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What are your plans for Black History Month 2026?

Keynote Speech

Keynote Speech

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Feb 3, 2026
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champions-speakers.co.uk
With Black History Month coming up in October, we have been wondering what other businesses are planning for 2026.

Working in the speaker industry, we've found quite a few organisations are already preparing by bringing in top speakers such as Derek Redmond, John Amaechi and Scotty Mills to share their experiences and start conversations around leadership, inclusion and representation.

I also came across this article with some interesting perspectives from Black thought leaders on diversity and inclusion, which is giving us inspiration:

Black Thought Leaders on Diversity & Inclusion

What are your plans for Black History Month this year? If you've done something previously, what worked well and actually got people involved?
 
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Nothing. Same as I do nothing for Pride, or animals, or, ...

I will do business with whoever I need to do business with.
 
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We have a month for black history We have a month for pride
Yet we only have one day for all the soldiers that made it possible for us to be the most diverse country on the planet
 
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Nothing, will just carry on running my business as usual for the benefit of myself and my employees. I don't see the need for any virtue signalling, or paying for a speaker to do it on my behalf.
 
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Keynote Speech said:
With Black History Month coming up in October, we have been wondering what other businesses are planning for 2026.

Working in the speaker industry, we've found quite a few organisations are already preparing by bringing in top speakers such as Derek Redmond, John Amaechi and Scotty Mills to share their experiences and start conversations around leadership, inclusion and representation.

I also came across this article with some interesting perspectives from Black thought leaders on diversity and inclusion, which is giving us inspiration:

Black Thought Leaders on Diversity & Inclusion

What are your plans for Black History Month this year? If you've done something previously, what worked well and actually got people involved?
Click to expand...
We’re planning some informal discussions and activities around Black History Month, with a focus on learning, inclusion and celebrating Black voices.
 
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kordan.walker said:
We’re planning some informal discussions and activities around Black History Month, with a focus on learning, inclusion and celebrating Black voices.
Click to expand...
Why are some groups people so keen on returning to being different and separate from other British people. ?

Centuries were invested into this country to make us an equal and diverse society where anyone can aim to be anybody they want if they work hard .Yet one part of our people still cant stay away from the fact that they want to remind the rest of the country that they were not here in Oliver Cromwells time .

They spent hundreds of years suffering from inequality but now we are equal they are not happy because we are all equal !

Don't quote to me what happened in America .America is one of the newest developing countries in the Western World .It is backward and in many ways living in a time on par with Tudor England

Hope this helps
 
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kordan.walker said:
We’re planning some informal discussions and activities around Black History Month, with a focus on learning, inclusion and celebrating Black voices.
Click to expand...
That sounds like a really nice approach. I think keeping it informal probably helps get more people involved too, rather than making it feel like something they have to take part in. Have you got any particular activities planned yet?
 
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Really interesting reading everyone's responses to this. I knew there would be different opinions, but I didn't expect quite such a range!

Some businesses are clearly choosing to mark Black History Month with discussions and activities, while others don't feel it's something they need or want to take part in. I think hearing both perspectives is useful.

The reason I started the thread was simply to see what businesses were actually doing, particularly as we see quite a lot of interest around it in the events industry.

Thanks to everyone who's shared their thoughts, whether you're planning something or carrying on as normal.
 
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Given that this forum is predominantly micro-businesses, guest speakers or meanigful celebrations are very unlikely unless:

- It resonates with you personally (More personal than business)

- It is particularly relevant to your target audience

- You are a virtue-signalling f**ktard. In which case you'll probably limit yourself to some virtue posts on LinkedIn.

Beyond that I wholly agree with @JEREMY HAWKE
 
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Working in a similar industry, we are seeing some really great events being planned.

Reading other comments has been very insightful.

Studies have revealed that around 60% of Black professionals still experience racism in the workplace and around 25% of people find that assumptions are made about their abilities, character or behaviour due to their race.

I think making a conscious effort to combat this with dedicated initiatives like Black History Month is so important. Creating spaces where meaningful conversations can happen ensures that organisations and businesses can help prevent issues such as racism or discrimination (conscious or unconscious) from continuing.

We've seen great feedback from events where we provided speakers for Black History Month events, such as Akala, who covers a range of topics such as knife crime, rehabilitation and racial inequality. Black Histoy Month shouldn't be viewed as a diversity tick box, but as something to foster a greater sense of belonging. Not only does it boost engagenent, retention and satisfaction, but it also builds cultural understanding across teams. So for all businesses, it's important to celebrate Black Voices, which have often been overlooked throughout history.

While it might seem like something that doesn't impact you directly or need to be celebrated, I encourage you to embrace the initiative and understand that it is about creating a place where everyone feels seen and respected, even if you already do. True diversity and inclusion cannot be achieved if the work is left solely to minority groups. Meaningful progress requires everyone to participate in creating a fairer environment.

