AS LEICESTER’S largest free festival returns, there are lots of ways to make your journey into the city centre this weekend to join in the fun.
The Riverside Festival takes place on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June with a huge programme of arts, music and performance, as well as lots of family-friendly activities, funfair rides, boat trips and heritage attractions.
Activities will be spread along the River Soar’s Mile Straight, as well as on Bede Park, the De Montfort University campus, Castle Street, The Newarke and at Castle Gardens. Across all festival locations, there will be a wide range of international street food, licensed bars, craft markets and stalls, and walkabout entertainers.
To allow the festival to take place, there will traffic restrictions on some roads from 7am on Saturday until 8pm on Sunday. Roads that will be closed to traffic include Western Boulevard, Mill Lane, The Newarke, Castle View, The Gateway, Newarke Close, Grasmere Street and Eastern Boulevard.
Walkers can enjoy a scenic route along the River Soar to arrive at the festival – and for anyone travelling by bike, there is free secure bike parking available. Bike parks will be located at Bede Park, Western Boulevard and the DMU campus – just look for the large Ride Leicester flags.
Anyone arriving by bike can also get free cycle hub membership for the whole year (usually £10), which means you can park your bike for free at the Town Hall bike park and St Margaret’s cycle hub.
Parking in the area is very limited, so drivers are advised to use city centre car parks. For anyone taking a taxi to the site, suggested drop-off points are Western Boulevard, The Gateway or Castle Street for access to Bede Park, the DMU campus and Castle Gardens respectively.
Organisers are committed to making Riverside Festival as accessible as possible for all visitors. A calm space will be available throughout the festival at the Kimberlin Library on the DMU campus. It will have ear defenders and fidget toys available, plus an accessible toilet. Other accessible toilets will be available across the festival, and there is a Changing Places space at Jewry Wall Museum.
Selected activities at Castle Gardens will include British Sign Language interpretation, and local charity Mosaic will be offering trips on Sunbeam II, their fully accessible narrowboat, with access via a ramp.
Leicester Wheels for All will also be at the festival, based on The Newarke, showcasing their range of adaptable bikes suitable for all ages and abilities, including wheelchair users. They will run a bike taxi service for anyone needing extra help getting around the festival sites.
Wayfinders and large print maps will be around the site, and friendly festival staff in yellow hi-vis jackets will be happy to help.
Cllr Vi Dempster, Leicester’s assistant city mayor for culture, said: “Riverside Festival is for everyone, and we look forward to welcoming thousands of people to the city centre to enjoy a huge range of music, art and activities.
“We’re very proud of this free festival and what it offers to visitors and families, showcasing Leicester at its best. It’s the result of a fantastic collaboration between lots of organisations and partners – and most of all, it’s fun!”
For more information on everything the festival has to offer, see https://visitleicester.info/riverside-festival/
ENDS