Glade: 14th – 17th June, Norfolk

Once again the Glade will be held at Houghton Hall, North Norfolk. Whether you want to dance the night away to the best international DJ’s or chill out with your mates and a cup of chai/beer, it’s a great site!. Loads of level ground and free draining soil meaning the risk of mud is minimal compared to many other sites.

There will be a Supported Access Area for both tents and camper vans along with all the usual facilities; blue badge parking, accessible loos and showers, wheelchair battery charging, etc… Plus loads of support getting equipment into and out of the camping areas, they’ll even put up your tent if you need them to! If you have any special requirements, want to apply for a PA ticket or just want to ask about facilities you can contact the festival by email at: access@gladefestival.com

Sunrise Celebration: 22nd – 24th June, Somerset

The festival is running from the Friday to the Sunday inclusive, with the possibility of the Thursday 21st being included as an extra day for the Solstice.Check their website for details of this arrangement.

GAMA has been working with Sunrise for about six years now, and each year we are aware of things improving, and of things we want to get even better. The feedback we had from last year’s visitors’ shows we are all definitely on the right track…. Sunrise is committed to compliance, and we are supporting them in a site-wide approach. We are having a GAMA field as usual; it is a large and active place, and we are working with traders, the venues and the organisers to increase accessibility in every aspect of the festival. We are running a GAMA information line and have already had quite a few enquiries. This year sunrise is bidding to be larger and even more event-filled than it has been in previous years.

Secret Garden Party: 19th – 22nd July

SGP will once again be providing its unique party atmosphere at Abbots Ripton in Cambridgeshire. It’s a wonderful place to catch a really eclectic line up, join in a few debates, listen to poetry, watch some live theatre or just eat drink and be merry! The site is beautiful but does present a few issues for those with limited mobility. It’s a greenfield site so can get muddy in our wonderful British weather! It’s also a little hilly although the main arenas are on fairly level ground. There is a set of steps leading to a pontoon bridge over a picturesque lake, but there is an alternative way around this.

There will be a Supported Access Camping/Camper van Area as well as all the usual facilities; blue badge parking, accessible loos and showers, wheelchair charging points, etc…. Help will be available to help you get your equipment to the camping area and set up your tent if needed etc… If you have any specific requirements, want to apply for a PA ticket or just ask about facilities, you can email the festival at: access@secretgardenparty.com

Boomtown: 9th – 12th August, Secret Location in South UK

Last year was GAMA’s first foray into Boomtown, and they only invited us in two weeks before the event – we “worked on the hoof” and did whatever needed doing. Boomtown is energetic, young, exciting, a bit dangerous and very enjoyable. The organisers really want to “get it right” and have asked for GAMA to be involved far more early on this year.

We ran an open GAMA area as part of the “family and disabled camping” area. This area was equally divided into camper vans and tentage. The field was nearest to and easily accessible to the events arenas. We had no specific power supply to the GAMA area but everyone managed to find hook-ups for wheelchair charging if they needed it. GAMA is really pleased to be involved in this years Boomtown, and no doubt it will be bigger and better than ever.

Strummer of Love: 17th – 19th August, Somewhere in South of England

We are delighted to be involved with “Strummer of Love”, a one-off festival dedicated to the life and works of Joe Strummer. We are working alongside the organisers to ensure an event that is fully accessible to all. If you have specific requirements please let the organisers know when you purchase your tickets. It has a great line up and should be lots of fun.

For more info, see the website – www.strummeroflove.com

Out Of The Ordinary, September , Sussex

We are a bit confused as to whether Out of the Ordinary is happening this year. If it closes that would be a great shame as it has always been a lovely small safe festival that embraced GAMA.

Alchemy Festival: 21st – 23rd September, Lincolnshire

We are waiting to hear what is happening with this one.

If you want to “register” your place in the GAMA areas for either Sunrise or Boomtown do contact us via GAMA. If you have any further questions about any of the festivals mentioned here, please do contact us.

As the season progresses we will get more information to share. If any one out there wants more information, advice on compliance, and other access and festival/outdoor event information, get in touch with us. We are here to receive as well as give information, and the more we can do, and campaign for, the more between us we can achieve. Photos, stories, anecdotes, questions and answers, – all welcome!

