Downtown in Business isn’t easing into 2026 — we’re kicking the door off its hinges and rolling out a blockbuster calendar.
If you’re serious about influence, connections, and putting your business in the rooms where decisions are shaped and deals are done, then buckle up. Next year is going to be busy!
February: The Great North Art of Hospitality Conference
We kick off with a celebration of the North’s hospitality scene — an industry that kept cities alive, built communities, and now needs the champions who know how to grow it. Expect big operators, bold ideas, and a very Downtown conversation about what comes next.
March: Women in Business Awards + MIPIM March is a double-header
First, we celebrate the powerhouse women driving growth across our regions — an afternoon of excellence, ambition, and inspiration (plus, let’s be honest, a very good party). Then we head straight to Cannes for MIPIM, where the world’s top property players gather. And trust us: when Downtown shows up on the Croisette, people notice.
April: Northern Power Towns Parliamentary Reception
The Northern Power Towns take Westminster. It’s time the high-growth towns across Cheshire, Lancashire, and Cumbria had their moment on the national stage — and we’re bringing the MPs, ministers, and business leaders to hear it.
May: UKREiiF in Leeds Our annual Leeds takeover
The regeneration crowd’s Glastonbury. The place where councils, developers, investors, and influencers collide. We’ll be at the centre of it — hosting, connecting, and stirring things up as ever.
June: Liverpool City Region Parliamentary Reception & Cheshire and North Wales Business Awards
Back to Westminster, this time spotlighting one of the UK’s mostexciting growth regions. Culture, FDI, innovation, devolution — all wrapped in the distinct, unbeatable Liverpool swagger.
July: City of Liverpool Business Awards
A summer staple. The COLBAs are always electric — celebrating the businesses driving one of the country’s most dynamic city-regions, hosted in the spectacular setting of the Sefton Park Palm House.
September: City of Manchester Business Awards
The engine room of the Northern economy gets its moment. Expect the giants, the disruptors, the innovators — and a packed room of the city’s most influential players.
October: City of Birmingham Business Awards
The Midlands powerhouses take centre stage. With Birmingham’s renaissance accelerating, this year’s event will be bigger, bolder, and celebrating the best of Brummie business.
November: The ‘Livercool’ Awards
Arguably our biggest party night of the year. Livercool brings together the entrepreneurs, creators, innovators, and leaders who make Liverpool one of the UK’s great modern cities. It’s unmissable — and always unpredictable.
Plus… two national blockbusters. Because obviously we’re not done.
The National Property Summit — bringing together the sector’s decision-makers to cut through the noise and talk serious strategy.
Change Makers Live — our flagship gathering of thinkers, leaders, and innovators shaping the future of the UK economy.
And they are just the headline acts. Across the year we’ll layer in more than 100 high-value breakfast forums, leaders’ lunches, and private roundtable dinners in every corner of the country. These are the intimate, high-impact conversations where real influence is built — bringing together
the sharpest political figures from local, regional and national government alongside the biggest hitters in the private sector. If our blockbuster events are the main stage, these forums are the backstage passes: exclusive, strategic, and designed to give our members unrivalled access to the people shaping policy, investment, and growth.
Among the top speakers already confirmed for the New Year are Andy Burnham, Steve Rotheram, Joanne Roney, Stephen Young, Tim Johnson, Liam Robinson, Pam Smith, Julie Nugent, James Lewis, Dan Price, Paul Dennett and Lucy Powell MP.
2026 isn’t just a busy year. It’s a statement of intent.
Downtown in Business will be everywhere that matters — and we’ll be taking our members with us. If you want access, influence, profile, and a platform that actually delivers, then you’ll want to be part of this journey.
Get ready. It’s going to be huge.
For details of sponsorship opportunities for DIBs premier events or membership options please contact [email protected]
