Starting in 2025, the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) plans to fold its kids media awards into the main ceremony as part of a new Young BAFTA rebrand. 

This strategic move comes at a time when the annual UK film, TV and gaming awards program is seeing a consistent drop in new entries and industry engagement, according to the org. BAFTA has traditionally hosted a separate Children and Young People awards ceremony in November, and the most recent one took place in 2022 after a two-year pause during the pandemic.

To help reignite interest in its kids awards, BAFTA will introduce new children’s categories in 2025, as well as assembling a Young BAFTA Advisory Group to develop learning programs and initiatives for new talent in the industry. 

BAFTA board member Andrew Miller will head up this steering committee, whose remit will include designing special kids award presentations that run throughout the year, creating networking events and building programs to give kids/teens a taste of working in this part of Britain’s creative industry. Miller has worked in film and TV for more than 35 years, including stints in creative roles at the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV.

In November, BAFTA will showcase its long-running Young Game Designers and Young Presenters programs to kids, teachers and families at its London headquarters in Piccadilly. 

Photo courtesy of BAFTA