When are the major COP26 climate protests and what UK cities will be impacted?

Watch: What is COP26 and will it affect climate change?

COP26 is coming to the UK at the end of this month.

It is hoped the event in Glasgow involving dozens of world leaders will forge a new path of climate action - but it will also doubtless mean widespread protests in the city and beyond to coincide with the event.

Read our COP26 explainer below to find out everything you need to know.

What is COP26?

The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference is also known as COP26.

COP stands for Conference of the Parties - the event will be attended by countries that signed the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change, agreed in 1994.

Read more: Scientists urge PM to end new oil and gas deal ahead of COP26

The meeting this year will be the 26th, hence the name COP26.

The first COP meeting - COP1 - was held in Berlin, Germany, in 1995.

Where is COP26?

COP26 will be held in the Scottish city of Glasgow between 31 October and 12 November.

It will take place at the SEC Centre in Glasgow.

The event had originally been scheduled to take place in November 2020 but was postponed for a year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

What will happen?

Nations will come together to discuss their approach to tackling climate change, and it is hoped that pledges will be made to cut carbon emissions further and faster than before.

In August, British prime minister Boris Johnson summed up the key talking points of COP26 as “cash, cars, coal and forest”.

Watch: Greta Thunberg says COP26 unlikely to lead to 'big changes'

This would mean the richest nations committing more money to developing countries to cope with climate change, ending the sale of petrol and diesel cars, as well as coal power, while pledging to protect trees.

What protests are planned?

On Saturday, 6 November, there will be marches in Glasgow and London organised by the COP26 Coalition as part of a 'Global Day of Action for Climate Justice'.

In Glasgow, the crowd will assemble at midday at Kelvingrove Park, before marching to Glasgow Green for a rally at 3pm.

In Central London, the march will set off from outside the Bank of England, ending with a rally at Trafalgar Square.

There will be satellite demonstrations in Nottingham, Chichester, Manchester, Cardiff, Bristol, Oxford, Newcastle, Leeds, Truro, Swansea, Sheffield, Birmingham and Plymouth.

About 100,000 protesters are expected in Glasgow on that Saturday.

Who are the 'COP26 Coalition'?

The COP26 Coalition describes itself as a “civil society coalition of groups and individuals mobilising around climate justice during COP26”.

Its members include grassroots campaigns, faith groups and environment NGOs.

The group accuses the world’s governments of doing “too little, too late” on climate change.

It says of the planned 6 November protests: "We are organising decentralised mass mobilisations across the world, bringing together movements to build power for system change – from indigenous struggles to trade unions, from racial justice groups to youth strikers"

More information can be found here.

What has the build-up to COP26 been like?

Johnson has called on billions of pounds’ worth of investment in green technologies ahead of COP26, saying governments and markets must work together to tackle climate change.

He has announced a new partnership with Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Catalyst to drive an extra £200m of private sector investment in green power schemes in the UK.

Read more: COP26 organisers reject claims climate summit 'mismanaged'

Johnson said the government is making “big bets” on electric vehicles, gigafactories for battery production, hydrogen and solar power.

The government also announced that grants of £5,000 will be available to households to replace their gas boiler with a low carbon heat pump as part of efforts to cut emissions from homes.

It has set a target for all new heating system installations to be low carbon by 2035.

Has there been any criticism of COP26?

Before the meeting has even started, COP26 has been in the firing line.

Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg has so far said she will not attend, while there was criticism of the event from a more unlikely source: the Queen.

In a recording published by the Daily Mail last week, the Queen was heard reportedly saying: “Extraordinary isn’t it… I’ve been hearing all about COP… still don’t know who is coming… no idea.”

She added: “We only know about people who are not coming… and it’s really irritating when they talk, but they don’t do.”

Watch: Queen 'irritated' by lack of action on climate change