A Four Day Celebration of Our Local Environment
Thursday 15th to Sunday 18th June
Various indoor and outdoor venues across Kingsbridge
We are excited to bring a four day festival of nature to Kingsbridge!
Join us in June to celebrate our local environment, connect to nature and get inspired to take action.
Alongside a wide range of local organisations, practitioners, experts and nature lovers, we are co-creating a rich, varied and inspiring programme of events and activities. The festival will include nature walks, film screenings, feasts, talks and workshops, craft activities, wildlife surveys, outdoor wellbeing, nature connection, learning events and much more - all taking place in Kingsbridge and our wider local environment.
We are busy finalising the programme and will update all events and activities here on this page when we are able to share the festival line-up. See below for details of each day. Most events will be free and most you can just turn up. For some booking may be required where numbers are limited.
We are grateful to Kingsbridge Town Council and Devon County Councillor Julian Brazil who have funded this event. We would also like to extend our thanks to Harbour House Centre for Arts and Yoga for their support and generosity.
Kingsbridge Nature Festival takes place during Great Big Green Week 2023 - the UK's biggest ever celebration of community action to tackle climate change and protect nature. Find out more about GBGW here.
Festival Programme
Our programme is ever evolving!
We will add events and activities to each day as and when they are finalised.
Is there an event/activity your organisation or project would like to add to the programme? Get in touch at kbclimateaction@gmail.com and lets chat!
Most of the events throughout the festival are free to attend. Some specific workshops organised by our partner groups and businesses may require booking in advance and some may require payment.
We welcome donations for any of the events, this will support the cost of running the festival.
Pre-Festival Workshops at Harbour House Gallery
Saturday 10th June - 11am to 4pm.
Please come and be part of our "Seahorse Studio" at Harbour House, as part of the run-up to Kingsbridge Nature Festival. We will be running a free drop-in creative workshop to create wonderful works of art to celebrate the amazing wildlife we have around Kingsbridge.
We'll be sewing bunting, printing beautiful images of animals and plants on fabric, cards and even a t-shrt if you want to bring one along!
We will also be opening in the days leading up to the festival - Monday 12th and Tuesday 13th from 2.30 to 4.30pm.
EVERYONE WELCOME
Thursday 15th June
All about Earth and our precious soil.
Join us for our opening ceremony and help kick off the festival! Come and feast from our snack map of locally produced food and watch the brilliant film "Kiss the Ground".
Take a pledge for nature and find out what we can do to help local soil thrive.
Venue: Harbour House Gallery
Thursday event details:
Thursday 7-8pm
Harbour House Gallery
All Ages
Free to attend
Opening ceremony and local food celebration. Join us to officially open the festival and celebrate by feasting from our "snack map" of nibbles made using food from local producers and cooked up by some fabulous local chefs. Take the "Kingsbridge Nature Pledge" and add your nature encounters to our map.
Thursday 8-10pm
Harbour House Gallery
For ages 11+
Free to attend
Film Screening: Kiss the Ground. Followed by a community conversation about local action for soil health.
Narrated and featuring Woody Harrelson, Kiss the Ground is an inspiring and groundbreaking film that reveals the first viable solution to our climate crisis.
Kiss the Ground reveals that, by regenerating the world’s soils, we can completely and rapidly stabilize Earth’s climate, restore lost ecosystems and create abundant food supplies. Using compelling graphics and visuals, along with striking NASA and NOAA footage, the film artfully illustrates how, by drawing down atmospheric carbon, soil is the missing piece of the climate puzzle.
This event is free but booking via eventbrite is essential as the venue has limited capacity.
Friday 16th June
All about nature connection & wellbeing.
Dive into a day full of wellbeing, creativity and nature connection. Yoga, mindfulness, art and foraging. Reflect on your own relationship with our environment and write a letter to the earth. Hear from an incredible artist working with birdsong.
Venue: Various venues across Kingsbridge
Friday event details:
Friday 10-11.15am
Recreation Ground
Age 14+
Free to attend
Outdoor Yoga in the Park with Emily Price. Join Emily for a wild yoga session outdoors. Open to all abilities, Emily will guide a gentle and rejuvenating practice helping us to feel grounded and connected to the nature that surrounds us. Bring you own mat with you. We will hopefully be practicing in the morning sun - but will post on our social media if we need to postpone. This class is free to attend but donations are welcome.
