FESTIVAL OF WORK 2025 HIGHLIGHTS

What an exhilarating CIPD Festival of Work! Almost 13,000 people were in attendance over 2 days, setting all-time records for the CIPD Festival of Work.

The festival floor was brimming with insights on the latest trends in employee engagement, flexible working, AI and wellbeing. Leaving us inspired and ready to revolutionise the world of work. It truly reflected why good work is good business!

Thank you to all those in attendance and we cannot wait to see you next year on 10-11 June 2026 at Excel London.

The Festival of Work has been reaffirming, inspiring, and energising. I’m excited to start embedding a few key initiatives that are already in motion which really resonated with the key messages of the event especially around employee experience, culture, engagement, EDI, well-being, and development.

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As someone working in Occupational Health, attending the CIPD Festival of Work is incredibly rewarding. It was a great opportunity to connect with HR professionals, support my professional development, and gain valuable insights into best practices and strategies for enhancing employee wellbeing and engagement.

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🍬🐶🍭It’s not every day you have sweets thrown at you by Jamie Laing, encouraged to sit and have a wellbeing cuddle with a dog, get overtaken by a robot and have your head scanned and made into a chocolate, gold dusted lollipop…..but yet at the CIPD Festival of Work that all seemed perfectly normal!

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Festival vibes! From the silent disco (I mean seminars) to the rapidly melting ice cream, Festival of Work by CIPD lived up to the name.

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Incredible artists delivering extraordinary content

Peter Cheese kicked off the Festival, getting everyone excited for a day of insightful sessions and immersive activities. Later in the morning, Sarah Armstrong-Smith captivated festival-goers on how to lead with confidence in times of crisis and uncertainty. We finished day 1 with a truly unique festival format run by Taskmaster's Alex Horne. It was exciting, hilarious and brought the festival energy as we know it!

Day 2 welcomed Matthew Syed, who motivated the audience during his session, diving into how to implement a growth culture and its effects on performance. We ended the day with Alex Scott MBE and a fireside chat: breaking barriers - a truly inspiring session and what a way to finish a spectacular two days!

We returned to Excel London!

Alongside the immersive sessions, there was ice cream, cookies, prizes to be won, the adorable puppies returned AND an AI robot! Festival-goers took part in yoga, created their own AI agent and attended HiBoB networking sessions. Plus, attendees explored the Festival floor to find their perfect suppliers.

There was an unmistakable atmosphere of positivity and excitement for the future of work. As almost 13,000 festival-goers came together to strengthen existing relationships and forge new connections. This was all supported by a backdrop of incredible artists, immersive activities and leading organisations. Creating an unforgettable experience for all who attended.

FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS

What people said about 2025

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Incredible artists delivering extraordinary content

We returned to Excel London!

Show dates

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Contacts