North East Mayor Kim McGuinness believes the region’s biggest languages festival can inspire children and young people to boost their skills and broaden their horizons.
As tens of thousands of children and young people from the ages of three to 18 are set to take part in our 2025 Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages, Kim McGuinness, has said that the inclusive event — running for three months from January to March — can be a springboard for lifelong learning and unique career opportunities.
I’m delighted that we support Express Yourself 2025 and the opportunities it is creating. Through this programme we’re raising aspirations and creating opportunities for the next generation, so our young people can play their part in a diverse global economy and society.
Languages and literacy are crucial to life chances and helping young people escape poverty but too many children in the North East see their potential stifled by a lack of inspiration and imagination. We’re breaking down those barriers so kids can discover the joy of learning new languages and so we can tee them up for success in later life with rewarding careers in our fast-changing region.
Kim McGuinness, Mayor, North East Combined Authority
Developed by our Newcastle City of Languages partnership in 2021 and hosted and co-ordinated by International Newcastle, the Festival was born out of a need to support children’s language learning during the pandemic and to provide young people with skills for the future. The Festival has already engaged more than 89,000 young people across four annual festivals, inspiring them to take up languages, build their skills and confidence and prepare for life in a global society. Registration for all 2025 events and activities is open now (click here for What’s On).
Shining a light on inclusivity and designed to give all our children and young people a voice, the Festival embraces music, art and writing to engage children in schools, community schools and groups across the region, as well as providing opportunities to engage with our universities and discover how languages and intercultural awareness could open up education and career paths.
This year, the Festival has received a grant from the North East Combined Authority to support co-ordination, communications and commission some Festival activities. This, along with the significant contributions from all of our local, regional, national and international partners, has enabled our UK-first festival to continue to deliver a unique programme of in-person and online projects and activities free to schools in the North East, as well as some opportunities for UK schools.
Alongside the many language and culture activities, are a series of events around languages and careers.
There is an increasing interest and demand for activities around languages and careers. Languages are a superpower when it comes to future career opportunities — both the languages young people speak at home, as well as those they learn at school and in the community. Speaking any language can be a real boost to employment opportunities and the more developed these are, the greater the competitive advantage for the young person and the stronger our North East workforce.
We are delighted to have the support of the Mayor and the NE Combined Authority for the 2025 festival. Separately, it has been invaluable to work closely with their and schools and skills leads, as well as national partners, on a Languages and Careers toolkit for the region. It’ will be a fantastic resource, which will complement the growing range of career related activities for children and young people within the Festival.
Declan Baharini, Festival Co-ordinator and Chief Executive Officer of International Newcastle
For further information on the 2025 Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages and to register for activities explore the website and What’s On page and follow the Festival via Instagram, Facebook and X.
ENDS
Notes to editors
- Express Yourself: North East Festival Of Languages celebrates its fifth birthday in 2025
- It is a recognition of diverse languages and cultures in the North East and the region’s connections to the world
- The festival raises awareness of other cultures, inspiring children and young people to take up languages, building their skills and confidence and helping prepare them for life in a global society.
- Its reach extends across Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Newcastle, Gateshead and Durham (and internationally through remote activities/learning)
- 11,000 children attended the first festival (which was online as a response to the pandemic) — within four years that figure has risen to 37,633 (in person and remotely)
- The festival promotes free activities, events and resources for children and young people in schools and community groups to inspire them to try new and creative ways to enjoy languages and cultures, as well as understand the opportunities that speaking different languages can open up for their future lives and careers
- Creative multilingual music, art and writing projects are running and online resources are available from January-March, with most live events taking place throughout March 2025. Registration is open now.
For further information or to request an interview please contact Simon Rushworth at Allies Group on 07949 845848 or email simon@allies-group.com