Shepley Spring Festival is cancelled

<s>Shepley Spring Festival</s&.. 2014 - around the festival site — Photo credit: James Creaser

Shepley Spring Festival - CANCELLED 2014

Friday 16th to Sunday 18th May 2014
Shepley Village, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, HD8 8AS, England MAP
£90 including camping

Daily capacity: 1,600

Festival organisers have confirmed that this year's Shepley Spring Festival which was due to held in Shepley Village, near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire from Friday 16th until Sunday 18th May 2014 will not go ahead after their funding is stopped.

The festival which srated in 2007 was due to offer a full weekend of events celebrating the best of traditional music, song and dance, including concerts, ceilidhs, morris dancing, music and song sessions, and music and dance workshops with acts including Kate Rusby, Coope Boyes and Simpson, Demon Barbers XL, James Findlay, Bella Hardy, Lucy Ward, Brian Peters, Ross Ainslie and Jarlath Henderson.

A statement from Shepley Spring Festival says:

"It is with regret that we have to announce that Shepley Spring Festival will not be happening this year.
We have had it confirmed that the festival’s regular grant funding is not available to us for 2014. This would leave the festival, should it go ahead, with a major shortfall which we simply cannot bridge, despite some generous offers of help.

Due to the economic climate, arts funding has been substantially reduced year on year. This has been a common picture repeated across the country affecting the arts in general as well as other festivals and music events.

This financial position means it would be irresponsible to continue planning for an event in 2014.

The situation has hit the four volunteer directors very hard personally. We are also aware that many people have put a phenomenal amount of work into the festival over the years, for which we are eternally grateful – some have already been practising hard and preparing for Shepley 2014 including performers, traders and suppliers.

The four directors would like to thank those who have supported the festival to date – some from day one. There have been seven truly wonderful festivals of which we are proud and we look forward the many more to come in future years.

If you have already bought tickets for this Shepley Spring Festival 2014 we will be getting in touch with you in the next few days.

James McKinlay, Sally Atkinson, Nikki Hampson, Andy Smith."