Friday 10am to 12.30pm
Bantham Beach
All Ages
£60
BOOKING ESSENTIAL
Bantham Beach Painting Workshop. Make your own coastal painting at beautiful Bantham beach, guided by local seascapes artist Ellie Verrecchia. The golden sand and the sound of the waves will inspire a painting on wood panel for you to take home.
Using simple techniques we 'll create our painting in quick-drying acrylic, based on our obeservations of the horizon, iconic land forms (including Burgh island) and sea from our shoreline vantage point.
No previous art experience is necessary. Artist Ellie Verrechia has plenty of simple hacks to help you see the South Devon coast in new ways! All materials and aprons are provided. Dress for the weather - old comfy clothes ideal, and bring waterproofs, sun protection, something to sit on, and a drink. There is usually a cafe on site, and toilets nearby. Please note - parking is payable on arrival (card only).
Booking essential through Ellie's Eventbrite link.
Any Time
Kingsbridge
All Ages
Free to attend
Tranquility Walk. We invite you to take yourself off for a "Tranquility Walk" around Kingsbridge by following a guide produced by Kingsbridge in Bloom. The guide, which can be collected from the Kingsbridge Information Centre any time, lists the various quiet green spaces around town. Slow down, take in the sights and sounds of nature around you and enjoy discovering some hidden gems around Kingsbridge.
Friday 11.30 to 1.30pm
Recreation Ground
Age 18+
Free to attend
BOOKING ESSENTIAL
Forest School Session for adults with a learning disability. Join Gabrielle Sumner from Team Explore for a Forest School session in the Recreation Ground. Enjoy some crafting with natural materials, explore using some hand tools and enjoy time outside in nature. Bring a packed lunch and enjoy a picnic with friends. This session is organised in partnership with Activities 115 and must be booked in advance. For any more information or to book a place please contact info@activities115.co.uk.
Friday 1pm to 3pm
Deer Wood
Age 10+
Free to attend
BOOKING ESSENTIAL
A Personal Tour of Off-Grid Life at Deer Wood.
Lisa & Marc, Co-founders of The Deer Wood Trust C.I.C., are opening the gates of their home Deer Wood. They will be giving a personal guided tour of their off-grid life, showing how they live and work, all in harmony with this beautiful native woodland.
It is a fantastic opportunity to learn about how these 'Woodland Permaculturalists' let nature lead in all aspects of how they co-exist with it in a mutually beneficial way, where the guiding principles are to nurture nature and bring well-being to both people and the planet.
Join Lisa & Marc on a walk and talk around the wood, the native tree nursery, their off-grid home, the permaculture garden, and learning and well-being areas for an inspiring insight into how we can all be in greater alignment with the Earth.
This is a FREE event, however, donations are gratefully received and go towards our conservation work and social outreach programmes.
Spaces for 10 cars and up to 20 people, children over 10yrs old must be accompanied by an adult. No dogs, please.
Friday 4-6pm
Harbour House Gallery
All Ages
Free to attend
Join us in the "Seahorse Studio" in Harbour House Gallery for an open afternoon of crafting, making and connecting with our local environment. Write a "Letter to Tomorrow" and reflect on your hopes for the future of our local wildlife and green spaces. Help us create a map of local nature encounters. Take part in screen printing of bunting and t-shirts and co-create a giant seahorse lantern for Fair Week. An open space to explore, create or just soak it all in.
Friday 7-8pm
Harbour House Gallery
All Ages
Free to attend
Bronwen Buckeridge in conversation with Amy Dickson. Artist Bronwen Buckeridge will discuss her wildlife sound recording practice and how it relates to her work as an artist. She will play some tracks from her archive of field recordings and describe how this relates to her forthcoming performance (29 July) and exhibition at Harbour House this summer, Four on the Floor | Six in the Air in which the birds in the skies over Kingsbridge will shape the performance in the gallery. Amy Dickson is Director of Harbour House and CEO of Spanda Trust.
Friday 8-9pm
Harbour House Gallery
All Ages
Free to attend
Letters to Tomorrow is a project by the Climate Coalition, as part of Great Big Green Week, with a simple premise: Write a letter to a loved one in the future to call for political action on climate and nature now. Share your hopes, fears, optimism and reflections on what life could be like for future generations. You can view some letters already submitted here. This evening will be an opportunity to write your letter, display it and if you wish, to share it. At the end of the festival, the letters will be gathered up and sent to the Prime Minister, along with all the others from Great Big Green Week participants across the UK.
