Brought to you by the Bristol Festival Community Group (BFCG), a registered charity mannedby hundreds of volunteers, BrisFest is a three-day festival and a year-round community project.Putting the people at its centre, the BFCG enriches the city using the creative energy for whichthe South West is renowned. Their charitable work is wide in scope and is focused on investingin the communities of Bristol and the surrounding areas.

BrisFest 2011 (23rd – 25th Sept.), now in its fourth year and bigger and better than ever before,will see Bristol's city centre transformed into a dazzling smorgasbord of creative goodies fromaround the region. Bands, DJs, artists, comedy, circus, cabaret, light installations, fire displays,boat parties, crazy golf and so much more... whatever your cultural cup of tea, BrisFest has itcovered!

BrisFest is a powerful platform for local acts. Thanks to the work of the BFCG, BrisFestperformers have the opportunity to meet record label scouts and stage programmers from someof the UK’s biggest festivals. BrisFest also provides talks by industry experts and demo panelswhere local musicians can receive professional feedback, and the Access to Music tent willshowcase the hottest emerging under-25s talent in the South West. This work is core to thecharities objective of supporting creativity in the region.

Like Bristol, BrisFest is multicultural and inclusive. Just a few of the feathers in their cap –bringing different communities together through a shared love of music, art, dance and food;engaging with local residents in the planning process; working with disadvantaged members ofthe community to give them useful life skills; offering free taster workshops to increase yearroundparticipation in local groups; and offering unlimited volunteering opportunities, so anyonewho can’t afford the ticket price can still get involved.

BFCG's wider work.

As a charity, the BFCG give loads back to their wonderful volunteers through unique mentoring,skill swap programmes and professional training. As well as enabling volunteers to makeinvaluable contacts and enhance their CVs, the BFCG funds training that leads to recognisedqualifications, such as Nesbosh Certificates, Safety Passports, First Aiders, etc. They havehelped many people into full time, paid work, and hope to help many more. As well as thevolunteers, BFCG also support their artists throughout the year, by staging gigs, club nights andfree workshops, and offering them access to materials, office space, expert advice and contacts.They also assist a number of other local charities, helping them to raise money and awarenessthrough free publicity and pitches at the festival.

BrisFest is still recruiting volunteers for this year’s festival, so if you want to learnsomething new, meet some like-minded people, give something back to your community,and enhance your CV in the process, get in touch!