For the 8th year, we are delighted to welcome back Birmingham City University as Main Partners of BDF2026
We’re thrilled to welcome back Birmingham City University as a Main Partner and venue host for BDF 2026. This longstanding collaboration provides BCU’s students with invaluable industry experience, while offering festival attendees a fantastic creative hub for talks and events.
Our roots go back over 180 years when the Government School of Design was founded in 1843 – and we’re still creating. New challenges, new tools, but the same innovative spirit.
Nowadays, BCU is in the top 10 of arts degree providers in the UK, and we offer over 30 courses across a range of arts and design disciplines at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, including Graphic Design, Illustration, Visual Communication, Filmmaking, Animation and Product Design.
BCU’s Strategy 2030, ‘Rooted in Birmingham, Reaching Beyond’ sets out our mission to be an exemplar anchor institution here in our city. We are a forward-thinking University known for our technical, creative, and professional excellence; and for promoting fairness and innovation in education.
Our students are confident, creative, resilient, and responsible; prepared for whatever they decide to do in an ever-changing global landscape. This shapes our teaching and underpins our commitment to tailoring education to meet students’ individual needs, and our focus on multidisciplinary STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) approaches keeps our curriculum at the forefront of innovation.
Industry excellence connects students with real workplace demands – this approach makes the BCU experience distinctive by blending personalised education with collaborative innovation; empowering graduates to lead and excel in their respective fields.
We’re proud to host Birmingham Design Festival on our City Centre campus; the hub of our University, which is home to over 31,000 students from Birmingham and beyond.