These days, many a festival lays claim to being family-friendly but when you get there the reality can often be a long schlep from the car to the campsite (and then to the main arena and then to the stages...), activities that cost a fortune, bugger all to do from breakfast until the music starts and an unpleasant atmosphere after-dark. Come to think of it, that can be the reality of a lot of festivals whether you have kids in tow or not.
 
But not at Deer Shed. After abandoning one too many festivals early because they weren't having the time they hoped for, organisers Kate and Oliver Jones decided if they couldn't find the perfect festival for them and their three children, they were going to have to put one on themselves and thus Deer Shed Festival in North Yorkshire was born in 2010. The aim? A festival full of the unexpected but those of the delightful variety like discovering a new found passion for graffiti tagging or dancing with your six year old, not the unpleasant surprises like filthy toilets.
 
Starting with a blank piece of paper, Kate and Oliver built their dream festival from the ground up, focussing on all the things they've found can sour a festival experience. Enlisting like-minded friends, including one with over 20 years teaching and childcare experience to co-ordinate all the activities kids can get involved in, the Deer Shed Festival soon took shape – free activities, a spacious campsite, stuff to do from first thing in the morning, good old-fashioned hospitality, fantastic bands and value for money ticket price. Somewhere to get away from the day to day grind and remember how great it is to paint, play, make things, sing, dance and have fun with your loved ones whether they're six months or 60 years old. Somewhere to come away from feeling revitalised and refreshed, not wiped out and weary.
 
In addition to an awesome line-up of music, the Deer Shed Festival offers a programme that includes everything from cabaret and comedy to sports to arts and crafts:
 
Comedy & Cabaret
The Friday night cabaret show is curated this year by the Greentop Circus who will also be on hand over the weekend to teach circus skills. Comedy, which is all PG-rated, will be supplied by Chortle Award winners Pappy's, James Campbell, Jon Reed and Andrew Clover from BBC2's My Almost Famous Family.
 
Sports
The Deer Shed team are seriously considering attempting to break the world record for the most people simultaneously playing swingball this year. Failing that they'll have organised football and softball with qualified coaches and over a quarter of the campsite space will be given over to a field full of hula hoops, space hoppers, building barrels and that ridiculous amount of swingballs to keep everyone occupied when the main arena isn't open. They'll be recreating a mini-seaside too for those who enjoy some bucket and spade action.
 
Arts & Crafts
The arts endeavours in the arena will include a doodle wall, paintball art, graffiti workshops and ukulele lessons. Craft activities include making lots of different things out of lots of different stuff – guitars out of cardboard, mobiles out of CDs, masks out of of milk cartons, gardens out of plasticine, badges out of...well badges and models out of anything and everything you can lay your hands on.
 
And there's more...
For the times when festival goers simply want to sit back and relax instead of getting involved, there's cartoons and family films to watch, storytelling, an artist blacksmith in residence to whip up pieces of bespoke jewellery, a cocktail bar and high quality food to tickle all types of taste-buds.