IWADE Rock – a charity music festival which has raised money for charities including SATEDA and Demelza House – is returning on July the 23rd, with this year’s event shining the focus on mental health in the wake of the Coronavirus Pandemic.
The event, which is hosted at Herons Park Playing Field in Iwade, aims to bring together a mixture of vendors and musical talent to create a fun family day out – focusing on the real benefits and wellbeing boost which getting back out to events in a post-lockdown world can bring.
Vendors already set to attend the event include Kent Cider Company, Grumpy Dads Pizza & Grill and Barritos – with more set to be announced in the coming weeks. The performance line up for 2022 includes Four Star Fire, David Shepherd, Echo 90, The Lost Search Party and The Choo’s – with Marleybone Jelly able to return to headline the 2022 event.
Mid Kent Mind, who provide mental health support in Maidstone, Ashford and Swale, are the main beneficiary of the charity concert in 2022. Community Engagement Officer Tom Fishenden said:
“IWADE Rock presents an incredibly exciting opportunity for our organization to connect with the local community. The event enables us to bring mental health to the forefront of people’s minds at a time when it has never been more important – whilst also allowing us to help with hosting an event which will make people feel good.
We are incredibly grateful to Keith, the vendors, performers, and sponsors of this event for everything they are making possible. It is a huge opportunity to raise awareness about mental health – all while having a good time!”
The event has also attracted the support from UK Bus Firm Arriva – who have agreed to provide an exclusive shuttle-bus service from Sittingbourne Train Station to Herons Park on the day. This will help to make this year’s event the most accessible yet – meaning more people who depend on public transport will now be able to come out and enjoy the event.
This partnership will also see posters on Arriva buses in the local area. Timetables for the shuttle service will be issued nearer the date of the event. Arriva’s Regional Marketing Manager for the South, Christian Obray, said:
“We are thrilled to be able to provide a completely free shuttle bus to and from Iwade Rock for this year’s festival goers. The bus will increase the accessibility to this year’s festival allowing those who depend on public transport the option to attend”
Event organizer Keith Reynolds has been overwhelmed by the amount of support which the event has already seen this year – from both partners like Arriva and Mid Kent Mind, but also from the public.
Keith shared the following:
‘Iwade Rock has always been so very well supported within the community and is the highlight on the summer calendar. We’ve been given the unofficial title of Swale’s No1 Music Festival due to the excellent support it receives each year.
This year we have been spoilt by being partnered with some fantastic company’s and sponsors that are bringing something different to the event. We hope this will stand out, and make people want to attend this event. This year will be the biggest and best festival we have put on to date, and we extremely excited! ‘
Tickets for the festival continue to be on sale – with initial ticket releases having already sold out. A limited number of tickets will be available on the day at the festival, but anyone planning to attend is advised to book well in advance.
More details can be found at http://iwaderockfest.co.uk/.