The Association of Independent Festivals (AIF) and Citizen Ticket have partnered to create the Fallow Festival Fund, a new package to support independent UK festivals forced to take a fallow year.
The fund was launched today at the 2025 Festival Congress – the AIF-organised annual B2B gathering for independent festival organisers in the UK, with Citizen Ticket this year’s headline sponsor.
It comes after a devastating year for the UK’s festival sector in 2024, with a record 78 events announcing a postponement, cancellation or complete closure over the course of the year – more than double the amount (36) that did so the year before.
Four festivals have already been cancelled in 2025, with three of those opting to take a fallow year in efforts to return in 2026.
Combining the fallen festivals of 2023, 2024 and 2025 with the 96 events lost to Covid, the total number of UK festivals to have disappeared since 2019 is now 214.
Whilst many festivals have gone for good, there are now over a dozen festivals that have been forced to take a fallow year, using the time to attempt to make the necessary changes in order to return.
The Fallow Festival Fund will offer festivals a support package in order to help them return. AIF will offer a free one-year membership to the organisation, so they can access the trade body’s services and resources and support from the network of 150 member festivals. AIF already offers this to any existing member who takes a fallow year, and is now extending it to independent events outside its membership.
Meanwhile, Citizen Ticket has pledged free use of their industry leading ticketing and bookings platform for festivals and events selling up to 2,000 tickets. Promoters running a larger event can sell their first 2,000 tickets free of charge. Citizen Ticket has also pledged free use of Eventree, the industry leader for accreditation and event management at UK festivals.
Financial donations to the Fallow Festival Fund will enable AIF to buy support from third parties to offer fallow festivals a number of other key services such as time on a legal helpline to review contracts, a financial health check which may bring about savings or improve cashflow, a production consultancy – to review current processes; site layout; improving energy use or to help refresh their production offer for a return, and a revenue review consultancy to improve or add income streams to their event. More services will be added to meet festivals’ particular needs in response to demand, and as funds allow.
An industry-wide call has been made for further financial or service donations from festival suppliers and other organisations across the music business who are able to help.
Speaking to delegates at Festival Congress, upon announcing the Fallow Festival Fund, Citizen Ticket CPO Phil Hayes said: “At TicketSellers, and now Citizen Ticket, we’ve been working in the independent festival space for 25 years. We’ve seen it all – foot and mouth disease, the pandemic, the cost of living crisis… Every time a crisis hits we’ve done our best to support small and independent festivals in any way we can. We’ve partnered with the AIF on Festival Congress 5 times and we wanted to take our partnership to the next level with this fund raiser. We are urging other suppliers who are able to offer something to please do so before more festivals are forced to cancel.”
AIF CEO John Rostron said: “Three out of the four festivals that have cancelled this year are taking a fallow year in the hope of returning in 2025. There will be more festivals out there who are close to making this call. Being there alone trying to make your event work is tough. I know how much festivals value being a part of the AIF community, particularly when times are hard. It’s good to have people around you who can listen, understand and offer support. Phil came to me with this suggestion, and it speaks volumes about him and his spirit that Citizen Ticket and other suppliers to the festival sector really want to help too. Every contribution – small or big – will make a difference and I hope that as the year goes on some of those events in a fallow year will be supported by this fund and have the tools, techniques, innovations and confidence to give them the lift they need to return in 2026.”
Those wishing to donate money can do so HERE.
Those who can offer services or discounted services to festivals on fallow years should contact AIF at info@aiforg.com.
Festivals interested in taking advantage of the fund and package of support should register their interest HERE
For more information, visit www.aiforg.com/fallow-festival-fund
