Awen Cultural Trust will host the second Bridgend Children’s Literature Festival from Saturday 10 to Sunday 18 February, supported by Bridgend County Borough Council (BCBC).
The week-long festival, which will take place at Bryngarw Country Park, Awel y Môr Community Centre in Porthcawl and libraries across Bridgend, hopes to inspire a lifelong love of reading among children and young people, by celebrating literature and storytelling in all its forms.
Events will include theatre, music, storytelling, cinema screenings, author talks, mime workshops, illustration and much more. Goose, an interactive theatre performance for under 5s from Tailgate Theatre Productions and bilingual multi-sensory live music sessions Babis Bach, plus a visit from award-winning writer, poet and Children’s Laureate for Wales 2023-2025, Alex Wharton, will also feature in the varied programme of events.
Awen’s Chief Executive, Richard Hughes, explained that as part of the registered charity’s commitment to breaking down the barriers that might prevent people from accessing and engaging with arts and culture, the festival events will be either free of charge or very low cost.
“Our first children’s literature festival last year was a huge success, with events held across Awen’s venues attended by hundreds of families. We are looking forward to building on this success in February, with another varied programme of events showcasing the very best in children’s literature from Wales and beyond. We are grateful to Bridgend County Borough Council for supporting the festival again.”
Councillor Neelo Farr, BCBC’s Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Wellbeing said: “Following the huge success of last year’s first ever event, which delivered a hundred events to over a 1,000 people across the county borough, we are pleased to support this upcoming festival once again. We hope the festival sparks the imagination and creativity in the children who attend, and that families will be enthused by the variety of arts, poetry and literature on offer.”
All events can be pre-booked via Awen’s website: https://www.awen-wales.com/bclf-2024/.
