Press release -
Scotland’s events portfolio continues to thrive with funding awarded to 12 events
- Twelve events from across 10 local authorities are to benefit from nearly £100,000 of funding from EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate
- Among them are five events receiving funding for the first time, including Cream o’ the Croft in Comrie Croft, Perthshire, and The Eliminator Mountain Bike Festival in Newburgh, Fife
- The National Programme Fund plays an integral role in developing domestic tourism across Scotland by help grow the country’s diverse events portfolio
Nearly £100,000 of funding has been awarded to 12 events and festivals across Scotland from the latest round of EventScotland’s National Programme Fund.
Among them are Cream o’ the Croft and The Eliminator Mountain Bike Festival, two of five events and festivals receiving funding for the first time from EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.
Taking place in June and August respectively, and organised by Muckmedden Ltd, the two family-friendly mountain bike events offer more than just your average mountain bike festival. With something for everyone, including mountain bike racing, live music, gourmet food and drink, and wild camping, the two events are the perfect book ends to the summer.
Both events have been awarded £5,000 each to enhance the PR and marketing support and activity around the event, including video production and online advertising.
Aaron Gray, Events Director at Muckmedden Ltd, said: “We would like to sincerely thank EventScotland for their invaluable support with Cream o’ the Croft and The Eliminator. The generous funding we have been awarded will allow us to promote both of our family-friendly festivals to all of the UK. The investment also gives us the freedom to significantly improve the quality of infrastructure and entertainment at both venues as we seek to attract not only mountain bikers, but young families and music festival-goers to Highland Perthshire and Fife.”
Also receiving funding is Bonfest, the three-day rock music festival that celebrates the life and music of the AC/DC legend Bon Scott. Held in his home town of Kirriemuir, and organised by Scottish charity DD8 Music, this is the third year the festival has received funding from EventScotland. Over that time the funding has helped the festival expand its offer and increase its attendance, with a record attendance of 6,000 from 27 countries turning out across the three days for last year’s festival. This year the festival has been awarded £9,332 towards increasing the capacity and quality of the campsite as well as for staging in Bellies Brae car park, next to the Bon Scott Statue, that will showcase young bands as part of Scotland’s Year of Young People 2018.
Graham Galloway, DD8 Music Chairperson, said: "DD8 Music are delighted that Bonfest is being supported for the third year by the National Programme Fund. The fund has enabled the festival to grow significantly over the past few years, and we would have found this very difficult to achieve without the help and support of EventScotland. As a youth music charity, we are very excited to be one of the many amazing Year of Young People events happening all over Scotland, which are celebrating the talent and ambition of our upcoming generation."
The National Programme Fund supports the strategic development of events which occur outside of Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the aim of driving tourism, delivering economic impact for local communities and generating media profile for Scotland. Since 2008, EventScotland has invested more than £3.9m into 363 events across the country. Building on existing event activities, extending marketing reach and enhancing the on-site food and drink offer are just some of the ways funding is put to use by events and festivals.
Paul Bush OBE, VisitScotland’s Director of Events, said: “We are delighted to be funding these 12 amazing events and festivals from the latest round of EventScotland’s National Programme Fund. Taking place across 10 local authorities between May and October, these events and festivals will bring real impact by attracting visitors and driving economic impact in their local area.
“The National Programme Fund plays a vital role in maintaining Scotland’s reputation as the perfect stage for events and it is through events like these that we can ensure we continue to have a dynamic events portfolio that benefits everyone.”
The full list of events receiving support from Round 37 of EventScotland’s National Programme Fund are:
| Event | Date | Funding | Local Authority | Website |
| Bonfest | 4 – 6 May | £9,332 | Angus Council | www.bonfest.com/ |
| Highlands and Islands Music and Dance Festival | 4 – 6 May | £6,680 | Argyll and Bute Council | www.obanfestival.org/ |
| Etape Caledonia | 19- 20 May | £8,500 | Perth and Kinross Council | etapecaledonia.co.uk/ |
| Oban Live | 8 – 9 June | £11,250 | Argyll and Bute Council | obanlive.com/ |
| BEMBA British Enduro Mountain Bike Championships | 9 – 10 June | £10,000 | Scottish Borders | tweedlove.com/2018-event-info/british-enduro-champs |
| St Kilda Challenge & Festival | 14 – 16 June | £5,750 | Comhairle nan Eilean Siar | www.calmac.co.uk/stkilda/challenge |
| Cream O’ the Croft | 15 – 17 June | £5,000 | Perth and Kinross Council | www.creamothecroft.co.uk/ |
| North Atlantic Fiddle Convention | 11 – 15 July | £10,500 | Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council | www.abdn.ac.uk/nafco/ |
| Run the Blades | 20 – 21 July | £4,000 | East Renfrewshire Council | www.breakingstrain.co.uk/run-the-blades/ |
| Dundee Summer Streets Festival | 21 – 22 July | £7,400 | Dundee City Council | www.dundee.com/event/dundee-summer-streets-festival |
| Eliminator Mountain Bike Festival | 31 August – 2 September | £5,000 | Fife Council | www.muckmedden.co.uk/our-events/the-eliminator/ |
| Findhorn Bay Festival | 26 September – 1 October | £15,760 | Moray Council | findhornbayfestival.com/ |
| TOTAL FUNDING AWARDED | £99,172 |
ENDS
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- eventscotland
Regions
- Scotland
Notes to Editors
- Follow us on twitter: @visitscotnews
- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
- This will be supported by five overarching strategies: Marketing, Events, Quality and Sustainability, Inclusive Tourism, International Engagement.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP
- For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh)
- For holiday information on Scotland go to www.visitscotland.com
- For information about business tourism in Scotland go to www.conventionscotland.com
2018 Year of Young People
- The Year of Young People 2018 will be the next of the Scottish Government’s series of themed years, following the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology 2017.
- The Year of Young People (YoYP 2018) will inspire Scotland through its young people aged 8 to 26, celebrating their achievements, valuing their contributions to communities and creating new opportunities for them to shine locally, nationally and globally
- Central to YoYP 2018 will be a celebratory events programme that puts young people at the heart of its development and delivery, creating new and valuable experiences for young Scots and the wider public, with links to the inaugural 2018 European Championships.
- Over 200 young people throughout Scotland are currently being recruited to become YoYP 2018 Ambassadors. Ambassadors will ensure that people and organisations in their communities know about what’s happening and will lead on projects and activities to create events and opportunities to celebrate young people.
- The Year of Young People will have six themes which were developed in co-production with young people themselves:
- oParticipation – looking at how young people can influence public services and decisions which affect their lives
- oEducation – creating a stronger role for young people in shaping their learning
- oHealth and Wellbeing – supporting young people to lead healthier, active lives and have opportunities to learn about and improve their mental health and resilience
- oEquality and Discrimination – broadcasting the value of young Scots, challenging negative perceptions of young people, and supporting young people to take leading roles in challenging discrimination in all its forms.
- oEnterprise and regeneration – celebrating young people’s role in innovation, entrepreneurship and the Scottish economy as well as making Scotland a greener and more pleasant place to live
- oCulture – celebrating young people’s talent and contribution to Scottish culture and arts.
- Further information on what’s happening and how people can get involved can be found on the new website www.yoyp2018.scot or @YOYP2018 on Twitter.
