Stepping Stones Festival

Stepping Stones is an exciting blend of traditional music and dance with a modern eclectic mix of artists and yet is has been deliberately designed to be intimate - performers will mingle freely with festival goers. All the artists have been specially selected by Maddy for the quality of their performances and the excitement they bring to the weekend.Click HERE to see how Maddy selected 6 local bands to play at Stepping Stones and hear how she plans to support up and coming artists in future years through North Cumbria Creative Arts.'

From humble origins Stepping Stones has grown to be an established part of the festival calendar. The first Stepping Stones Festival in 2012 took place in the Community Centre at Brampton, Cumbria primarily to celebrate 10 years of week-end music and poetry courses at Stones Barn next to Maddy’s home near Bewcastle. It proved to be so successful that we organised a second slightly bigger festival in 2013 which included a street market, live music and workshops throughout the town. When in 2014 we were invited to move the festival into the grounds of the atmospheric Kirklinton Hall near Carlisle we leapt at the chance. Now we have a venue that is self-contained and under cover. Kirklinton Hall has proved to be the perfect location for Stepping Stones and we intend to remain at this superb venue for many years to come.