Greensand Country Celebrates Successful Annual Festival

The annual Greensand Country Festival has seen local people and families experience exciting events and activities across the landscape, throughout May and into the Jubilee Celebrations at the start of June.

With events, including forest bathing, a 50km Greensand Country Ultra Trail, horse-riding, street parties, storytelling in the woods and much more, the festival has showcased a diverse and exciting programme, with something to suit every interest.

Hosted by the Greensand Country Landscape Partnership since 2018, the festival takes place across the landscape, from Leighton Buzzard to Gamlingay and aims to promote the wide range of events taking place across the local area. It encourages people to discover more of Greensand Country and its beautiful parks, woodlands, heritage sites, wildlife and attractions.

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee weekend gave us even more cause for celebration this year, enabling Greensand Country to extend the length of its 2022 festival and showcasing an even wider array of concerts, parties and shows.

As well as the Jubilee, the annual programme of events also supported Mental Health Awareness Week at the beginning of May. It featured a number of activities to help beat loneliness, from a women’s only walk at RSPB The Lodge, to a Sound Bath using Tibetan bowls, Yoga and Meditation at Shuttleworth, and a number of community walks.

The Greensand Country Landscape Partnership were also proud to support the new High Sheriff of Bedfordshire, Lady Jane Clifford, on a recent outdoor networking walk along the Greensand Ridge. The five-day ‘Walk the Walk; Start the Talk’ event took place within the Greensand Country Festival, with representatives from local and national charities and interest groups.

With such a diverse range of organisations attending, the walk enabled organisations working in different sectors to come together and discuss how they might be able to connect future projects to better promote green spaces.

Reflecting on the huge success of the 2022 Greensand Country Festival, Partnership Coordinator, Daniel Bowles says:

“This year’s festival has been very exciting, with lots of new events, as well as many of our annual favourites. It has been great to see a real community spirit and to showcase the significant value that the local landscape plays in our daily lives.

“We would like to say a big thank you to all of the partners, organisations and individuals who helped to make the festival happen and we look forward to doing it all again next May.”

About Greensand Country

Led by The Greensand Trust and Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity, the Greensand Country Landscape Partnership is formed of 24 organisations across our much-love landscape, from Leighton Buzzard to Gamlingay, working together to promote and protect it.

Greensand Country contains all of Bedfordshire’s remaining heathland, more than half of its woodland and, as a proportion of the area, is made up of more historic parkland than any other place in England.

Find out more about Greensand Country at www.greensandcountry.com. Stay up to date with all of the latest information by following @greensandsocial on Twitter, and @greensandcountry on Facebook and Instagram.