• WOW Awards Part 1: are for festival food
• WOW Awards Part 2: are for music and everything else.

The WOW Awards 2011 Part 1: Food

Winner of the 2011 Best Festival Cafe award is…

The Home-grown Hangout cafe (Sunrise and Secret Garden Party).

One of their aims is to bring food fresh from their allotments to the festivals. My favourite festival café. The most friendly welcome. The best breakfast: a good variety of dishes with excellent veggie sausages and a very flexible range of choices. The most easy-going (for example a guy took up large cushion for several hours sleeping without anyone disturbing him, just working round him). A place for interesting conversations. Indeed, in my opinion, the best way to spend the morning at any festival. The cafe also won my disabled friendly award. One of the team always offered to help me, and there was also a good variety of seating to suit all needs. Congratulations to Niklas and his wonderful team, who really understand what makes a great café. I hope to see them at all the festivals I go to next year.

Best ‘Full Board’ award (i.e. a range of food at different times of the day)

Winner: Buddhafield café (Glastonbury, Green Gathering, OffGrid)

They served a tasty full veggie breakfast and a good range of options at all times of the day. Special mention must go to their hearty lentil soup and the walnut lasagne which I crossed a whole festival site for.

Best Sunday (veggie) Roast award

Winner: Chai Shop Organic at Croissant Neuf Summer Party (so good I tried to eat two!)

Runner-up: Queen Delilah’s (Glastonbury)

Runner-up: Buddhafield café at Glastonbury, Green Gathering, Off Grid.

Best Healthy Smoothie award

Winner: the Raw Food Cafe at Sunrise Off Grid. Also impressive was Pete’s great enthusiasm about the food, encouraging people to taste it and try small samples.

Best Afternoon Tea award

Winner: Kate’s Kitchen (at Sunrise). Delicious cakes and perfectly brewed tea and coffee served on beautiful crockery by a delightful team.

Runner Up: Tea dance refreshments at Croissant Neuf

Best Cheese on Toast award

(There was a period in my festival summer when all I wanted to eat was cheese on toast: hence this award)

Winner: Weirdigans at Green Gathering, a delightful café, which I’d somehow missed at previous festivals, and which also provided me with the most interesting encounters and conversation.

Runner-up: Tea And Toast stall at Secret Garden Party, perfectly positioned, friendly and helpful. Tables and chairs made this a disabled-friendly spot too.

Best “Champagne” Cocktail award

Winner: Baby Sam’s cocktail bar at Croissant Neuf. Tasty and zingy drink, and a table with flowers to sit at to sip at.

Best Crêpe award

Winner: The Forestiere (mushrooms in a cream and tarragon sauce with extra mature cheddar) from ‘Crepe, Monsieur?’ at Green Peaks Festival, which also won the Best Banter between Staff award.

Best Salad Platter award

Winner: Leon’s at Glastonbury. Love the food, hate the location. Solution: I take a sealable plastic food box, tip the salad in and eat it where I like. Or I use his vegetarian recipe books.

Best Cafe Music award

Winner: Buddhafield café The team have an eclectic set of playlists to share.

Special Award:
The stylish and quirky Kill Or Cure area, run by the delightful witches. A warm welcome, a pot of tea or perhaps a glass of sloe gin, an in-depth health consultation, and the chance to buy one of their marvellous potions and ointments. Or you might catch a story or a fascinating workshop. This year I enjoyed their generous hospitality at Glastonbury, Croissant Neuf, and Sunrise Off Grid.

Special Award:
Fayre’s Fair at Glastonbury for their immediate and effective response to my arrival, near to fainting, after a long and difficult trek across the site through the gloomy mud. They sat me down and brought me breakfast. Many thanks. The café is run by volunteers in aid of the Ringwood Waldorf School.

Special Award for the most generous and versatile use of a beautifully decorated space:
Creative Intentions cafe at Green Peaks Festival. It generously hosted a speakers forum, open mic sessions, a stall in aid of the Pegasus Childrens Trust and a fire circle. Thanks to Paula Kershaw and the rest of the team.

