We are pleased to announce The Multilingual North: Challenges and Opportunities, a two-day academic event to be held at Lancaster University on 21–22 May 2026.

This event constitutes the 2026 edition of the Northern SLA Round Table, following the inaugural meeting hosted in Leeds in 2024 (organised by Clare Wright, Linguistics, with Monika Schmid, University of York) and the second edition, also held in Leeds in 2025 (organised by Clare Wright, Linguistics, with Tom Hammond, Education, University of Leeds).

The event brings together researchers from across the N8 Research Partnership working on multilingualism, language learning, education, and cognition. The N8 is a collaboration of eight research-intensive universities in the North of England—Durham, Lancaster, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield, and York—established to strengthen research excellence, collaboration, and impact across the region.

Organised by the Multilingualism and Cognition Research Group at Lancaster University, the programme combines invited research talks with professional development activities, with particular relevance for researchers navigating key career transitions.

The programme spans two days.

Day 1 (21 May) will feature two invited plenary lectures by leading scholars in the field: Angela de Bruin (University of York) and Vicki Chondrogianni (University of Edinburgh). A poster session for PhD students and postdoctoral researchers will provide opportunities to present ongoing work, receive feedback, and engage in discussion with peers and senior colleagues from across the N8 institutions.

Day 2 (22 May) will offer an optional EEG workshop, introducing core EEG concepts and focusing on aperiodic (1/f) activity as an emerging measure of brain connectivity and individual differences in language and cognition. The workshop will conclude with a panel discussion on equity and inclusivity in neuroimaging methods, led by Carly Anderson (Lancaster University) and Dwaynica Greaves (University College London).

The event is open to researchers at all career stages with an interest in multilingualism across the lifespan—from infancy through to older adulthood—and aims to foster intellectual exchange and collaboration across the N8 research community.

Registration and further information

Attendance is free of charge, but capacity is limited, with places allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration details, the full schedule, and location information can be found on the events page. For any questions about the event, please contact the organisers (Fatih Bayram, Patrick Rebuschat, and Jason Rothman) at:

f.bayram@lancaster.ac.uk