Festival of Archaeology Youth Day 2026

Every year, as part of the Festival of Archaeology, we celebrate young people during our Youth Day. This is an opportunity to foreground the contribution of young people, early career archaeologists and heritage professionals.

The Youth Day is kindly sponsored by the Royal Archaeological Institute (RAI).

Student and Early Careers conference

Following the success of the 2021-2025 conferences, the CIfA Early Careers Special Interest Group and CBA are hosting our sixth digital Student and Early Careers Conference as part of this year’s Youth Day.

This digital conference aims to platform students and early career archaeologists, and to give them the opportunity to gain presentation experience.

We hope the conference audience will comprise of anyone who has an interest in the range of topics that will be discussed and/or those who wish to support early career archaeologists and heritage professionals in a welcoming and friendly environment.

Find out more here: Early Careers Conference 2026

Unearthing Futures Digital Platform Launch

In September 2025 the Council for British Archaeology's Youth Advisory Board (YAB) delivered their inaugural large‑scale, independently led national project: Unearthing Futures. The free, youth-led event took place at the Great North Museum: Hancock in Newcastle, designed to help young people aged 16-25 explore pathways into archaeology. The day brought together over 40 participants for hands-on workshops, career insights, and a photography tour of Newcastle's historic sites. You can find out more here.

The YAB how now created a digital platform based on the learning from the day. Whether you attended the event or are discovering it for the first time, this platform is your gateway to everything they created. You'll find resources from each workshop, reflections from participants and hosts, networking insights from archaeology professionals, and practical guidance to help you take your next steps in the sector.

We've also included suggested statements for CVs and applications, so attendees can showcase their experience, and a recap video capturing the energy and learning from the day. Think of this as a permanent, accessible toolkit, a space where the conversations, skills, and inspiration from Unearthing Futures continue beyond the event itself.

That's not all, we'll also launch recruitment for our next cohort of Youth Advisors to join our current members!!! If you're aged 18-25 and want to get involved watch this space.

YAC Festival Resource Pack: Archaeology and Nature

To celebrate the 2026 Festival of Archaeology, the Young Archaeologists’ Club (YAC) have created a bumper resource pack with activity ideas based on the Festival’s theme of Archaeology and Nature, which will be highlighted throughout Youth Day.

The YAC believes in the power of youth voice; part of which includes providing young people the space to develop and deliver projects of interest to them.

This resource pack has been co-created by young people for young people. All of the resources have been created by the Council for British Archaeology’s Young Advisors and student placements. You can meet our contributors in the new resource pack.

Together they have created an exciting set of activities aimed at anyone aged 8–16.