Unique Festival set to bring sustained fun to Billingham!

Preparations are well underway for the first Festival of Thrift event to be held in Billingham later this year.

Organisers announced this month that the dates for the two-day event, which champions sustainable living, will be Saturday and Sunday, September 23rd and 24th.

After several successful years at Kirkleatham, where the weekend attracted upwards of 50,000 visitors, the Festival will look to be an equally big draw in Billingham, where the town centre and adjacent John Whitehead Park will be transformed for a unique and distinctive free weekend of arts, culture and celebration. 

The festival team are busy finalising a programme offering thousands of visitors a fun, free weekend packed full of entertainment and inspirational ways to be creative and thrifty in everyday life. 

As well as the annual celebration itself – which is part of the national Big Green Week campaign –  the team is working on some exciting year-round activities for people to get involved in.

The Festival of Thrift’s newly installed Creative Directors for 2023 are Dominic Somers and Tanya Steinhauser. 

Tanya said: “We are very excited to be launching in our new home in Billingham. 

“The festival has a very clear vision to create positive, sustainable change in people and places, and the programme we are developing aims to do just that by celebrating ways to live more sustainably and look after the planet we call home.”

Dominic added: “We are looking forward to developing new relationships with local communities, businesses and partners, delivering a high-quality festival that inspires, brings joy, and helps us to imagine a better future together.” 

Coun Steve Nelson, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council’s cabinet member for health, leisure and culture, said: “We are thrilled to be welcoming the Festival of Thrift to the Borough this September.

The festival draws in thousands of visitors from across the region and it will give a major boost to the local economy, whilst also spreading very important messages on sustainable living.”

“It’s also pleasing that the festival organisers are planning the year-round activities which are set to take place across the Borough.”   

Coun Shane Moore, Tees Valley Combined Authority cabinet lead for culture and tourism said: “This year’s Festival of Thrift will see thousands of visitors once again come together to learn about and celebrate sustainable living. 

“Year after year this great event adds something truly different and special to our culture calendar, which draws people from far and wide to explore our region. 

“Not only that, it complements the Combined Authority’s work to position the region as a clean energy powerhouse by highlighting how individuals and families can have a positive impact on the environment.” 

To find out more about Festival of Thrift, volunteer and get involved sign up at www.festivalofthrift.co.uk or follow the festival’s social media feeds @festivalofthrift on Facebook and Instagram and @FestoThrift on Twitter. 

• The Festival has won many awards since starting out over a decade ago, including Winner of the Arts Award in the UK’s number one sustainability awards, the P.E.A. (People. Environment. Achievement.) Awards in 2020 for its digital and hyperlocal work under lockdown. It has also won Best Event Teesside (in 2015 and 2017); Gold as North East Tourism Event of the Year and the Observer Ethical Awards for Arts and Culture, recognising that artists are embedded in the programme as agents for social change.