Special Insomniac Award:
The 24 hour curry stall at Green Gathering. It was such a great comfort knowing that I was only ever 5 minutes away from a plate of dahl…

The WOW Awards 2011 – Part 2

Best Performance Music Award:

Only Joe at Chai Wallahs, Secret Garden Party.
This 9 piece Reggae band range from “deep bass driven Steppas to up-beat Roots Reggae and classic Ska Riddims” (they say). “A positive message together with a non-stop, music-to-move-you mission” for sure; just the opening notes of ‘The Big Sound’ and ‘Live As One’ would be enough to draw me across a festival site. This time, though, I was ready half an hour early, and stayed right at the front for the whole set. A top festival moment was when Zico, the talented vocalist, remembered me from last year (we’d chatted over late night chips) and gave me a hug.

Special Award to:

Seize The Day
Not just for their consistently brilliant live performances; not just for their consistently radical politics; not just for songs which rouse and inspire us; for all these as well as for ‘walking the walk’ and firing us up for positive change. My “summer wouldn’t be complete without seeing them live” band.

Best Performance Award:

Drama‘La Boîte Noire’ by Bootworks Theatre at Glastonbury.
A 40’s film noir influenced performance by 4 characters, each in a ‘Red Box’ Stunning. Gripping, even outdoors in the middle of a muddy field!

Best Performance Award:

Multi-sensory kinetic theatre. Electric Spectacle by 85A collective at Secret Garden Party. Into a strange haunting space where musical automata perform their weird opera.

Best interactive comedy Award:

The Horse Box at Glastonbury.
A small group of punters are invited into – yes – a horse box where they meet an aristocrat and her ‘assistant’….

Best Performance at Spirit of ’71 stage Award (Glastonbury):

The Crazy World of Arthur Brown.
I’d thought he was a one-hit wonder, even at the time, but his set was a revelation. The energy; the stamina; the costumes; the dancing; the flirting; the strong voice: impressive in a performer of any age, but a man in his 70th year? Wow! There was a wide range of great songs; we were looking forward to ‘Fire’ and we were not disappointed. A great showman; a great show. Edgar Broughton: sounding better than ever

Best group singing Award:

Bhajans with Pete and Pam at Rainbow Superspirit.
A deeply heart-opening experience.

One Perfect Number Awards:

• Lamb: ‘Wise Enough’ (Sunrise)
• Pat Orchard: ‘The Singing Grass’ (Glastonbury)
• Lost Padres: ‘Your Love is Taking Me Higher’ Acoustic Space, Healing Field, Glastonbury.
  A young woman was sitting at the piano on one corner of the Healing Field at Glastonbury on Sunday evening. We asked her if she’d play something for us, and she sang a beautiful song which really moved us. She said she was still in the process of composing it, but it seemed perfect to us… (If she reads this, do get in touch; we’d love to hear the song again)

“Gotta Dance!” awards:

Best Small Stages Award:

Sangers at Off Grid.
Built at the roadside and horse-drawn, this stage was great to visit at any time, but came into its own late at night. The MC gave a powerful political speech at the opening, and combined this passion with aggressive rants and never-ending jokes. The music, starting with David Sanger himself, was always entertaining, sometimes brilliant.

The Acoustic Music Space Award at Glastonbury:

A mixture of workshops and performances, the atmosphere relaxed and full of harmony. Highspots this year included a gong meditation by Stefan Cartright and dancing to Lost Padres.

The Impulse Buy I’m So Glad I Bought award:

Tom McNair’s Criminal Justice CD, which I bought, completely on impulse, at the market at Rainbow 2000 Superspirit camp. I’d never heard him play, but the young person who sold it to me assured me: “My dad’s really good.” How true! My favourite track? ‘I’m Coming Home’.

