Kind folk needed to store kit for Chippenham festival

Bob Berry has spent more than a year looking for somewhere to store the equipment after it was kept at the Bridge Centre for more than 30 years.

But following the demolition of the building earlier this year Mr Berry has been forced to leave the kit at various temporary locations around Chippenham.

He is now looking for a permanent storage area.

“We’re just trying to find anywhere at a reasonable cost,” said the 62-year-old.

“Most places we have looked at are £25 a week for a 20ft container, which is a huge amount of money and could be the difference between hiring a band or not.

“For years we rented a large garage in the Bridge Centre and Wiltshire Council have not been able to find us any other alternative. We’ve been trying for a year and a half.

“Ultimately, the festival works on a very small margin, we don’t have thousands of pounds in the bank.”

The equipment includes 600 chairs, 98 8ft x 2ft boards, four tents, staging, electrical equipment and signage as well as other items.

“We have temporary storage in a loft space at someone’s house and about 600 chairs at a barn in Potterne, but the farmer needs to move his cows back in and we can’t keep everything in the loft forever,” said Mr Berry.

“It needs to go somewhere but it needs to be somewhere accessible.”

Next year will be the 46th Chippenham Folk Festival, an event which attracts thousands of people to the town every year.

This year’s four-day event included more than 200 acts playing at venues across the town, including The Pitmen Poets, Isla St Clair and Bob Fox among other well-known stars.

Mr Berry didn’t wish to speculate on whether the festival would be affected if a permanent location wasn’t found for the equipment.

“I don’t want to be a doom-monger because it’s not the case,” he said.

“I’m happy to talk money but it’s got to be sensible and there’s always a benefit for the people who we get that they would be seen as someone supporting the festival.”