Kendal Pride is set to return to Cumbria in June with a bigger schedule than ever before.

The now annual event will take over the area for its second year from Friday June 14 to Sunday 16, offering a host of activities for people of all ages.

And this year, organisers say it will be bigger thanks to grants from Arts Council England, National Lottery Awards for All, Kendal Business Improvement District (BID) and Kendal Town Council.

Jamie Hooper, chair of the organising group, said: “We were absolutely blown away by the enthusiasm for our inaugural Kendal Pride last year, and were determined to bring it back bigger for 2024.

“The festival is focused on celebrating the LGBTIQA+ community, getting out into nature and enjoying the arts, that’s why we’re thrilled to have received such strong support from our funders."

The Westmorland Gazette: The event is designed to celebrate the LGBTIQA communityThe event is designed to celebrate the LGBTIQA community (Image: Sarah Hewitt)

The Pride Village will take place at Abbot Hall on Saturday 15 from 10:00am to 7:00pm and will feature a range of stalls, talks, entertainment, and family activities from Ragtag Arts.

Plus, for the final two hours, there will be a special family friendly finale - with details to be revealed in the coming months.

Alongside the village, the programme across the weekend will include everything from free walks, cycles, climbs and open water swims

On the Friday evening, there will be a showcase of films with an LGBTQIA+ outdoor theme with tickets set to go on sale soon.

The Westmorland Gazette: More activities than ever will encourage people in the area to get involvedMore activities than ever will encourage people in the area to get involved (Image: Sarah Hewitt)

The ‘Big Pride Party’ will also return to Bowness Brewery on Saturday evening, with Kendal-based drag queen, Nova Gina, hosting the event.

Headliner and Britain’s Got Talent auditionee drag queen Ruby Sinclair will wrap up the evening.

In the build-up to the festival, Kendal Pride will also commission two drag performers to create brand new material themed around nature and the outdoors, which will be premiered at the festival.

And six people from Cumbria will have the chance to participate in ‘drag school’ to learn the skills needed to be a drag performer and create their own acts.

Tickets for Kendal Pride’s Big Pride Party are on sale now priced at £20 per person - you can get yours here.