Most thought-provoking, inspiring speakers Awards:

• Theo Simon: The Heart of Activism (Sunrise) & The Luddites (Off Grid).
• Brigit Strawbridge: The Importance of Bees, at Glastonbury
• Gregory Sams: ‘Universal Consciousness’, at Secret Garden Party (new book: ‘Sun of gOd’ “The Sun is smarter than we think”.
• Mike Grenville: Transition is Now – but How? (Sunrise, Green Gathering, Off Grid)
• Rob Hopkins: The Transition Movement (Off Grid)
• Tim (Mac) McCartney: The Children’s Fire (Off Grid)
• Nicola Peel on her work on the Amazon (Off Grid)
• Charlie Veitch: a 12 minute talk at the Stiglitz Sessions, Secret Garden Party
• Chris Church: 40 years of green campaigning at Green Gathering
• Nick Jukes (International Campaign for Humane Education):Towards Deep Sustainability; workshop at Green Gathering

Best Panel Discussions Award:

• The Green Festival Movement: at Green Gathering.
• Smallholdings: at Off Grid.
• Resilience: at Off Grid.

Best Installations Award:

Sonic Forest at Glastonbury.
In a sea of mud we co-create a beautiful soundscape.

Most Helpful Stewards Award:

• Fiona Ingrams, in charge of caravan parking at Glastonbury. Thanks for being both understanding and boldly decisive.

• Chris at Croissant Neuf, who somehow guessed that it was me at the gate, and crossed the whole site to help me.
• Clive at Off Grid, who found me a great pitch, and organised a band of helpers to get me through the mud

Least Helpful Festival Worker Award:

It was pouring with rain as Arthur Brown started his set at ‘Spirit of ’71 stage at Glastonbury. But good news: after buying a coffee I could take it to the adjoining tent which had tables and chairs (and about 20 other people), and with sections rolled up as they were, a perfect view of the show. Imagine my distress when a guy started rolling the canvas down, because the marquee was closed due to no performance going on in there. Simple humanity might have made an exception, but no, he was just obeying orders and I had to stand shivering in the rain.

Best Outdoor Workshop Award:

Laser Star Tour by Dave Molz at Sunrise.
I learnt more than ever before because the pointer actually seemed to touch the star.

Cosiest Venues on a cold wet night:

Small World café and stage (Glastonbury,Secret Garden Party, Green Gathering).

WOW – thank you Marion!

The other thing we started doing this year was producing “feedback forms” for all the visitors to the GAMA areas – so we have had loads of lovely feedback, people saying what we are doing is great, and also showing us what still needs improving. We are committed to continue upping the standards and expectations for those that need our service.

In 2011 GAMA has been directly involved with: Sunrise Celebration, The Glade, Alchemy, Secret Garden Party, Green Gathering, Boomtown, and Out of The Ordinary festival. We are also spreading the word – GAMA is getting known as the place to come for friendly and helpful festival advice on accessibility.

Sunrise Festival: 2nd – 5th June

GAMA was a great success at this year’s Sunrise – we had over 120 people camped within the area, and more around the site, all able to use and benefit from the support and facilities that we provided. We plan to carry on working with Sunrise as they expand into the future, and for us to continue to make disability awareness and support an integral part of the whole festival. A great festival to be involved with – Thank you Sunrise!

Green Gathering: 27 – 31st July

Green Gathering was like a re-union of the Big Green Gathering. Everyone seemed to enjoy it, and old acquaintances were met and new friendships were forged. There were relatively few people on site, making it seem sparse and sometimes fairly quiet.

The site itself was a very difficult site to manage, lots of hills, a long thin trackway and a difficult entrance/exit. There was no night lighting making it difficult for anyone to get around, and the ground was uneven and pot holed.

GAMA would need to consider the practicality of working with this site again… We would need a lot more interaction before the event. We had a signer who was greatly appreciated. The feedback from what the GAMA field users provided was excellent.

Boomtown: 11 – 14th August

Boomtown is a relatively new festival that is making waves in the festival scene. It is high energy, high input, has a great atmosphere, and brilliant artwork. It has a very original “core identity” that is unified around the whole site. The organisers had worked really hard to produce such a good events arena. And there were great bands, quirky entertainments, food, and shops. For the first time there was a children’s area, and family camping area. The organisers want to open the festival out for everyone to enjoy. The other side of this extreme is that it also has some real problems that need sorting – there was a lot of thieving, and a lot of medical incidences. The organisers want to “get it right” and are keen to work with organisations such as GAMA to increase participation, to bring in skilled festival crew, and to enhance the facilities available on site.

The site itself was contained in a natural “bowl” that has various slopes and hills within it. However, the central entertainments core was on the flat part in the middle.

