The Plastic Free Festival, which debuted in Chesterfield last year, is to return for a second year on Sunday 12th June, 10am-4pm in New Square marketplace, Chesterfield.
The festival aims to be the one-stop place to help people to reduce their single-use plastics, with a special plastic-free marketplace with stallholders selling products that encourage a plastic-free lifestyle, craft workshops for upcycling and recycling, food and drink, and live music performances.
Special guests, Pride of Britain and Queen’s Honours award winners, Amy and Ella Meek of Kids Against Plastic will be speaking at the event. Since founding their youth-led organisation back in 2016, the girls have worked hard to inspire kids and adults alike to take action to reduce their use of single-use plastics – or become ‘Plastic Clever’ as they call it. Their Plastic Clever scheme has since been adopted by over 1300 schools, as well as by cafes, businesses, councils and festivals around the UK. The girls have also spoken internationally, including giving their own TEDx talk.
Attendees of the festival can visit the marketplace stalls to carry out plastic free and ethical shopping from businesses such as Chesterfield’s Steph’s Sustainable Stuff, Mrs Greens Eco Store and SallycinnamonCo who sells reusable eye make-up scrubbies.
Those who enjoy getting hands-on can join in craft recycling workshops, where participants can create festival masks, willow tension trays, and items from natural found materials.
Businesses on the marketplace will be joined by Transition Chesterfield, who run the Chesterfield Repair Cafe, and Angela Blair, a local TerraCycle collector who aims to help people re-purpose hard-to-recycle items.
Local food and drink businesses will be on hand to inject some flavour into the festival, with the Asian Association of Chesterfield selling Indian food, B’reydt Dough selling pizza and Sammys Mexican Mare selling burritos.
Live performances from entertainers are also on the agenda, with local favourites Mark Morgan-Hill, Jig for a Kiss, Chesterfield Garland Dancers and The Suffrajetz headlining the end of the festival.
No single-use plastics will be given out at the event, with residents and visitors encouraged to bring their own reusable bags, cups and containers.
The festival is kindly sponsored by local sustainable businesses, Superior Wellness, CCS Media, Small Stuff UK and The Corrugated Case Company.
Chair of The Plastic Free Festival Committee, Greg Hewitt, said “We’re delighted to bring back The Plastic Free Festival for a second year, with a much bigger marketplace and special guests Kids Against Plastic. It’s going to be a fantastic family fun day out with something for everyone.”