Saturday 17th June
All about our local wildlife.
Our big biodiversity day in the park! Everyone included, everyone welcome. Join in with nature walks, wildlife surveys and eco crafts in the park. Find out what local groups and projects have been working on to support nature locally. Stay up late and join our bat walk. Become a citizen scientist and help us record as many species as possible in our local area. Get inspired to create habitat for wildlife in your garden. Find out about the overlooked "hero plants" in our urban areas and why they are so important.
We will be recording our sightings on the iNaturalist app and recommend you download it before the event if you would like to record what you find on the day.
Venue: Kingsbridge Recreation Ground 10am to 5pm
This day is supported by:
Saturday event details:
All Day
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Devon Wildlife Trust - Wilder Communities Team. We are delighted to have Hetty and Katie from DWT with us on Saturday.
The Wilder Communities programme is all about helping people from neighbourhoods, towns and villages across Devon make where they live greener, wilder and richer in nature.
If you want to start a local project that helps nature and involves others in your community, we can help you get your ideas off the ground. Find out about the DWT Wildlife Gardening Award and how you can take action for nature in your own garden.
The Wilder Communities team are bringing lots of wildlife survey kit with them - come and get involved with spotting and recording the nature that surrounds us in the recreation ground.
All Day
Recreation Ground
All Ages
Free to attend
Seadream Education. The brilliant Dr Juliette Jackson, a well renowned local Marine Biologist and one of the directors of Seadream Education, will be with us in the ocean discovery tent sharing her knowledge of our amazing estuary environment! Come and find out what lives in the water, in the mudflats and in the seagrass beds. Take part in wildlife surveys and learn about citizen science
All Day
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Local Wildlife Champions. Come and meet some local wildlife champions, including Vivienne Mugford who is working hard to try and cover Kingsbridge in hedgehog highways and green corridors. Add your garden to the hedgehog map, pledge to create a hedgehog hole in your garden and pick up a hedgehog doorway! Come and learn about some of the fascinating species that visit our recreation ground. Learn and share ideas about remote monitoring of wildlife In your garden. ALSO meet the allotment club from Kingsbridge Community College and find out how they have been making space for nature on the school site. Follow the Kingsbridge tree trail and take our bee quiz to be in with a chance of winning a prize.
10.30am to 12pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Family Forest School with Team Explore. Join Gabrielle Sumner from Team Explore for a Forest School session for all in the Recreation Ground. Enjoy some crafting with natural materials, explore using some hand tools and enjoy time outside in nature. This session is free to attend. It is run on a drop-in, first-come first-served basis.
10.30 to 11.30am
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Nature Walk for all. Explore the wild spaces and green lanes around the recreation ground. Learn what's growing and living in the local environment with the help of one of our ecologist guides. Take some of our ID guides with you and get to know the names of our local wildlife and if you want to, record what you see to help us gather data about our local environment. Wear sturdy footwear!
11am to 3pm
Recreation Ground
All Ages
Free to attend
Nature Crafts in the park Join Laura from Kingsbridge Crafters for some nature based crafts in the craft tent, open to all with activities suitable for all different ages. Exact crafts to be decided, but expect lots of tactile natural materials and crafting with recycled bits and bobs!
11.30am to 12pm
Recreation Ground
All Ages
Free to attend
Wildlife Gardeners Question Time! Gather under the copper beech and ask fellow local gardeners how they have created food and habitat for wildlife in their gardens to encourage nature to thrive. What are the best things to plant to attract pollinators? How can we increase the fertility of our garden soil? How can we future proof our gardens with planting for hotter weather? Find out about what Kingsbridge in Bloom are doing for wildlife in the recreation ground and around Kingsbridge. Learn about the Wildlife Gardening Award from Devon Wildlife Trust.
12pm to 3pm
Quayside
All Ages
Free to attend
Harbour House Young Curators present Crab & Bee: Tidal Tales Workshop. Join Harbour House's Young Curators (a group of creative KCC sixth formers) and artists Crab & Bee to explore how we feel when we engage with local nature, using clay paint and ceramic object-making..
Open to all (under 16s to be accompanied by an adult).
