Leicester light festival wins national award for arts and culture
Added by Love Business East Midlands | 5 July 2025
Leicester’s city-wide light festival ‘Light Up Leicester’, has been recognised on the national stage, winning ‘Best Culture and Arts Scheme’, awarded to BID Leicester at the prestigious ATCM Awards.
Celebrating outstanding town and city leadership across the UK, the annual Association of Town and City Management (ATCM) Awards highlight the very best in innovation and collaboration, and this year Light Up Leicester stood out from the crowd.
Held in March 2025, Light Up Leicester welcomed an estimated 100,000 visitors to the city centre over four dazzling nights, transforming Leicester with a trail of large-scale interactive light artworks, pop-up performances, and community parades.
The free event, now the largest light festival in the Midlands, was presented by Leicester City Council, BID Leicester, Art Reach and Leicester Cathedral – a true citywide collaboration. Leicester City Council’s festival and events team led the production and delivery of the festival; BID Leicester drove the marketing, communications and branding; Art Reach delivered a striking citywide photography exhibition created through workshops with local schools and community groups; and Leicester Cathedral hosted several of the festival’s installations and events, adding a powerful backdrop to the programme. Highcross Leicester also played a key role as a major sponsor and hosting artworks and events. The event was supported with £100,000 of funding from Arts Council England.
Hailed as an inspiring example of how strong collaboration can deliver ambitious and meaningful community experiences, the award recognised not only the scale and creativity of the festival, but also its inclusive ethos and ability to engage communities from across Leicester and beyond. Judges also noted the light festival significantly boosted city centre footfall while creating a safe, family-friendly space that celebrated culture, diversity and connection.
Graham Callister, the city council’s head of festivals, events and cultural policy said:
“This was an ambitious project, starting with a funding bid to the Arts Council to enable it to happen, and ending with the production and delivery of four nights of spectacular light displays and family-friendly activities, making it one of the biggest festivals our team has ever delivered across the city.
“We’re delighted with this award which puts a national spotlight on what Leicester does best – bringing communities together to experience incredible culture right in the heart of the city.”
Simon Jenner, Director at BID Leicester, added:
“Winning this national award is a proud moment for everyone involved. We’ve seen firsthand the incredible impact Light Up Leicester has on footfall, business engagement and pride in the city. BID Leicester is proud to have played a key role in delivering the festival, both as a presenting partner but also in the success of the event’s strong footfall through our lead on marketing and promotional activities, so it’s fantastic to see it recognised at this level for delivering something truly exceptional.”
Michelle Menezes, Director at Highcross Leicester said:
“Highcross is proud to support Light Up Leicester and help bring this world-class experience to our community. From captivating installations to community parades and performances, this year’s festival showcased the power of creativity to draw people into the city centre. This award is a fitting recognition of that achievement.”
The festival programme featured collaboration between local and international creatives, with highlights such as a projection piece by local artists MBD, The Roots of Our Tree procession with local schools led by Inspirate, a vibrant Holi celebration by Nupur Arts and powerful community engagement projects including the My Leicester: Future Stories Trail. These Leicester-based organisations brought distinctive, community-focused work to the city’s streets, while internationally renowned artists contributed large-scale installations seen around the globe. This blend of local talent and global creativity helped make Light Up Leicester a uniquely powerful celebration of Leicester’s cultural vibrancy and creative ambition.
