Boomtown Fair has just unveiled their brand new flagship mission for the year, the all encompassing Respect Campaign. Evolving from the success of the Harm Reduction campaign that hit the headlines last year after bringing in drug safety testing organisation, The Loop and other extensive safety measures, the campaign covers all aspects of harm reduction and consist of three pillars: Respect Yourself, Respect Each Other, Respect Your City.
Acknowledging that respect is very much a two way street, Boomtown has invested a huge amount to further benefit their audiences’ experience. This is not just in terms of the jaw dropping production levels, the mind boggling amount of musicians from every genre under the sun and the theatrical elements of the festival, but also in the safety measures, infrastructure and facilities needed to help keep people safe from harm and to help ensure they have only the very best time whilst at the festival.
Respect Yourself:
The variety of harm reduction, education and awareness measures under the banner Respect Yourself are utilizing a similar method to last year’s drug awareness campaign (see ‘Boomtown on Drugs’ documentary here). Boomtown will again be providing; pre-event education and awareness, onsite drug safety testing provided by The Loop, roaming campsite welfare teams, 24 hour campsite hubs, fully equipped 24 hour onsite medical facilities, welfare and counselling services, along with an onsite police station and SIA security staff. There will also be general welfare messaging and provisions to ensure those in attendance can look after themselves, keep hydrated and are well rested..
Respect Each Other:
Celebrating and representing the differences and variety within society, along with encouraging people to think about how their actions affect those around them are central to the Respect Each Other element of the campaign. Policies implemented to encourage and support these values include; a zero tolerance policy to harassment of any kind, continued work with Safe Gigs For Women, as well as raising awareness of what constitutes harassment alongside the AIF Safer Spaces campaign. Increasing the awareness of accessibility support by working with Attitude is Everything and Deafzone to provide a host of dedicated facilities for people with accessible or medical requirements. There will also be dedicated LGBTQ+ spaces of celebration and inclusivity, and behind the scenes work into actively discouraging and raising awareness of cultural appropriation.
Respect Your City
Respect Your City focuses on reducing the impact the festival has on the environment, as well as instilling social awareness of the long lasting impact an individual can have. As with the other two parts of the Respect Campaign, Boomtown is hoping to encourage a two way partnership with their public by providing the resources to help those in attendance look after the land the festival takes place on, protect all the work that goes into creating it and the planet in general..
Such resources, pledges and facilities include; joining the AIF ‘Drastic on Plastic’; working with RAW Foundation to help raise awareness of the issued caused by plastics through reusable cups and increased water points; participating in A Greener Festival Award; cup deposit schemes; two bin recycling systems; working with Every Can Helps to recycle drinks cans, minimising cigarette litter with BUTTrFLY. This year the festival continues its partnership with Energy Revolution, to reduce carbon footprint of the festival and a lot of other schemes, systems and policies. See here for full sustainability policy.
‘One of the main things we’ve learnt over the past 10 chapters of Boomtown is just how far consideration and respect for one another can go. We really want to encourage a culture of respect by providing as many resources for our public as possible, in the hope this encourages everyone within the festival to pass this respect on, to themselves, to each other, to the festival, but also to the outside wider world in general .
‘We’re laying the foundations on what we want the festival to stand for and represent, and where we see our future direction to be focused fully upon.’ – Boomtown Organisers
There are still a limited number of tickets available here. For everything you need to know about Boomtown before you set foot in the city check out the Essential Guide