaign (approx. 3 million reach)
Festival PR coverage (approx. 410 million reach)

Please make sure you read the information about ticketing and age guidance before submitting your event proposal.

If you require a venue, we have a limited number of slots in a 200 seat auditorium available for an additional £1,000 +VAT fee – please get in touch with creative@scifest.co.uk to discuss opportunities.

Your organisation would like to work with our expert team to develop or create a science engagement activity or event

Our in-house team of event producers are experts at creating world-class science experiences, and can work alongside your organisation to refine a pre-existing activity or create a new event that engages the public with your work.

Packages start from £5,000 +VAT, and could include the following benefits:

Dedicated event development time with our expert event producers
Space in a Science Festival venue
Box Office services
Enhanced event promotion
Inclusion in Festival email newsletter (16.5k subscribers)
Partnership post across Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook (39k combined followers)
Recognition as Edinburgh Science Festival supporter in brochure, website and sponsor grids in key city centre locations
Inclusion in post-Festival reporting
Allocation of tickets to VIP events for staff and stakeholder engagement

Please contact our Development team at development@scifest.co.uk to discuss opportunities, rather than filling in the Call for Events form.

You are a publisher working with popular science authors

We’re looking to develop closer relationships with publishers and popular science authors to contribute to our adult talks programme. These events include the opportunity for authors to discuss their latest work, and can be followed by a book signing.

We waive the venue and event listing fee to provide a free platform for authors, where publishers cover speaker travel, accommodation and subsistence costs.

Taking part in the Festival offers the following benefits:

Book sales and signing opportunity
Space in a Science Festival venue
Event listing on the Edinburgh Science Festival website and brochure
Marketing pack and assets to help promote your event
Box Office services
General Festival marketing campaign (approx. 3 million reach)
Festival PR coverage (approx. 410 million reach)

You are welcome to submit a proposal through the form, but we encourage contacting our programming team at creative@scifest.co.uk in the first instance.

Event age guidance

To appropriately set audience expectations, our Festival categorises events into eight different age bands. We’ve created this guide to use as a reference when deciding the age band for your event.

Age Guidance for Event Submission

PDF, 83.3kb

Ticket sales and box office revenue

For the convenience of Festival visitors planning their visit, an allocation of tickets for every event listed in the programme must be available to book through the Edinburgh Science Festival website.

Where an event is held in your own venue, a minimum of 10 tickets or 20% of the total tickets available for the event, whichever is higher, must be allocated for sale through the Edinburgh Science Festival Box Office. A 20% administrative fee is retained from tickets sold through the Festival box office.

Where an event is hosted by Edinburgh Science, all Box Office revenue is retained (and ticket prices determined) by the Edinburgh Science Festival unless otherwise negotiated and stated in the Participation Agreement.

FAQs

I'm an independent science communicator who requires a fee to deliver my tried-and-tested event – can I submit an event proposal?

We have a small budget available to support independent science communicators to bring their event to the Festival. We’re particularly looking for interactive science shows for families suitable for a 200 seat auditorium.

Please include photos or videos of your event running previously, and details of your fees when submitting your proposal.

Does it cost anything to submit an event proposal?

There is no fee to submit to our Call for Events – only successful applications are subject to the event listing fee.

Why is there a fee to be part of the Edinburgh Science Festival?

The Edinburgh Science Festival is ran by Edinburgh Science Foundation, an educational charity founded in 1989. Our Festival does not aim to make a profit, but to cover its costs in venue, production, expert staffing and administration.

Only a small percentage of our income comes from Festival ticket sales, and we rely on the generosity of our partners, contributors and funders who provide financial contributions, in-kind donations and discounted services to be able to create and deliver science communication on this scale.

I am affiliated with the University of Edinburgh – can I submit an event?

If you are a staff member, student or researcher affiliated with the University of Edinburgh, please contact the University’s Public Engagement with Research team in the first instance by emailing ero-public.engagement@ed.ac.uk.

Please don’t submit a proposal through our form without agreement from your Public Engagement team.

I have another question – who can I contact?

Be part of the programme

Event age guidance

Age Guidance for Event Submission

Ticket sales and box office revenue

FAQs

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Age Guidance for Event Submission

Ticket sales and box office revenue

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