The 2024 Edinburgh Science Festival ran between 30 March–14 April, with a programme of 155 events including hands-on workshops and interactive shows for families, to exhibitions, talks and science night outs for adults. Exploring the theme Shaping the Future, the Festival explored some of the cutting-edge science and technology that can help us create a future that is sustainable and accessible for all.

Event locations  

We worked with programming partners across the city, including Dynamic Earth, Edinburgh Zoo, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Summerhall, The University of Edinburgh and the National Museum of Scotland. This year our programme featured events in Leith, North Berwick and Portobello, ensuring our Festival had a reach out of the city centre.

The Edinburgh Science Festival helps people discover how science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is shaping our world and creatively solving the problems of the future. 

Surveying our 2024 audience,

1. 74% agreed that they “found out something new”
2. 68% agreed that their “visit brought science alive”
3. 61% agreed that “this visit has made me want to further explore some of the things covered”

Over the spring and summer terms in 2024, Generation Science was back on the road and brought hands-on science fun to primary school children. From city centre schools to remote rural communities, our travelling teams visited 314 primary schools across Scotland – from the Scottish Borders to the Shetland Isles – delivering 790 STEM-themed workshops and shows. We are proud to be one of the few education providers with a national reach, visiting every local authority area in Scotland. 

We’ve worked to measure the impact of our activities by asking questions in a teacher feedback survey post-Generation Science visit to identify levels of science capital. By contributing to the building of Science Capital through our engaging and immersive Generation Science activities, we help children across the country to open opportunities for their future, contribute to a science literate society and support changes that leads to a better world, all while having fun! 

1. 100% teachers agreed “the activity brought stem alive for pupils”
2. 97% teachers agreed “the experience made their pupils want to explore the topic further”
3. 96% teachers agreed their classes “talked to each other about what we had seen and experienced”

To measure the impact of our outreach projects we asked attendees of the community Mini-Festivals to answer some feedback questions to identify levels of science capital. 

1. 61% of adults who attended the mini-festivals had medium or low science capital

2. 60% of children agreed that the event felt like a place for them

3. 83% of children agreed they learnt something new

4. 55% of children agreed they wanted to explore some of the topic

In 2023, approximately 2,800 individuals benefited from our community-focused projects. Our pop-up science shows reached 650 participants at five community festivals and gala days. To further support disadvantaged areas, we partnered with three local venues to deliver one-day Mini Science Festivals. Beyond the Festival, we collaborated with 20 community groups across Edinburgh, engaging 371 participants to help children and young adults connect with STEM and cultural activities. Additionally, our School Festival visits welcomed 1,000 students, providing an enjoyable and educational experience aimed at boosting their confidence in science.

To measure the impact of Careers Hive we asked attendees of the event to answer some feedback questions.

• 87% said they gained a better understanding of jobs available in stem – check descriptor booklet for image reference
• 66% are more interested in studying stem subjects and working in stem related jobs check the descriptor booklet for image reference
• 91% of pupils enjoyed coming to Careers Hive