A poignant quote from Martin Luther King Jr. expresses this well: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality... Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."
 
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Motivational said:
Studies have revealed that around 60% of Black professionals still experience racism in the workplace and around 25% of people find that assumptions are made about their abilities, character or behaviour due to their race.
Click to expand...
Which study? Those numbers don't make a lot of sense.
 
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JEREMY HAWKE said:
Why are some groups people so keen on returning to being different and separate from other British people. ?

Centuries were invested into this country to make us an equal and diverse society where anyone can aim to be anybody they want if they work hard .Yet one part of our people still cant stay away from the fact that they want to remind the rest of the country that they were not here in Oliver Cromwells time .

They spent hundreds of years suffering from inequality but now we are equal they are not happy because we are all equal !

Don't quote to me what happened in America .America is one of the newest developing countries in the Western World .It is backward and in many ways living in a time on par with Tudor England

Hope this helps
Click to expand...
If you think people are equal you're living in a dream world .
 
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ethical PR said:
If you think people are equal you're living in a dream world .
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I agree, I think there's still a way to go before we can say everyone has equal opportunities. Even a quick Google search brings up statistics such as ONS data in 2021 showing that UK-born Black, African, Caribbean or Black British employees earned 5.6% less than UK-born White employees, even after adjusting for things like occupation, qualifications, geography, age and sex.

That's just one statistic, of course, but it shows why conversations about equality are still relevant this Black History Month.
 
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Keynote Speech said:
I agree, I think there's still a way to go before we can say everyone has equal opportunities. Even a quick Google search brings up statistics such as ONS data in 2021 showing that UK-born Black, African, Caribbean or Black British employees earned 5.6% less than UK-born White employees, even after adjusting for things like occupation, qualifications, geography, age and sex.

That's just one statistic, of course, but it shows why conversations about equality are still relevant this Black History Month.
Click to expand...
And, of course, the recent 'Patriot' behaviour in various parts of the UK.
 
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Newchodge said:
And, of course, the recent 'Patriot' behaviour in various parts of the UK.
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But that is more about migrants than specifically black people.

I agree there is still racism and inequality but it’s not limited to one part of society.
 
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fisicx said:
But that is more about migrants than specifically black people.

I agree there is still racism and inequality but it’s not limited to one part of society.
Click to expand...
It is about non-white migrants.
 
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Keynote Speech said:
I agree, I think there's still a way to go before we can say everyone has equal opportunities. Even a quick Google search brings up statistics such as ONS data in 2021 showing that UK-born Black, African, Caribbean or Black British employees earned 5.6% less than UK-born White employees, even after adjusting for things like occupation, qualifications, geography, age and sex.

That's just one statistic, of course, but it shows why conversations about equality are still relevant this Black History Month.
Click to expand...
You seem to be confusing equal opportunities with equal outcome. They are not the same thing.
 
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fisicx said:
Which study? Those numbers don't make a lot of sense.
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Hi fisicx,

Of course, links to the studies are below ;)

pearnkandola.com

Racism at Work in the UK (2021)

Explore Pearn Kandola’s follow-up study of racism in UK workplaces, examining experiences, perceptions and organisational action since 2018.
pearnkandola.com
www.manchester.ac.uk

Racism is still a huge problem in UK’s workplaces, finds report

A shocking report has found that the majority of ethnic minority workers have experienced racial harassment at work in the last five years, and have been subjected to unfair treatment by their employer because of their race. October 2018 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the introduction of...
www.manchester.ac.uk www.manchester.ac.uk
 
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All three link to old reports. Do you have the latest figures?

Furthermore, you have taken two percentages out of context. Read the whole reports and the picture is somewhat different.
 
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Keynote Speech said:
such as ONS data in 2021 showing that UK-born Black, African, Caribbean or Black British employees earned 5.6% less than UK-born White employee
Click to expand...
I thought I'd check out the ONS data, it always turns up something interesting.

"when we consider country of birth, UK-born Black British employees earn more (£15.18), while non-UK Black British employees earned the least (£12.95) compared with UK-born White employees (£14.26)"

So black people born in the UK earn more than white people in the UK - opposite of what @Keynote Speech posted.

The highest earning racial groups in the UK are, in order:

White Irish
Chinese
Indian
Mixed race - White and Asian
Mixed race: Other (Not including white?)
Arab
Any other group
Other white

Then UK born white. 9th out of 17 groups.

I'm pretty sure that racism applies to most of those groups I listed, some more than others.

It does also say "Because of the declining sample of the Annual Population Survey (APS) and increased uncertainty since 2020, estimates covering the period 2020 to 2022 should be used with caution."

But I'm not the one who suggested using it.
 
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