2026 events
Organised by the Impact Funding Team, the ESRC Festival of Social Science has run at the University of Southampton since 2019. Each festival year has focused on a different theme and has produced a wide variety of events.
This year's theme is 'Money, Finance and the Cost of Living'. With last year's festival theme being 'Our Working Lives'.
Being Heard: Understanding Tenants' Experiences Of Service Charges
Age: Members of the public, social housing tenants, housing professionals, representatives from the Housing Ombudsman, Southampton City Council, and Citizens Advice Southampton
Type: Discussion/Debate
Host: Dr Chiara Prevete-Lecturer in Law Southampton University and member of the People, Property and Community Research Center
Date and Time (UK Time):04/11/2026 14:00 - 16:00
Southampton University, University Rd, Southampton SO17 1BJ (Building 34/ Room 4005)
Summary
Research presentations sharing empirical findings from a project exploring transparency and tenants' experiences of service charges in social housing.Panel discussion featuring representatives from housing providers, the Housing Ombudsman Service, Southampton City Council, Citizens Advice, and other key stakeholders. Interactive discussion and Q&A where participants can share experiences, ask questions, and contribute ideas for improving communication, transparency, and accountability.
Guided conversations bringing together diverse perspectives to identify practical recommendations for the housing sector.
Collaborative resource development, with participants helping to shape a practical resource that captures key insights and recommendations from the event and makes them accessible to a wider audience."
Description
This event will explore tenants' experiences of service charges in social housing and examine how information about these charges is communicated, understood, and managed. Drawing on findings from a recent research project, the event will bring together social housing tenants, housing providers, representatives from the Housing Ombudsman Service, Southampton City Council, Citizens Advice, researchers, and other stakeholders to discuss current challenges and identify opportunities for improvement.
Service charges can have a significant impact on tenants' finances and housing experiences, yet many tenants report difficulties accessing clear information and understanding how charges are calculated. Improving transparency, communication, and accountability can help strengthen trust between tenants and housing providers and support more informed decision-making.
Attendees will gain insights into current research on tenants' experiences of service charges, hear perspectives from a range of sector stakeholders, and contribute to discussions about good practice and potential reforms. They will also have the opportunity to share their own experiences and learn from others working across the housing sector.
The event will include a one-hour panel discussion featuring presentations from researchers and stakeholders, followed by a one-hour interactive discussion and Q&A session. A key outcome will be the co-production of a practical resource that captures the knowledge, experiences, and recommendations shared during the event for wider dissemination and use."
Being Heard: Understanding Tenants' Experiences Of Service Charges
Grandma, Grandpa... What Is Bitcoin?
Age: Families, grandparents, parents, secondary school pupils and anyone interested in learning more about Bitcoin, cryptocurrency and digital finance.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Larisa Yarovaya, Director of the Centre for Digital Finance, Associate Professor of FinTech & Finance
Date and Time (UK Time):06/11/2026 16:30 - 18:00
Room 135/1073, Sir James Matthews Building, 157-187 Above Bar St, Southampton SO14 7NN
Summary
Through conversation and interactive activities, we will explore what cryptocurrencies are, how they work, why people use them, and the opportunities and risks associated with digital assets. We will also discuss online safety, scams and responsible engagement with cryptocurrency, helping families feel more confident navigating an increasingly digital financial world.
The event is designed to encourage conversations across generations. What do young people know about crypto? What questions do parents and grandparents have? And what can different generations learn from each other?
Come along with your children, parents or grandparents - or simply bring your curiosity!
Description
Have you ever wondered what Bitcoin actually is, why people are talking about cryptocurrency, or what it might mean for you and your family?
Join us for a friendly and interactive community event that brings children, parents and grandparents together to explore the rapidly changing world of cryptocurrency and digital finance.
Led by Dr Larisa Yarovaya, Director of the Centre for Digital Finance at the University of Southampton, the session will explain Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in an accessible and engaging way - no previous knowledge of crypto or finance is needed!
Grandma, Grandpa... What Is Bitcoin?
Renting Is Changing: What The New Renters' Rights Mean For You.
Age: This pop up is for young renters aged 16-40 and first time renters.
