From HUC to festival school: Sally’s story

Bank holiday weekends are often among the busiest periods of the year for HUC, with colleagues across the organisation working hard to ensure patients continue to receive the care and support they need. While many of us were either on shift or enjoying some well-earned time off over the recent late May bank holiday weekend, Sally Booth was volunteering at Bearded Theory Festival in Derbyshire, where she leads an extraordinary initiative that has become one of the event’s most celebrated attractions.

Held annually at Catton Hall in Derbyshire, Bearded Theory attracted around 12,000 festivalgoers this year, with headline performances from Pixies, Skunk Anansie, Garbage and Kate Nash.

Behind the music, however, is a unique educational project that enables hundreds of children to attend the festival while continuing their learning.

Sally has been involved with Bearded Theory since its beginnings in 2008. What started as a small charity fundraising event attracting just 250 paying visitors has grown into one of the UK’s best-loved family festivals.

“I’ve been involved in Bearded since 2008,” she says. “It was supposed to be a birthday party to raise money for charities. I volunteered to run a children’s workshop and ended up site-managing the whole festival.”

Today, Sally leads the Festival School, an innovative and award-winning initiative she helped establish which has since attracted national attention. Created in response to increasingly strict school attendance rules, the school allows children attending the festival to take part in a structured day of learning delivered by qualified teachers and education professionals.

The school operates on the Friday of the festival and welcomes children from preschool age through to Year 10. Lessons are linked to the National Curriculum but are designed around the festival environment, helping to make learning engaging, creative and fun.

Maths lessons might involve designing a festival stage and calculating measurements, while English activities could include writing song lyrics. This year’s programme featured activities ranging from map-making and lantern construction to building ukuleles from recycled materials.

“It’s all festival-themed,” says Sally. “We know we can’t replicate what children are doing in their own schools, so we try to make learning creative, engaging and relevant to the environment they’re in.”

Although the Festival School operates for just one day, the planning process continues throughout the year.

Sally coordinates post-event reviews, gathers feedback from parents and children, recruits volunteers and works with teaching staff to develop the curriculum for the following festival.

This year, the school welcomed more than 250 children, supported by a team of 57 volunteers, including teachers, former teachers and headteachers.

Inclusivity sits at the heart of the project. Dedicated one-to-one support is available for children with additional needs, helping ensure every child can participate fully in the experience.

One message from a parent remains particularly memorable for Sally. The parent of a child with special educational needs wrote to thank the team for demonstrating how effective SEN support should look in practice.

“I think that’s probably one of my proudest moments,” she says.

For Sally, the greatest reward comes from seeing children and families return year after year.

“It’s the number of returning children that we have,” she says. “That’s the highlight.”

And after months of planning and another successful festival?

“I go to the back of the main stage when there’s a big act on and just watch the crowd reacting,” Sally says.

“It’s always really emotional because it’s like, ‘I’ve done that. I’ve made that happen. I’ve been a small part of that joy.'”

For HUC colleagues, Sally’s story is a reminder that the dedication, creativity and commitment we bring to work often extend far beyond our day jobs, helping to make a difference in communities across the country.

About us

Become a Member

Patients

Our Service Locations

Partners

Our Collaborations

Careers

Check our vacancies

From HUC to festival school: Sally's story