This year, 2011, GAMA was brought in just a few weeks before the festival. Next year the organisers have promised that we will be brought in earlier, and can thus have a much greater input into the planning and set up. I think we are really looking forward to working with Boomtown again in the future.

WINTER PROJECTS

We have started on these projects for the winter:

1. GAMA is talking with “Festival Awards” to incorporate access and exclusivity guidelines for UK Festivals. This will mean that in the future festivals are more likely to win Awards if they can show that they have been taking on access issues.
2. GAMA is working with the website “Festivals for All” to publicise those festivals that are providing good access facilities.
3. GAMA is working with signers to provide BSL interpretation and loop systems for venues and forum discussion areas at events.
4. GAMA is supporting a questionnaire by Able2uk that will enable us to get a good overview of what people would like in their festival provision.
5. GAMA hopes to work on the concept of forming “national standards” of access in inclusivity that UK festivals and outdoor events should be providing. We are hoping for some funding for this work (we don’t know where from yet), but it would be great to get this started.
6. Finally, we hope to organise some small conference/meeting/social for all the organisers of GAMA/Access areas at festivals, to all get together, and discuss any problems and all the solutions we can think of.

To find out more information about any of Gama’s work, or if you would like to contribute to it, do contact us via the links in the Contact Us page.

If you would like to send us any stories, photos or funny or frustrating moments from your summer festivals, please do send them in to us, again by the Contact Us page.

Thank you all, for supporting us in our work

Yours,
Jos, Seagh, Mike, Penny, Jo and Degs, Emma and Marcus and everyone else who works with us, or who enjoys coming to our areas.

The link will take you to the Skiddle website where you can make your purchase – and get a nice cosy glow in the knowledge that you are helping GAMA!

Meadowlands 27 – 29th May

A small happy little festival in the Sussex countryside. They are in their third year and GAMA is hoping to support and advise them with their website information and compliance on site.

Sunrise Celebration 2nd – 5th June, Somerset.

GAMA has been working with Sunrise for about five years now, and each year we are aware of things we want to get better. Sunrise are committed to compliance, and we are supporting them in a site-wide approach. We are having a GAMA field as usual; at sunrise, and we are working with traders, the venues and the organisers to increase accessibility in every aspect of the festival. We are running a GAMA information line and have already had quite a few enquiries. Last year Sunrise helped out a lot of GAMA people by accepting “swaps” on tickets from the Big Green Gathering cancelled from the year before.

Glastonbury 22 – 26 June, Somerset.

We are hoping to continue working with Glastonbury and meeting with them to support their disabled provisions on site. Last year they introduced a showcase afternoon for performers with disabilities on the Continental Drifts stage. We are proposing that one of the GAMA team do a photo/story and interviews of accessibility on site.

Glade 10 – 12 June.

We understand that the Glade Festival has new dates, and a new site. We are waiting to hear back from the organisers. The important thing for us is that if the Glade is back on form after the unfortunate cancellation last year, then if it has different people running it, they need to be aware of the GAMA facilities that are normally provided on site, and of how well Seagh and Mike run the GAMA area. Seagh and Mike have provided flexibility and support throughout the previous years for the Glade, and each year the area has got larger and more appreciated.

Green Gathering 2011 27 – 31 July, Berkshire

The Green Gathering is a small gathering, up to 5000 people, with having fun, green education and ecological principles at its core, for the end of July. We have been asked to run a GAMA field on site, which we are happy to do. The organisers are also keen to support and push for site wide compliance for all its stalls, cafes and venues. The site is flat and easily serviceable and we are hoping that it will be a great new green success! If you would like to buy tickets or look at their site, here’s the link: www.greengathering2011.com

Brighton Pride 13th August

Brighton Pride seems to have become a victim of its own success. Last year the Park was packed, and most of the facilities got swamped (in the case of the wide access toilets – literally!) GAMA has been asked to take on the stewarding of the wide access loos. There are also proposals to cordon off the Pride area, and charge for entry, so there are issues we are a GAMA group will need to consider before making any definite plans with Pride. We would like to be able to support Pride in Brighton and help them provide good access for everybody.

Out of the Ordinary 23 – 25 September, Sussex.

