Media Information

Swanage Folk Festival fills the Dorset seaside town with music and dance for a weekend each September. Much of the festival is free to attend, including dance displays throughout the town, daytime music on the Main Stage, fringe music and sessions, and children’s entertainment.

The festival is run entirely by unpaid volunteers as a not-for-profit Community Interest Company. Any surplus is returned to local good causes; following the 2025 festival, £10,000 was donated locally.

Swanage Folk Festival at a glance:

Next Date: 11th - 13th of September 2026
Location: Swanage, centred on Sandpit Field (///underway.silent.originate)
Founded: 1992
Volunteer-run, not for profit, donated £10,000 to local charities from 2025’s festival
50+ bands
65 dance sides, with more than 650 dancers
Contact: Jon Baker – info@swanagefolkfestival.com
Press passes available for accredited media. Contact info@swanagefolkfestival.com

Photos

All of the images on this page are available for editorial coverage of Swanage Folk Festival. Please credit the photographer for any photos used.

For further information about the Swanage Folk festival contact info@SwanageFolkFestival.com or call Jon Baker, Festival Chair, on 07803 082 724

For background information on the festival scroll past the images.

Background Information.

Swanage Folk Festival started in 1992. This family friendly festival is run entirely by local unpaid volunteers, attracts 3,500 – 5,000 visitors and any “profits” are donated to local charities.

The festival is known for filling the town with music, dance and smiles.

• 65-70 colourful dance groups spend Saturday and Sunday dancing  in 10 different locations along the sea front and in the town. There’s a procession on Saturday afternoon and on Sunday afternoon they dance in the sea to finish their day off.
• The main concert marquee and craft fair overlook the seafront. 16 bands play in 5 concerts in the main marquee. The afternoon concerts are free.
• Free children’s entertainment takes place on the main field throughout the day.
• There’s a workshop programme where you can learn / improve your music and dance skills, subjects are varied as Bollywood, French folk styles, Alexander technique and traditional English dance.
• The fringe fills the local pubs with 30+ music sessions, singing sessions and bands – all free to join in.
• In 2025 it raised £10,000 for local charities. It supports local charities like Swanage Scouts, Julia’s House, and AllSort’d.

Who arranges the Festival?

The Festival is managed and run by unpaid volunteers, if we make a surplus it goes to local good causes.

The ten person committee consists of Jon Baker (Chair),  Matt Piper (Treasurer), Virginia Payne, Em Fidler, Christine Moore, Linda Corlett, Jacquie Hall, Sandi Williams, Steve Williams and Angie Phillips.

We actively recruit volunteers, mainly for the weekend but need them at other times in the year too.

Festival history.

In 1992 the first Swanage Folk Festival was just a day of dance, it’s come a long way since then. Back then the the evening concerts were mainly to thank and entertain the dancers.

We are now big enough to invite some very big names in UK and European Folk music. It’s grown into a full and varied programme weekend of music, dance and crafts, costing over £50,000 to put on.

Supporting Local Charities

The Festival is self-funded and run solely by volunteers. If we manage to create a small surplus we donate it to local good causes, some recent examples are below.