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Botanic Garden Festival

Sunday 31 August 2025, 11.00am onwards

Botanic Garden Festival

Join us at this year’s Botanic Garden Festival on Sunday 31 August 2025, from 11.00am onwards, to celebrate the start of autumn at our free community festival, set against the backdrop of our beautiful Botanic Garden.

This event is free and open to the public. Registration is highly recommended to ensure access to the festival – please register yourself and any guests online. Please contact the University’s Events Team at events@le.ac.uk if you have any issues with registration.

We’ve lined up some fantastic activities, workshops, food and entertainment for all ages:

Be sure to join our Alumni and Supporter Relations team at Beaumont House, within the Botanic Garden, for a range of informal learning activities in the Dining Hall as well as a series of talks including:

  • Mini Change Maker sessions for kids – learn the science behind pizza; how archaeologists use the human skeleton to learn about the past; number games; and how DNA works! 
  • Change Maker talks – learn about the collision on neutron stars; how to make mathematics enjoyable for children; what medical literature says about Ramadan fasting for those with digestive conditions; scientific ocean drilling; the eco-activism of WH Hudson; and how University research is leading the way in transforming responses to hate, prejudice and injustice. 

Please note that all Change Maker sessions are free of charge, but ticketed - book your tickets on our website.

New for 2025! We’ve added two very exciting events to the festival, featuring the University’s very own Nick Bailey, BBC Gardeners' World presenter and Director of our Botanic Garden, and Dr Josh Smalley, Bake Off finalist and University of Leicester chemist.

Both events will be held as part of the festival in the Village Hub, opposite the Botanic Garden, and tickets can be purchased online:

  • Nick Bailey’s 'Unusual and Delicious Edibles Anyone Can Grow' talk takes place from 1.00pm to 2.00pm. 
  • Josh Smalley’s 'Culinary Chemistry: Out of the Lab and into the Tent' takes place from 2.30pm to 3.30pm.

Tickets for both sessions are priced at £10/person, including a 45-minute talk from Nick/Josh, Q&A session, plus complimentary tea, coffee and cakes.

Location and parking

The Botanic Garden is situated about three miles south-east of Leicester city centre, opposite Leicester Racecourse. There are two entrances to the festival – Entrance 1 is at Beaumont Hall on Stoughton Drive South and Entrance 2 is on Glebe Road, LE2 2LD.

Parking at the festival is limited, so we strongly encourage you consider using public transport, or walking/cycling to get to the event - public transport routes can be found online.

If arriving by car, please use the free, designated university car parks (listed below) and refer to the map for their locations. To respect our garden’s neighbours, please avoid parking on nearby residential streets, ensure driveways remain clear, keep noise to a minimum and take all litter home with you.

University car parks:

For further information about the festival, please contact the University’s Events Team at events@le.ac.uk.

More information about our Botanic Garden

Check out other events happening at Leicester
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