We hope to be well involved again for the Out of The Ordinary Festival. This has become a GAMA favourite for many people in the local area.

Alchemy Festival 16 – 18 September, Lincolnshire.

We are waiting to hear what is happening with this one.

That’s all for now – as the season progresses I am sure we will get more information to share. If any one out there wants more information, advice on compliance, and other access and festival/outdoor event information, do contact us.

We are here to receive as well as give information, and the more we can do, and campaign for, the more between us we can achieve. Photos, stories, anecdotes, questions and answers – all welcome.

Brighton Gay Pride 2010

Brighton Pride this year made serious efforts to improve access for disabled people to both the parade and the event in Preston Park which was attended by an estimated 160,000 people.

The Pride organisation worked with the Brighton Federation of Disabled People to
plan facilities. The website stated:

• Park and Ride close to the park
• An area reserved for those with mobility issues on the parade route
• A shuttle service to the viewing area/access tent from the car park
• The very important access tent operated by Brighton & Hove Federation of Disabled People.
• Our fantastic signers
• Accessible toilets

Buggy Rider at Brighton Gay Pride 2010

The parade and the party in the park were bigger and better than ever. Several people joined the parade in decorated wheelchairs and electric buggies. Some may say that Preston Park is now too small for an event of this magnificence and magnitude. However it was wonderful to see so many thousands of happy smiling people have such a good time. Indeed, it was so crowded in many places that any movement was very difficult indeed. The huge crowds also made finding the accessible toilets very difficult. The permanent public lavatories in Preston Park were closed for Pride including one which has a RADAR lock.

Access Area

The biggest blessing in facilities for people with disabilities was the “Access Tent” provided by the Brighton Federation of Disabled People. This was a real oasis of peace and tranquillity in what at times could be a little too much.

Brighton Pride 2010 Access Area

It was a real chill out space offering shelter from the weather and head space, and I was instantly offered a cup of tea when I came into the tent. It was a warm welcoming and secure area. There was also a nice enclosed outer space with tables to watch the world go by. It was wonderful and was appreciated by many.

One quite serious criticism about the space, which I am sure will be rectified next year, was the shortage of accessible toilets in the “Access Tent” compound. There was also a lack of changing facilities, and arrangements for disposal of clinical waste. There was only one temporary wide access toilet in the Access Area. There were some seats for people waiting. This was very quickly full, as there was little or no effective stewarding. At one stage eleven ambulant people were queuing to use it and two people in wheel chairs at the back of the queue waited for a long time to use what was by then a pretty awful facility. Because there was no waste bin people put clinical waste down the toilet so by four o’clock it was unpleasantly full.

Brighton Pride 2010 Access Area Interior

When the stewards were asked abut this, they indicated that there was nothing that they could do to prevent this, which is ludicrous. Given the willingness that there has been this year to make the situation a million times more enjoyable this year, I am am sure that they will rectify this and anything else that people point out to them. There should have been at least two wide access toilets as well as one for carers and and one for people needing clean facilities for medical rather than mobility needs. There should also have been handwashing facilities or gel and wipes- and maybe the GAMA toilet fairies!

In the Women’s Marquee a BSL signer was interpreting for a singer, her expresiveness enhancing the experience for everyone.

If you were at Pride or wish to review / comment on disabled persons facilities at any other outdoor event, then please free to do so on the GAMA Website. After all its ours and we should use it !!!

Thank you and a happy Pride !!!

Miki Hall

If you want information about accessible venues in Brighton please check out the Brighton and Hove Federation of Disabled People‘s Accessible City Guide

Nicola at Sunrise Festival 2010

I used to love camping and going to outdoor festivals but since getting ill with CFS/ME, stopping work and feeling physically and mentally shaky, I sort of gave up on the idea. But how I missed it and felt left out!

Recently, however, I moved to a new flat, and I started to feel that perhaps other good things were possible. I said to a friend who’s a regular festival-goer  ‘I wish you could take me with you sometime’. And straightaway she said  ‘Come to Sunrise! It’s quite small, got a lovely atmosphere – and I’ll do the driving!’.  I was unsure but then I checked the festival website. Music, yoga, organic food, wood-carving, dancing…  and then I saw that organisers had set aside a section of the site for disabled people and were offering free places for carers and help with shifting gear.  I suddenly felt inspired and confident. I said ‘YES let’s do it.’

