I was delighted to be invited to the Wychwood Festival from Friday 31 May to Sunday 2 June 2024 but with a sense of trepidation about camping alone with three children. We could only stay for the first half of the festival but had a taste of what was on offer and hope to visit again, for longer next time. Our main takeaway was the variety of activities for younger children, and the family friendliness of all the offerings and performers.

There is endless entertainment for little people at Wychwood and everyone there, young and old, exuded happiness. There was something for everyone, yet it didn’t feel busy or overwhelming. The children’s activities were close together in the ‘Village Green’ a tranquil area away from the main stage. Board games, bookshops, clay modelling, basket weaving, circus skills and storytelling were all available with no additional cost or queuing.

The MainStage hosted some big-name performers including Stereo MCs, Ocean Colour Scene and Texas. On Friday my daughters and I enjoyed brilliant performances by The Hoosiers, The Feeling, Corinne Bailey Rae and Sister Sledge. I was struck by how all performers engaged with an audience of families. We had the privilege of speaking to the performers backstage after their sets about their experience of performing for families. You can see these reviews below.

Smaller stages also hosted live music and comedy, silent discos, yoga, dance lessons, ukelele lessons and Barrioke (google this!). There was plenty to choose from to suit all tastes. Several pop-up stalls sold unique ethical brands, vintage clothing and crafts. There were a few fairground rides for those seeking a thrill, and massages in the Healing Gardens if you needed help to relax.

Our ‘morning after’ started with the infectious energy of Mr Motivator drawing families from all over the site to the main stage where music blasted the audience lost their inhibitions for an early morning dance routine. It was uplifting to be amongst so many people of all ages smiling and shaking off any tiredness after a night of camping.

We highly recommend Wychwood to families with children of all ages as a wonderful introduction to Festivals. Big shout-out to the organisers and volunteers who were unwaveringly helpful and kind to a mother and three daughters.

Practical low-down

Kids under 10 go free and are given a special wristband with space for a phone number when they arrive.

You can take camping chairs to the festival site. There is a designated area for chairs at the back near the MainStage, so they don’t obscure the view of the stage or obstruct anyone wishing to get up and dance. We opted to take a picnic rug to be closer to the stage.

A camping trolley is a must. You can pay to pitch in a site next to your car if you need to, but to be close to the festival entrance, take a camping trolley and join everyone else lugging your tent up the rolling hills of Cheltenham racecourse. Admittedly, we pitched at the first spot we came to so we didn’t have too far to take our much-loved Bell Tent Boutique tent. Some people took trolleys to the festival site to carry bits and pieces (or tired children).

Toilets are readily available but the queues are long at the festival site during the busiest times of the day. There are lots of toilets in the camping area, which only had queues first thing in the morning after they had been cleaned!

Any food you wish for is available at Wychwood Festival, with very little queuing. Many places didn’t have children’s portions so you may want to encourage sharing if you have small children.

You are not allowed to bring food or drink into the site (just water bottles) but you can have your food and drink in the adjacent camping area so many people were popping back and forth.

The site is beautifully lit with festoon lights, so you don’t need a torch or night light, but you may want to take a sleep mask if you prefer to sleep in darkness. Tents were pitched quite close together in the areas closest to the car park. Noise from nearby tents can carry so earplugs might be sensible – but after our busy day we weren’t disturbed at all, and as we were further from the site we couldn’t hear the late-night comedy, or (obviously) the silent disco.

Mini Travellers meet The Hoosiers

Backstage at the Wychwood Festival, we had the pleasure of meeting The Hoosiers, straight off stage from an energetic set that kicked off the action on the Main Stage.  Clad in super cool denim sourced from a local designer in Brighton Amy Isle Freeman, who designed the cover for their fifth album, Confidence. The Hoosiers gave a masterful performance including their big hits Making a Monster and Goodbye Mr A.

Both parents to young children themselves, the brilliant Irwin Sparkes and Alan Sharland took time to chat about kids, music, festivals and what they are masters of; performance.

