Home Farm Festival 2013 is a record breaker - that's official!

RECORD numbers of festival goers attended this year’s Home Farm Fest in aid of the Piers Simon Appeal at Chilthorne Domer – making it the biggest and most successful yet in the event’s eight-year history.

Exceptional weather saw twice as many people attend as last year, with almost three times as much money raised.  Around 1,400 people attended the sun-drenched festival in Chilthorne from June 7-9 which saw the all-day gig on June 8 sold out.

Organised by the Piers Simon Appeal, the festival raises money for the School in a Bag initiative, which provides rucksacks full of stationery, learning resources and eating utensils to poor, orphan and disaster affected children.

The grand total of £24,185.68 was raised over the course of the weekend, which far exceeds previous totals. This will be used by the charity to fund 1,612 Schoolbags, sending them to vulnerable children across the world.

Three separate music stages hosted a total of forty-six acts over the three day event, with other entertainment including a dedicated children’s area, rural crafts, market stalls, food and drink vendors and a cider tent.

As part of the activity around the festival, visitors were given an opportunity to pack one of the Schoolbags that will be sent out to the Philippines in early 2014 in a collaboration between School in a Bag and the Philippine Community Fund. Meanwhile, a group of pupils from SherborneGirlsSchool packed 50 SchoolBags at the festival, funded by an event they organised earlier in the year.

Charity liaison officer, Luke Simon, said: “Someone, somewhere was certainly looking out for us this year, as for the first time in three years we had fantastic weather, bringing festival goers out en masse.

‘’This in turn made the festival site come alive and it was great to see so many people enjoying all that Home Farm Fest had to offer.

“We’ve had lots of feedback about how warm and friendly the festival felt, and the biggest highlight was having so many people there to appreciate the amazing, talented musicians who all performed for free.

“Our aim is to make the festival grow each year and once again we are completely indebted to all of the people who helped make it the most successful Home Farm Fest yet.

‘’We are now planning and looking forward to Home Farm Fest 9, which will take place on 6-8 June 2014!”

The Home Farm Fest is the largest fundraising event of the year for the Piers Simon Appeal, which runs the School in a Bag initiative.

So far it has helped over 38,500 vulnerable children and the money raised over the Home Farm Fest weekend will help the charity continue its life-changing work around the world.

PHOTO: The ever-popular band, Storm, pictured below, headlined the Saturday night gig at Home Farm Fest.

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