GAMA Area at Sunrise Festival 2010

Nicola Field

This article was originally written by Nicola Field for her local ME support group – many thanks to Nicola for letting us reproduce it here!

In date of event order, we are now involved in the following:

Sunrise Festival – 3rd / 6th June 2010

GAMA has been confirmed to run the green access area on site, and we are involved in all the planning and logistics. Jos, Penny and Jane all attended the site visit and planning meeting last weekend, which was very positive. The GAMA area during the festival will be run by Miki and Penny, and their dedicated crew.

Sunrise very kindly agreed to offer a “ticket swap” for those who bought GAMA tickets for last years Big Green Gathering, which did not take place. This scheme is now drawing to a close, and hopefully all those that wanted to swap, have done so. This is being administered by Jos and all those that responded will be hearing from Jos in the next few weeks. This scheme was put into place for just the GAMA tickets, and does not include any other tickets. For any further information regarding general BGG tickets, look on the BGG website.

Glastonbury Festival – 23rd / 27th June 2010

GAMA has been involved in feedback from last year, and Miki sent in a resume of comments for their planning meeting for this year. The disabled facilities at Glastonbury are constantly being extended and increased, and GAMA hope to continue being involved in all aspects of this work. We are happy to continue liaising with the Festival’s own support staff, and hope to be a positive and vibrant part of future developments.

Glade Festival – 15th / 18th July 2010

Seagh and Mike are cracking on with organising the Glade festival disabled access. This will be the second year on the very successful new site at Matterley Bowl, near Winchester, so this year we know more of what to expect. They are planning a slightly larger team this year and have started liaising with the Glade organisers to bring about the best camping facilities within this incredible dance festival.

Croydon Mela and World Party – Saturday 31st July, 2010

The world party is taking place on Saturday 31st July, and the Croydon Mela on the Sunday 1st August, both in Lloyd Park. Jos is working on a new venture with the organisation Green Stewards to train up the stewards in Access support and information. We have put together a training package which will provide practical advice, an outline of the legal obligations, support inclusivity, and give confidence to the stewards to help all the public.

Shambala Festival – 27th / 30th August 2010

The report we got from last year’s Shambala was that the Access area was their busiest one yet – this year Jos has started having discussions with the organiser and we hope to continue supporting the area in what ever way we can.

Out of the Ordinary Festival – 17th / 19th September 2010

Miki and Penny have started thinking and planning for this years Out of the Ordinary, a charming little festival held in the Sussex Downs. Each year the festival takes on more eco planning and conscious thinking, encouraging zero waste and only functioning on green power and eco products.

So that’s where we are so far – If there are any other festivals that you would like us to get involved with, or any campaigns we can do, please let us know. As we get further involved during the season we will update this regularly. Similarly, if you want to be more involved with GAMA, sign up to the email newsletter, follow us on twitter, or just contact us.

The ticket swap to Sunrise 2010 is now closed & finished. The Big Green Gathering website has a new available offer for ticket swaps to the “Green Phoenix Festival”, 19th – 22nd August 2010, and we will be supporting a GAMA field there.  There will shortly be instructions on the Big Green Gathering website as to how to process and swap tickets for the Green Phoenix Festival.

UPDATE:

GAMA has had negotiations with the Green Phoenix Festival, 19th – 22nd August 2010, near Newcastle, ( www.greenphoenixfestival.org.uk )   and is pleased to announce that they will accept GAMA tickets from last years cancelled Big Green Gathering for their GAMA area.  THE TICKETS WE ARE DEALING WITH HERE ARE ONLY THE BGG 2009 GAMA TICKETS – FOR ALL OTHERS GO DIRECTLY THROUGH THE GREEN PHOENIX WEBSITE AND CONTACT ADDRESS.

Conditions:

• This can only be done if you have not already used your tickets to swap to any other festival.
• That you have proof of purchase of BGG 2009 GAMA tickets.
• This offer will close at the end of June 2010.
• To be involved in this offer, please contact  joscolover@btinternet.com by email ONLY, and give us your name and address, any ticket details you have from your purchase of tickets for the BGG, and a contact phone number.
• Green Phoenix is also doing a reduction, so if you want to buy more tickets direct from them, they are offering a 10% discount for those that bought BGG 2009 GAMA tickets.
• If you want to buy more tickets for your friends and family for the Green Phoenix Festival, then go directly to their website.

