Soho Kids Christmas Lights Switch-On Event - Presented by Architecture for Kids CIC in collaboration with Soho Parish Primary school
🗓 Event Date: 19th November 2025
🕕 Time: 6.00pm
📍 Location: Soho Parish Primary School, London W1D 7LF and Rupert Street
This year’s event will be extra special, as we welcome the Lord Mayor of Westminster Cllr Paul Dimoldenberg, who will officially switch on the lights alongside the children who helped design them. The evening will also mark the unveiling of six brand-new light installations, co-designed by local children in collaboration with architects and artists – adding to the existing 55 lights created in previous years.
This Year’s Theme: Lighting, Identity of Place, and Women in Soho
The 2025 Soho Kids Christmas Lights explore three powerful themes: Lighting, Identity of Place, and this year’s special focus – Women in Soho. Through four days of intensive workshops, pupils from Soho Parish Primary School engaged in research and creative experimentation to uncover stories of local women, reflect on their own identities, and reimagine how light can transform public space. Their ideas have been brought to life in six new bespoke light panels that will illuminate Soho’s streets with meaning and imagination.
About the Project
Now in its fifth year, the Soho Kids Christmas Lights project is a unique creative and community-led initiative that transforms the streets of Soho during the festive season. Founded and co-produced by Antonio Capelao in 2021 in partnership with Soho Parish Primary School, the project draws inspiration from a Christmas lighting initiative in Newburgh, Scotland, and has become a highly anticipated annual event in central London.
At its core, the project invites pupils from Reception through Year 5 to co-design original Christmas light panels that explore the year’s themes through drawing, storytelling, and hands-on making. Over 100 designs are submitted annually, with six selected by a jury of local community members. The winning pupils, along with the School Art Council, then curate the final display in collaboration with Antonio Capelao, Deputy Head Hannah Peaty, and Frith Street Gallery.
The result is a radiant gallery of light that celebrates the voices, creativity, and vision of Soho’s youngest residents. The switch-on event, held in the 19th November, brings together families, educators, and the wider community in a joyful celebration of local identity and children’s creativity. Awards from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) are also presented during the event, adding recognition and excitement to the occasion.
Words of Support from Rachel Blake MP
Rachel Blake, Member of Parliament for Cities of London and Westminster, shared her support for the initiative:
I am writing to support the work of Soho Kids Xmas Lights in my constituency. The resilient and caring community of Soho in the heart of London is one which must be celebrated and upheld. Founded on centuries of migration from all parts of the world, it continues to this day, connecting and uplifting residents with creative projects and local ventures. Soho Kids Xmas Lights is a chief example of this, providing a creative outlet for local children at Soho Parish Primary to project their ideas across this international centre of commerce and business. As Westminster recovers from years of pandemic and economic struggles, projects which bind us together and show the strength of our communities are of greater importance than ever. I am proud to support them in this endeavour.
Antonio Capelao, founder of Architecture for Kids CIC, adds:
This event is a celebration of young voices and their power to shape the spaces we live in. We’re thrilled to see the children’s ideas come to life and light up Soho for everyone to enjoy.
We warmly invite the community and press to join us for this heartwarming event and help us celebrate the creativity and spirit of Soho’s youngest residents.
