Our Mission
Kelburn Arts is proud to deliver The Kelburn Garden Party and other events in the incredible environs of Kelburn Castle and Country Centre. We strive to manage our operations with sound sustainability policies at their core. We aim to inspire our audience, suppliers, performers, and crew to make a positive impact on climate change and work to the betterment of the One Planet, People over Profit Model.
One Planet
Environmental statement
We are constantly working to lower our negative impact on the natural world, and endeavour to make a net positive contribution by:
- Actively measuring and monitoring environmental impacts of our events and day-to-day working
- Minimising our overall carbon footprint
- Reducing waste and managing disposal responsibly
- Reducing supply chain impacts of all types
- Identifying and implementing positive behaviour change opportunities
Reducing Impacts
1. Festival Planning
Each member of the core planning and creative team and is expected to follow this guidance.
All staff must:
- Avoid unnecessary travel for planning meetings (where possible)
- Work towards making Kelburn Arts a paper-free office
- Source ethical and local products and suppliers (where possible)
2. Events
Kelburn Arts sets minimum standards and targets for continuous improvement across all events:
- Monitoring and measuring impacts
- Food concessions minimum standards
- