David Pickard, the director of the BBC Proms will step down after nine years leading the classical music festival.

He will leave the post after next summer’s Proms.

In a statement he said, “It has been an immense honour and privilege to run the world’s greatest classical music festival alongside an incredible team, working with many of the most exciting orchestras, musicians and artists on the planet. By the end of next summer I will have planned and delivered nine Proms seasons and it feels like the right time to move on and explore new projects. After the critical and box office success of the 2023 Proms, I look forward to delivering one more season in 2024.”

Pickard was first named director in 2015  and has since helped the festival increase the diversity of artists and composers. This year for the first time, both the first and the Last Night of the Proms were conducted by women. He also took the Proms outside London.