Each year the Old Fire Station produces the Marmalade Festival in partnership with the Skoll World Forum. Across approximately 70 sessions, people from around the world come together to discuss some of the most significant issues facing our planet, including climate change, social justice, technology, colonial legacy, funding, power, and impact measurement. Marmalade has become a destination event with deep local roots and an international reputation. It is a welcoming space where people working for positive change at local, national, and global levels can exchange ideas, build connections, and find encouragement. 

Marmalade sessions are open to all and free to attend. This year, the festival will run across five days, Monday 5 to Friday 9 April. 

Each spring, Oxford becomes a dynamic hub for changemakers from around the world who gather for three separate yet complementary events. The week is anchored by the Skoll World Forum, a global convening that has celebrated and strengthened social entrepreneurship since 2004. The Forum spotlights bold ideas and proven innovations for tackling the world’s most pressing challenges. Attendance at the Forum is curated by the Skoll Foundation.  

The Marmalade Festival, hosted since 2012 by the Old Fire Station, runs alongside the Forum and opens up the week to everyone in Oxford and beyond. Marmalade is a creative, open-access platform of independently organised sessions - from workshops and discussions to performances and film screenings - that connect global and local perspectives. It provides space for collaboration across sectors and scales, encouraging people working at the grassroots and those shaping strategy to learn from each other and spark new partnerships. 

Additionally, The Sidebar, which debuted in Oxford in 2024, adds a fresh layer of inclusion, offering informal spaces for dialogue and connection. The Sidebar features crowd-sourced discussion groups and digitally-powered People and Event Maps to increase visibility and participation amongst everyone present for this vibrant week in Oxford. 

You can view events from 2025 and 2026 on Luma.

You can also watch films from previous years here.

Marmalade will: 

• Provide your venue - all venues are wheelchair accessible, in central Oxford and equipped with WiFi, at least two microphones, and a projector/screen. Information about available venue sizes is available on the application form. 

• Organise ticketing using the events platform Luma 

• Market your event as part of our programme (digitally and in print) 

• Provide on the day staffing, including venue management, checking in guests, and technical support

Marmalade does not give suggested donation amounts, and we ask that you offer what you feel is appropriate based on the scale of your organisation. Marmalade hosts everyone from international NGOs to local grassroots groups, and those who can afford to pay more help support the attendance of those who can pay less. Past donations have ranged from £1 to £10,000. 

Please remember that any catering costs will be separate to your donation. 

In recent years we have received more applications for sessions than we can include in just four days. Our primary aim in programming Marmalade is to ensure a spread of: 

• Subject matters 

• Geographies 

• a mix of geographical areas represented 

• a mix of local, national, and international organisations represented 

• Types of organisation 

• a mix of organisation sizes represented 

• a mix of charity, community interest, NGO, and other kinds of organisations represented 

• a mix of Skoll World Forum associated, and non-Skoll World Forum associated organisations represented 

We also prioritise sessions that are truly interactive in their format or otherwise enable audience involvement. This is based on feedback from previous festivals, where sessions that offered connection with, and between audience members were highlights for attendees. 

We receive an incredibly high number of applications, often on similar themes and topics - to help us understand your application, we recommend you are as specific and clear in your language as possible.

No. While it’s helpful to have an indication of who will be involved in your event, it is OK if this isn’t confirmed, or if this changes. If you are successful and invited to be part of Marmalade, the communications lead will send you deadlines for informing us of your speakers. 

Yes! We welcome sessions hosted by multiple organisations. Please nominate one organisation as the lead, and include the names of all co-hosting organisations in the session description. 

No. Marmalade received over 470 applications last year, and we do not have the capacity to accept late applications. 

You will receive an initial confirmation of receipt before the application deadline. All applicants will hear the outcome of their application by Monday 8th February. 

Please contact Maya, the Marmalade Festival Co-ordinator.