The date of this year's kite festival in Morecambe has been announced as organisers launched a crowdfunding bid.
Morecambe Kite Festival will take place on Sunday July 20, it was announced on Friday.
The one-day event will see kites great and small soaring above Morecambe’s South Beach between 11am and 4pm.
This will mark the return of a summer kite festival to Morecambe after a one-year break.
The regular 'Catch the Wind' event run by More Music ran for 20 years until 2023. This new festival will be run by Morecambe Town Council, who revealed the plans during their annual budget meeting earlier this month.
Members of the public are now being encouraged to help get the festival off the ground by contributing to a crowdfunding campaign which offers the potential to secure a further £5,000 in match-funding from Lancashire County Council.
So far more than £25,000 has been pledged. The fundraising page is HERE.
The kite festival will round off a bumper weekend of entertainment in the Morecambe area to kick-start the school holidays, with the Morecambe Rides Again scooter ride-in along the Promenade (Saturday July 19) and Heysham Viking Festival also taking place across the weekend.
"Last year the public made it clear that one way or another they wanted to see kites back in the skies above Morecambe," said Councillor Lee Bradbury, chair of Morecambe’s Festivals, Sponsorships and Events Committee.
"The council wasn’t able to make that happen last year but are thrilled to be enabling it this year.
"We have set aside our biggest-ever budget for festivals and events in the coming year, with £63,000 available to support local festivals and events, £63,000 for council-produced events, and £25,000 earmarked for Baylight Festival.
"This is a huge vote of confidence in Morecambe’s festival and events scene and demonstrates our unwavering commitment to seeing Morecambe live up to its potential as a festival destination."
Morecambe Kite Festival will include a number of creative workshops, with a focus on delivering an accessible, sensory-rich experience for the blind and partially sighted.
Morecambe Town Council has said that their event will not be related to the previous 'Catch the Wind' festival as they are planning a different programme of activities - while the overall idea of kites flying in the sky will remain the same.
The 'Catch the Wind' festival, which celebrated its 20th birthday in 2023, traditionally pulled thousands to the Promenade, to fly kites, spectate and enjoy music and other activities.
More Music, the community music charity based in the West End, announced last year that due to the "arts funding climate" it could not go ahead in 2024.
Read more: Plans revealed to bring a kite festival back to Morecambe - Beyond Radio
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