Speaking candidly Irwin admitted he couldn’t get his children to gigs since his 4-year-old thought it was too long and boring. However, Alan’s slightly older sons rightly think he is a hero.  Both spoke passionately about introducing children to music of all ages and genres. Irwin likes to share family playlists in the car, and we were amused by their attempt to introduce The Hoosier’s music to their children. Alan is about to enjoy the greatest accolade of his son playing ‘Worried About Ray’ with his school rock band, laughed about the possibility of Alan being his biggest critic at his forthcoming performance.

My daughters asked how they so successfully engaged young people with their music. Irwin and Alan just hoped people sang along and always intended to make music that crossed age boundaries. They are also embracing the new social media age of music enjoying making skits for Instagram and Tik-Tok and are delighted to have a large audience of 18-24 yr olds.

Irwin and Alan acknowledged that since having their own families children in their audience were more visible and think it’s fantastic that parents are bringing their kids to festivals and sharing the music they like. Irwin admired artists such as Springsteen with 3 or 4 generations enjoying his music. Ultimately Thoe Hoosiers want everyone to feel welcome and see young people enjoying their live shows.

With a non-stop week Irwin is off to perform in the Barbican with The Zombies and the great Paul Weller – now sold out – www.barbican.org.uk/whats-on/2024/event/the-zombies

Mini Travellers meet Corrine Bailey Rae

We were delighted to meet the very talented Corrinne Bailey Rae after her Friday night set and my daughters were overwhelmed to meet the artist behind such timeless songs as ‘Girl Get our Record on’. Corrine’s set beautifully illustrated the story and her thoughts and passion behind her latest album Black Rainbows.

With 4 & 6 yr old daughters and her husband in the band, Cinne described them as a travelling family. They have travelled the world together and experienced all the highs and lows, including potty training on a tour bus and taking a break to breastfeed mid-performance. Corinne spoke passionately about families being together and doing everything she could to spend time with her daughters.

My daughters asked Corinne to share some of her memories of performing for audiences of families. Corrinne recalled with fondness meeting children and babies at her performances, including some named Corrinne after her, and how for some families her music has been a family-life soundtrack with her music punctuating memories every step of the way. She spoke about her dedication to making music everyone feels comfortable with and is not edgy, so they want to share it with their children.

As we experienced that night, Corrine delights in engaging with her audience including younger fans. She makes a point of looking around the crowd seeking those who look like they need a smile and a wave and loves to see whether children recognise her songs.

Beautifully, Corinne Bailey Rae makes sure everyone is seen and loves to meet fans wherever possible. We were delighted to meet her and hear her stories of motherhood, music and being part of a travelling family.

Mini Travellers meet Mr Motivator

What better start to a sunny Saturday than waking up in a Bell Tent, having breakfast and dancing with Mr Motivator. Following his set, and a walk around the crowd meeting his new and old fans, Mr Motivator took a few minutes of his day at Wychwood Festival to answer our questions and share his love of life and all things movement.

My daughters asked Mr Motivator how he reached out to families and inspired children at festivals. He humbly described his approach as simple; keep it fun and everyone will enjoy themselves, highlighting that laughter is infectious and the more you smile, the more people smile back. Mr Motivator delights in the number of years he has been performing sharing that people who are now parents in their 40s grew up watching him on television before they went to school in the morning. He is excited to perform for those parents and their children at Festivals such as Wychwood.

After such a long career performing we were keen to hear Mr Motivator’s reflections and favourite memories. He recalled that in 1993 he recorded ‘Time-Out with Mr Motivator’ for GMTV in locations worldwide. He reflected on meeting children of every age from Singapore to Mexico, the similarities in how children play and learn and the importance of protecting creative play in the developed world.

Mr Motivator is passionate about sharing his love of movement and intends to continue to inspire all generations through his performances for many years. He believes that movement is medicine; a daily habit to start young and never stop. My daughters agreed that adults who think dancing is for after dark are wrong and that everyone should get up in the morning and start dancing.

Review by Lucy Fink, and her three daughters (ages 8, 12, 14)