The Innovation & Learning Festival 2026 was officially our hottest Festival on record. While temperatures soared across the two days, so did the energy, collaboration and innovation. From record attendance and packed technical sessions to exciting new initiatives and memorable moments, here’s this year’s Festival… in numbers.
Bringing the Sector Together
A record 850 delegates attended across the two days.
106 local authorities were represented, including:
- 91 English local authorities
- 9 London Boroughs
- 3 Combined Authorities
- 2 Scottish authorities
- 1 Welsh authority
Alongside representatives from the Department for Transport, National Highways, Transport Scotland and the Welsh Government.
- 400 public sector delegates attended the Festival
- £248,000 worth of funded places were provided, helping local authorities and apprentices access learning, innovation and networking opportunities
- 350 hotel rooms booked
Learning & Innovation
- 51 CPD-certified technical training sessions, delivering 19 hours of learning
- 67 speakers
- 100+ exhibitors
- 10 Start-Up Zone exhibitors
- 3 live demonstrations
- 1 LCRIG Hackathon Sprint – our first ever, bringing delegates together to develop practical solutions for more climate-ready and resilient road networks
- 11+ new innovations launched at the Festival
Supporting Future Talent
- 60 apprentice places
- 50+ DfT Special Recognition Apprentice Award entries received
- 7 DfT Special Recognition Apprentice Awards presented
- 650 guests attended the Awards Dinner and Networking Evening
- 35 tins of beans were used in the Connect, Collaborate & Construct apprentice session before being donated to a food bank after the Festival, ensuring nothing went to waste.
It Was Officially Our Hottest Festival Yet!
Highest temperature recorded: 32.3°C
The LCRIG Innovation & Learning Festival 2026 took place during one of the hottest weeks of the year, making it officially our hottest Festival on record.
- Water handed out: 1,100+ litres of water
Keeping everyone hydrated became almost as important as keeping the conversations flowing!
Capturing the Festival
- 1,175 photos captured
- 22 hours of video footage filmed
From inspiring speakers and live demonstrations to networking, awards and behind-the-scenes moments, our media team worked throughout the Festival to capture every memorable moment.
Bringing the festival to life is a huge team effort. Here’s a glimpse of what it took behind the scenes:
- 1x 40 tonne Arctic and 1 x 5T truck delivering a total of 15 tonnes of equipment
- Over 2.5 miles of cabling
- More than 150 Panels of high resolution 3mm LED Screen
- 34 Individual Display monitors
- 24 Laptop Computers
- 60 Lighting Fixtures
- 40m of Aluminium Trussing
- 368 hours worked by the AV crew across the project on site plus a further 100 hours of warehouse prep before the event
Supporting Prostate Cancer UK
- £1,230 raised for Prostate Cancer UK
- 284 Tunnock’s Teacakes were used in this year’s Tunnock’s Tower Challenge, with delegates putting their engineering skills to the test in support of this year’s charity partner.
A huge thank you to everyone who donated, took part and supported the fundraising throughout the Festival. Every contribution will help Prostate Cancer UK continue its vital research, support services and awareness campaigns.
See You in 2027
Early Bird bookings for Innovation & Learning Festival 2027 are now officially open.
Organisations that book before 5pm on 2 October can secure 2026 rates, secure a prime exhibition location and maximise their visibility ahead of the event. Don’t miss the opportunity to be part of the UK’s leading highways innovation event.
SECURE YOUR PLACE TODAY