9th Community Psychology Festival
- Community
About
Join us for the 9th Community Psychology Festival with our theme, Untold Stories: Tales of Community Strength.
Humans have always told stories, to connect, to understand, to remember, and to consolidate shared ideas. Through our stories, community culture, strength, knowledge, and more, can be celebrated, recognised, and empowered.
At this year's festival we want to think about the stories that have historically been told and the narratives that currently surround us. We want to think about who the story tellers are and also focus on and make space for the stories.
We also want to reflect together on which narratives have been prioritised and repeated and told the loudest, and think about the stories we have been told while also reflecting on which stories have been lost or silenced.
There will be space to explore our own and other's community narratives and reclaim stories that have got lost or silenced and maybe create some stories of our own as a festival community!
This year the Festival finds its home in Norwich, known as the City of Stories:
"A place you don't pass by, but go to by choice. This is where the road leads – to these welcoming streets. To a big-hearted city beneath even bigger skies, and open air, open minds.
This is a place of unique perspectives, soaring spires, pub fires. Of rebels and rebellions, of sanctuary and faith. It's pie and peas on the market, summer festival nights, Christmas lights, glowing pride.
It's never giving up, it's pure belief. A roar above rooftops when we score on matchday. A place of welcome. Of refuge and shelter. Of strangers becoming friends.
We assemble avengers. We make mavericks. This is not a place in the middle of nowhere, this place is our everywhere, it's everyone's. And you're all welcome here."
Festival Address:
The Forum,
Millennium Plain,
Norwich, Norfolk,
NR2 1TF
What is Community Psychology?
Community Psychology is a branch of psychology that goes beyond an individual focus, viewing people in interlocking contexts. For this reason community psychology seeks to dismantle barriers to civic participation and inclusion, and emphasises the importance of understanding and tackling the social determinants of poor mental and physical health.
Community psychology approaches are all about working alongside communities, with social justice a core value.
Beyond showcasing community psychology, the Festival has one mission: to sustain and replenish us as we continue working towards transformative social change.
The Story Behind the Festival…
The festival was founded in 2014 by the British Psychological Society Community Psychology Section as an accessible and engaging alternative to an academic conference.
Since then, it has given platform to work by community organisations, collectives, artists, academics, students, activists and charities; in short, psychologists and non-psychologists eager to bring psychology closer to the real world.
Want to speak to one of the team?
Contact us at [email protected]
Or the festival team at [email protected]
Submissions
The Festival is a wonderful opportunity to showcase community psychology, sharing innovative ideas, projects and practice across the country. We welcome contributions that broadly relate to our overall theme: 'Untold Stories: Tales of Community Strength' and/or connect to core community psychology values, theory and praxis.
As an accessible and engaging alternative to an academic conference we encourage you to think creatively about your submissions. From workshops, to performance pieces, panel discussions, to group conversations, ideas to share for feedback, and sessions for Festival attendees and the public together in The Atrium.
Read the submission guidelines
If you'd like to make a submission to the Festival please download and complete a copy of the submission form and return it to [email protected] with the subject header 'Festival 2025 Contribution'.
- Friday 13 June 2025: Submissions deadline
- Monday 30 June 2025: Notification of outcome
- Wednesday 17 August 2025: Programme released
If you wish to submit more than once, please complete a separate form for each submission.
Please note, all attendees will need to purchase a ticket including accepted submissions.
Want to speak to one of the team?
Contact us at [email protected]
Or the festival team at [email protected]
Registration
Watch this space - tickets and information about bursaries due to be released soon!
Please note that Community Interest Companies and Social Enterprises will be eligible for bursaries
The festival will operate a 'one festival – one ticket' policy (no day tickets).
We plan the festival as a whole that is best experienced in full, unlike a conference where people often attend the day of their contribution and then leave.
We are keen to protect the festival's ethos by encouraging all festivalgoers to stay (if possible – we appreciate people's circumstances might prevent this!) for the whole event and contribute to mutual learning, solidarity, and communities.
Please note, all attendees will need to purchase a ticket including accepted submissions
Want to speak to one of the team?
Contact us at [email protected]
Or the festival team at [email protected]
Take part in our Community Quilt!
We're excited to create a community quilt in collaboration with our festival-goers.
We invite you to create a patch related to our theme, Untold Stories: Tales of Community Strength, to bring along to the Festival. You can interpret this in any way you like!
The squares will then be sewn together to create a larger quilt, ready to be shared with all during our closing on Sunday.
If you have not been able to complete your patch by the time of the Festival we will have a session at the Festival to come together to complete our patches.
Details to get you started:
Please make sure your patch is a 11" x 11" square with your design inside the 9" x 9" inner square.
Not skilled at crafts? No problem! Feel free to use any method you want, from fabric paint or pens to sewing, knitting or glitter!
And feel free to make more than one patch!
Want to speak to one of the team?
Contact us at [email protected]
Or the festival team at [email protected]