The festival launches in Old Town’s iconic Victorian park - the Town Gardens. Come along to admire the beauty of the gardens, take part in a variety of art and nature workshops, see dance and music performances, shop at the local makers market and enjoy a variety of food & drink stalls.
12-5 pm (12-1 pm - Quiet Hour)
Town Gardens,Old Town, Swindon
Highlights:
Town Gardens Story Walk by Kate Claxton
Nature workshops by Swindon in Bloom
Local makers market by Mamma’s Events
Live music on the bandstand
Family picnic area at the Bowl
Food and Drink stalls
A children’s storytelling project, in celebration of Swindon’s Town Gardens
We are delighted to be partnering with award-winning children’s author Kate Claxton for this year’s Old Town Arts Festival. As part of the "Grow a Story" project, Kate will co-create with local children a nature-inspired Story Walk in Swindon’s Town Gardens. In April and May she will visit local primary schools and Badbury Park Library, where children will help shape the story with their ideas and artwork. The completed story will be brought to life along a trail in the Town Gardens during Festival week, from 1 June 2025. To sign up for her free Badbury Park Library workshop on 26 April, click here. Stay tuned for more details on the project.
Workshops on 1 June at Town Gardens:
Brush & Bloom - guided acrylic workshops by local artist Deepti Arora. Deepti will also be running arts fringe events during the festival week. More details and booking links coming soon.
Arts & crafts for little ones - drop in creative art & crafts by Hazel of Swindon ARTventurers. Hazel will also be running an arts fringe event which is available to book through her website.
Inspire Enrichment - get to know what they offer through various activities at their stall. More info and details coming soon. In the meantime, check out their website.
Nature workshops - drop in planting activities by Swindon in Bloom - more details coming soon!
What else is new?
This year, we’re taking active steps to reduce our environmental impact and encourage a more sustainable Old Town Festival. We’re asking visitors to bring their own cups and Tupperware to Town Gardens to help cut down on single-use food packaging. You’ll also find clearly marked waste stations across the site with separate bins for general waste, recycling, and food waste. By making simple changes together, we can enjoy the festival while reducing our footprint
How to get there?
We encourage all visitors to travel to the festival as sustainably as possible. Wherever you can, please walk, cycle or use public transport. Bike racks are available near Town Gardens and along Wood Street. Let’s reduce traffic, ease parking, and lower emissions — our festival, our footprint.
Food & Drink
We are excited to bring a range of much loved local food & drink stalls to Town Gardens on 1 June:
Soleluna Pizza
Sugar Shack
Blue Goose
Glamorose Ice Cream
Glamorose Cakes
Rays Ice cream
Momo King
Stockers Street Food
Leyvan Spice
C&C Caterers
Line up
Information coming soon
This page is still being updated. More details and event map coming soon.