Black History Month 2026: Honouring our Communities

Sharing inspiring stories of Black British life, achievement and service.

Black History Month has been celebrated in the UK for almost forty years, since Akyaaba Addai-Sebo, a Ghanaian journalist and activist, founded the event in 1987. 

The theme for 2026 is Honouring our Communities, celebrating those whose hard work, dedication and creativity is shaping the Britain of today. We would encourage you to take a moment to read the official Black History Month Magazine 2026 to learn about the lives of a collection of historic and present-day Black Britons.

This a good opportunity to introduce Armet Francis, the photographer behind the opening image to this article. Born in Jamaica, Francis moved to the UK in the 1950s and spent his career documenting the lives of people from the African diaspora, often around London. The image above comes from a series of fashion photographs commissioned by 19 magazine in 1973 and is currently a part of the V&A’s collection. You can view more of Armet Francis’ work on his website.

Black History Month is an important time for celebration, education and recognition, with events happening around the country. Interested in attending an event nearby? Explore the Events in Greater London listings.

To find out what’s happening on campus, visit Imperial’s Black History Month webpage. There, you can also learn more about the Black students and staff shaping our community and the networks and initiatives available.

Thinking about your career this month?

The importance of a diverse and inclusive workplace cannot be downplayed; it leads to more innovative thinking, stronger collaboration, better morale and improved performance. For those of you seeking employers who genuinely prioritise EDI, try investigating whether:

• They publish diversity information beyond a generic equal opportunities statement;
• There is an EDI or inclusivity lead within their recruitment team;
• They have established internal diversity networks for their employees.

For more advice, check out our Equality, diversity and inclusion webpage.

As always, our careers consultants are here to discuss any thoughts or questions you may have about your professional journey. You can book online or in-person appointments via JobsLive.