OOTO is 3 day eco & family friendly festival set in the beautiful Sussex countryside celebrating the Autumn Equinox. Solar powered stages and wind generators power fascinating talks and workshops plus children’s activities and a green market place plus many more out of the ordinary surprises!
www.outoftheordinaryfestival.com

GAMA Sign - OOTO, 2009

We had a crew of eight GAMA volunteers to set up and run the GAMA camping area. Jo and Degs went to the site on Wednesday to check and mark out the GAMA area.

In spite of the lack of publicity we had about 30 guests including friends, partner and carers of people with disabilities. Our guests had 3 campervans, 11 tents and a caravan. Several have camped with us at other events. They included a band playing at the festival, a cafe owner and a woman running creative workshops for all ages. We also offered our facilities to guests and crew camping elsewhere.

One person arrived in a campervan at 11.30 pm on Friday. As it was not safe to drive across the festival site in the dark he was accommodated elsewhere. We could have made room for him on Saturday if necessary. OOTO arranged for him to charge his wheelchair close to where he was parked.

Camping Area

We had just enough space for all our guests and crew. OOTO provided a 20ft square white marquee as a shelter and information point furnished with tables and chairs. As the weather was fine all weekend we used the green space outside for meals and for children to play. We did not have electricity but it would have been available if needed. Two guests brought flowers made of foam to decorate the marquee and tea light lanterns for inside and outside the marquee.

Sink & Water Taps

A sink and separate stand pipe were nearby.

The wide access toilet remained usable all weekend (although it was not emptied), thanks to our notices and lookouts and the well-constructed compost loos nearby. One of the compost toilets had a child seat but it was as high as the others and not signposted or easy to find. Festivals need to provide lower seats and wider cubicles for young children. As usual the crew kids played happily together and with guests. This was particularly appreciated by the mothers of two boys with types of autism.

Disabled Access Toilet

We had a radio to link us to OOTO organisers, site manager and security. We had no security or anti-social behaviour problems. There was a lot of mutual help and we had time to talk. Two of our guests as well as Unity And Devision sang in the Lost Horizon open mike session on Sunday evening. We welcomed Lorraine who had come to OOTO with her two children and two friends to run creative activities for all ages using poetry, story-telling, music and puppets. She set up a gazebo as a workshop space and ran a session on Saturday afternoon. The circus area was nearby.

The GAMA Gazebo

We had to be careful that none of the children accidentally or deliberately strayed into the marked off area next to the marquee where equipment and fuel for the fire show was stored. We would have preferred a more secure fence. We were not far from the centre of the festival but the circus area and cabaret tent were between GAMA and the peace circle. In future we would like to be on on of the radial routes directly to the centre. Distances which seem trivial to most people are difficult and even painful for people with physical disabilities. We were very pleased to be close to the warm showers, cafe, live music and sauna provided by Lost Horizon. We were also close to the cabaret and negotiated a short cut through their bar one evening. Jerry, who has worked for GAMA at other festivals, provided an audio description of an escapology act in the cabaret tent for a guest temporarily unable to see.

Trailer Trashed Wagon - Easily Accessible Counter

On Monday some people had to leave early but many stayed to enjoy the sunshine and share food and talk. Lost Horizon asked us for advice about making their showers more accessible. We will send them some ideas for future events.

Steve's Cantina - Good Accessibility

We provided guidance to stalls at short notice. Access varies but there were some good examples, including seats in Steve’s Cantina  and the low counter on the Trailer Trashed wagon.

Recommendations

Table & Chairs for GAMA campers

We need a system for reserving essential vehicle spaces so that we have enough frontage on to fire lanes for all to be parked side by side. We also need enough internal space for a communal green for safe play and for people to meet, and clear paths for all to access the marquee and toilet[s]. OOTO showed how a small festivals can provide accessible camping and we would like more to make the effort. We are grateful for the support of the organisers and site crew.

Here’s to OOTO 2010!