In this article, the authors describe the first Festival of Contemporary Science for Science Teachers which was held in January 2010. Focusing on a number of leading-edge science topics, this new festival was organised by Bristol ChemLabS, in collaboration with the Science Learning Centre South West, and involved academics from several departments at the University of Bristol. Around 80 teachers from the UK and overseas attended the Festival, the aim of which was to give science teachers the opportunity to update their subject knowledge rather than presenting continuing professional development on how to teach.