Type: Other
Host: Southampton Law School and the Citizens Advice Southampton. Meet our researchers Mark Jordan, Rebecca Limb and Chiara Prevete, two of our wonderful student ambassadors and members of the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Date and Time (UK Time):28/10/2026 10:00 - 14:00
Outside the Sir James Matthew building, 157-187 Above Bar Street, Southampton, SO14 7FQ
Summary
Join researchers and the Citizens Advice Southampton to learn about your renters' rights, ask any questions that you may have, be introduced to the Citizens Advice Southampton, and receive a renters' rights handbook to take away.
Description
Southampton Law School and the Citizens Advice Southampton. Meet our researchers Mark Jordan, Rebecca Limb and Chiara Prevete, two of our wonderful student ambassadors and members of the Citizens Advice Southampton.
If you have any questions about the event, please contact Dr Rebecca Limb via email (rl2d22@soton.ac.uk)
Renting Is Changing: What The New Renters' Rights Mean For You.
Girls, Green Choices And The Cost Of Living
Age: Suitable to Secondary Schools and Sixth Form Colleges and Families with girls 13+
Type: Discussion/Debate,Participatory/Interactive
Host: Emanuela Lotti, Chiara Forlati and Elizabeth Evans (facilitators), with Sandra Batten (Bank of England) and Rupel Patel (Bank of England) and author of the book: Money: The inside Story
Date and Time (UK Time):20/10/2026 18:00 - 19:30
Murray Building (58), Room 1067 (Murray Lecture Theatre), 59 Salisbury Road, Highfield Campus, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1TW
Summary
How does inflation affect the cost of living? Why do prices rise? Can tackling climate change affect what we pay for everyday goods and services?
This interactive event invites young women to explore these questions and discover how economics helps us understand the world around us. Through engaging activities, discussions and real-world examples, participants will learn about topics such as inflation, budgeting, monetary policy and the cost of living, and why these issues matter in everyday life.
Economics influences many of the decisions that shape our lives, from household budgets to government policies. Yet women remain underrepresented in the field. This event aims to change that by helping young women develop both economic and financial literacy, while showcasing the exciting opportunities that economics can offer.
Participants will hear from economists and experts from organisations including the Bank of England. They will discover what economists do, how they use data to solve problems, and how economic decisions affect different groups in society.
Description
The event will also explore the links between sustainability, climate policy and the economy, encouraging participants to think critically about how the transition to a greener future may create both opportunities and challenges.
By the end of the event, attendees will have a stronger understanding of today's economic issues, greater confidence in discussing them, and inspiration from women working at the forefront of economics and public policy.
Girls, Green Choices And The Cost Of Living
Banking For Everyone: Digital Inclusion And Autism
Age: Autistic adults ; The event is inclusive and there is no expectation that people will have received a formal diagnosis.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Panagiota Papadimitri, Associate Professor in Banking and Finance, University of Southampton Business School ; Dr Xing Huang, Lecturer in Accounting, Henley Business School; Prof. Bhismadev Chakrabarti, Professor of Neuroscience and Mental Health at the University of Reading
Date and Time (UK Time):31/10/2026 10:30 - 13:00
Room 2009, Boldrewood Innovation Campus, University of Southampton Business School, Burgess Rd, Southampton SO16 7QF
Summary
Welcome talk introducing the topic and why it matters; Panel discussion and community conversation; App experience stations - small group hands-on activity exploring real lbanking app scenarios; Open Q&A; Free refreshments
Description
Most of us use our banking app every day to check our balance, pay bills, or transfer money. But for many autistic people, the same apps that make banking convenient can also make it overwhelming, confusing, and even harmful. Banking for Everyone is a free public event that brings this conversation into the open. It explores how the design of mobile banking apps creates barriers for autistic users, what better and more inclusive digital banking could look like, and what banks, regulators, and app developers need to do differently. The event is designed to be welcoming, accessible, and participatory. Rather than a traditional lecture or conference, it is structured as a community conversation. Attendees will have the chance to share their own banking experiences, explore app scenarios in small groups, and contribute to a conversation that will help shape future research and advocacy in this space.