Free of charge
From 12-3 on the quayside.
12 - 1pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Pollinator Picnic! Enjoy a picnic lunch in the park and take some time out to notice the insects that are also feasting on nectar rich flowers all around us. Use some of the ID guides we have available to learn about the species of pollinators you spot and if you can, record your data and share your findings with us on our sightings blackboard!
1 to 1.30pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Pollinator Monitoring Survey. Learn how to do a simple survey to help provide vital information about numbers of pollinating insects. Spend ten minutes counting pollinators to contribute to a Flower-Insect Timed Count (FIT Count) as part of the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme (UK PoMS) It's easy to do any time between April and September - you just need 10 minutes and a 50cmx50cm squared patch of a particular flower. It will be helpful to download to the FIT Count app first.
1.30 to 2pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Jellyfish with Juliette Jackson! Join Juliette from Seadream Education to find about the different species of Jellyfish we can spot in our local waters and even in our estuary. Learn about the South West England Jellyfish Survey which Seadream Education coordinate, and learn how to take part to contribute vital data about jellyfish populations locally.
2 to 2.30pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Bug spotting. Using bug pots, sweep nets and trays have a closer look at some of the tiny members of our ecosystem. Using ID guides and the knowledge of our experts, learn the names of what is discovered. Record you sightings on our blackboard. Not just for kids! Suitable for all ages - who isn't captivated by the miniature world hidden in the undergrowth?
3 to 4.30pm and 5 to 6.30pm
Meet at the Recreation Ground
Age 8+
SPACES LIMITED - BOOKING ESSENTIAL
Wild Parkour! Join the brilliant Kyle from Parkour Experiences for a wild parkour session in and around the park. Parkour Experiences are the leading provider of Parkour and Free Running in the South West and home to coach of the year 2013/2015 finalist Kyle Perkins. Bringing the art of parkour to young people in a safe and controlled manner by enforcing the philosophy of parkour - respect of each other and our surroundings.
Booking is essential for this session as spaces are very limited and there is a cost of £3. Click the button to book via Eventbrite.
There are two sessions now running in the afternoon - 3 to 4.30pm and 5 to 6.30pm. Please select the correct ticket for the session you would like to book.
2.30 to 3.30pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Earthwalk with Mark Jefferys. Join us for a light refreshing touch of the natural world! Mark Jefferys, ecologist and earth educator (as well as Share Shed Manager extraordinaire!) will lead this fun family friendly nature walk - with a difference! Experience what it is like to fly through the treetops! Take part and record a special spring concert! Find your very own "scent catcher" - which will increase your sense of smell 10 times! And if you dare, join us for a journey into "The Underworld". All ages are welcome. Numbers are limited. Sorry no dogs.
3.30 to 4pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Exploring the Estuary with Dr Juliette. Juliette will share her knowledge of our amazing estuary ecosystem. Come and find out what lives in the water, in the mudflats and in the seagrass beds. Have a look at plankton under the microscope and find out why it is so important.
4 to 4.30pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Binoculars Skillshare and Bird Spotting. Join Mark Jefferys from the Share Shed to learn some tips and tricks for using binoculars and we will see what we can spot in the recreation ground. The Mobile Share Shed visits Kingsbridge every Friday afternoon between 1.30 and 3.30pm at the Market Square, and has a huge range of items to borrow at low cost, including binoculars and lots of outdoor kit! The Share Shed will be at the event and will be offering free memberships.
4.30 to 5.30pm
Newbridge
All ages
Free to attend
BOOKING ESSENTIAL
Singing Paddles Wildlife Spotting Canoe Trip for adults with a learning disability. Join Dave Halsall from Singing paddles for a guided canoe tour on the beautiful Kingsbridge estuary. Travelling at a leisurely pace and taking time to observe and talk about the abundant wildlife in the area. This session is organised in partnership with Activities 115 and must be booked in advance. Spaces are free for adults with a learning disability and one family member/carer/support worker. For any more information or to book a place please contact info@activities115.co.uk. Information about what to bring and where to meet on the day will be given on booking.
6 to 8pm
Newbridge
All ages
There is a small fee for this activity
Singing Paddles Wildlife Spotting Canoe Trip. Join Dave Halsall from Singing paddles for a guided canoe tour on the beautiful Kingsbridge estuary. Travelling at a leisurely pace and taking time to observe and talk about the abundant wildlife in the area.
This canoe trip is offered at a special reduced price for the festival. Booking in advance is essential via Eventbrite as spaces are limited to a maximum of 12 people. All ages are welcome. Children to be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
BOOKING ESSENTIAL
9.15 to 10.30pm
Recreation Ground
All ages
Free to attend
Bat Walk. Meet at the recreation ground pond at dusk for a magical evening bat walk. Along with bat experts and local enthusiasts armed with bat detectors and a passion for our nocturnal friends, we will walk around the estuary to some bat hotspots. We will learn about various species local to Kingsbridge, their importance to our ecosystem, what threatens their ability to thrive and what we can do to protect them.
Sunday 18th June
All about our estuary - the blue heart of Kingsbridge!
Join in with decorating a huge whale in the Market Square with recovered ocean plastics. Hear from sustainability experts about how we can take small actions that have a big impact for nature and our waterways. Join in with our closing ceremony.
Venue: Market Square and Harbour House Gallery
11am to 12pm
Market Square
All ages
Free to attend
Botany Walk. Meet at the Market Square then take a stroll with local botanist Fergus Mitchell to learn all about the brilliant "Hero Plants" that line the nooks and crannies of Kingsbridge! Did you know the RHS recently rebranded weeds to "hero" plants to try and shift our perception and highlight their benefits to nature? Come and find out why. Walk, talk and label some of these brilliant plants as we celebrate what is usually overlooked or ignored.
11am to 1pm
Market Square
All ages
Free to attend
Help Us Dress The Whale! The whale - affectionately known as "Whaley" - is a project by Till the Coast is Clear to highlight the extent of plastic pollution on our local shores. The whale is constructed from a huge steel frame, with recovered ocean plastic forming its "skin". The whale will travel around South Devon as an educational and community engagement resource, and is making it's debut at the Kingsbridge Nature Festival. Help us dress the whale and launch this brilliant project.
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1pm to 1.45pm
Market Square
All ages
Free to attend
Wild Stories at the Whale. Gather round the whale and listen to some watery folk tales from our local area with Storyteller Henry Everett.
"Story is a medicine that connects us. I tell traditional tales inspired by our connection to the land, of spirits of place and our human relationship with the magical landscape."
2pm to 2.30pm
Harbour House Gallery
All ages
Free to attend
Local Action Showcase. Here is your answer to the big question "But What Can I Do?"
Come and find out about local projects and organisations working hard to take action for climate and nature locally, and learn how you can join in and take part.
Hear from Louise Wainwright of Bigbury Net Zero and Sustainable South Hams, who has recently set up the South Devon River Champions and Avon River Champions to take action for our local waterways. Help us launch the Kingsbridge and Salcombe Estuary Champions!
Find out what the first Transition Street in Kingsbridge have been getting up to and how they are taking action at street/neighbourhood level. Learn about projects you can join - such as Force for Nature - to take a hands on role in regenerating nature locally. Find out how you can help monitor wildlife and become involved with citizen science. Take the Kingsbridge Nature Pledge and sign up to our Pesticide Free Kingsbridge campaign. Plus lots more! There is so much happening, all are welcome, all are needed.
2.30 to 3.30pm
Harbour House Gallery
All ages
Free to attend
Talk with Anna Turns and Ed Temperley: "Creating ripples in our estuary - how to find joy through taking eco-action". Anna Turns is an environmental journalist, broadcaster and author of Go Toxic Free: Easy and sustainable ways to reduce chemical pollution. She writes for the Guardian, BBC and many other national publications, always with a focus on solutions, progress and the changemakers driving positive action. She’s passionate about ocean literacy for all ages and while helping her daughter run the Plastic Clever Salcombe campaign, she experienced the power of collective, grassroots action.
Join Anna in conversation with Ed Temperley, founder of Shire, a purpose-driven communications and design agency. Ed previously co-founded WAES, the plastic-free footwear company, created the Delicious Ella apps and was the founding editor at magicseaweed.com. They discuss the impact we can all make as citizens, how small changes really can make the biggest difference, and why joyful connection fuels community change.
3.30pm to 4pm
Market Square
All ages
Free to attend
Closing Ceremony. Help us to close our festival with a hopeful wish for a green and thriving future for our local environment. Details TBC.