Banking For Everyone: Digital Inclusion And Autism
Money Talks: The Basics That Matter
Age: Free and open to young people aged 15-18 and their parents or guardians. Attendees under 18 must be accompanied by one parent or guardian. Places are limited - booking required via Eventbrite.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Giota Papadimitri, Associate Professor in Banking and Finance, University of Southampton Business School
Date and Time (UK Time):28/10/2026 10:30 - 13:30
Room 2009; B175, Boldrewood Innovation Campus, Burgess Rd, Southampton SO16 7QF
Summary
Interactive learning session on Q&A wall with audience questions shaping the conversation; Hands-on investing simulation run by the University of Southampton Business School Investment Society; Free refreshments
Description
Most of us were never properly taught how to manage money. Yet by the time we turn 18, many of us are already making some of the biggest financial decisions of our lives - taking out student loans, opening bank accounts, starting to save or invest. The stakes are high, but the guidance is often nowhere to be found. Money Talks is a free, interactive half-day event designed to address that. Aimed at young people aged 15-18, the event offers jargon-free sessions on the money skills that actually matter. We'll explore how to budget, save, and make your money work for you. We'll understand the importance of talking about money and how it shapes one's relationship with money. Finally, we'll put it all into practice with a hands-on investing simulation run by student members of the University of Southampton Business School Investment Society.
Money Talks: The Basics That Matter
From Waste To Worth: Can Everyday Things Become Something Valuable?
Age: The event is particularly suitable for adults, families, community members, makers, creative people, and anyone interested in saving money, reducing waste, sustainability, upcycling, creativity or small-scale enterprise.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: The event will be led by Dr Sukanya Ayatakshi-Endow, Principal Academic in Entrepreneurship at Bournemouth University Business School.
Date and Time (UK Time):30/10/2026 10:00 - 16:00
The Gather, Dolphin Shopping Centre, Poole
Summary
This is a free, hands-on drop-in workshop where members of the public can explore how everyday objects and low-cost or reclaimed materials can be turned into something useful, meaningful, artistic or potentially enterprising.
Participants will be invited to choose from a range of materials and take part in a guided creative activity. They might create a small object, artwork, gift idea, display piece, prototype or early business/community idea. The activity will be supported by simple prompts such as: What makes something valuable? Who decides what is waste? Could this object be useful, beautiful, meaningful, sellable or socially beneficial?
The event will run as a flexible drop-in session, so participants can join for a shorter period rather than staying for the full day. All materials will be provided, and no previous experience of business, art, sustainability or social science is needed.
Description
The event explores how people think about waste, money, value and creativity during the cost-of-living crisis. When money is tight, individuals and communities often rethink what they buy, keep, reuse, repair, make or throw away. This workshop uses everyday materials as a starting point for wider conversations about resourcefulness, sustainability and opportunity.
The event draws on social science ideas around entrepreneurship, inclusion and value creation, but presents them in a practical and accessible way. Rather than telling people how to start a business, it invites participants to reflect on how value is created and who gets to be seen as entrepreneurial.
Participants will be able to make something, share their own experiences of saving, reusing and adapting, and contribute to a shared conversation about waste, cost-of-living pressures and everyday creativity.
From Waste To Worth: Can Everyday Things Become Something Valuable?
The Cost Of Exclusion: Disability, Neurodiversity And The Church
Age: The event will be of particular interest to members of church communities, church leaders, disabled and/or neurodivergent people, and those interested in accessibility, inclusion and wellbeing within church settings.
Type: Exhibition
Host: Dr Alex Fry, Senior Lecturer in Social Sciences, Bournemouth University; Dr Sally Lee, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, Bournemouth University.
Date and Time (UK Time):23/10/2026 13:00 - 16:00
St Andrew's Church Centre, Charminster
Summary
A 90-minute exhibition of artefacts created by disabled and/or neurodivergent clergy, exploring their experiences of wellbeing in the Church of England. This is followed by an optional 90-minute interactive workshop where attendees can explore disability and/or neurodivergence in church settings and consider how churches currently support disabled/neurodivergent people and how this support could be improved.
Description
The exhibition uses a series of stations based on research into the wellbeing of disabled and/or neurodivergent clergy. It presents first-hand experiences through accounts and other materials, encouraging attendees to reflect on disability/neurodivergence and church culture. The workshop then invites participants to share their own experiences of church settings, identify areas for improvement, and discuss possible alternatives.
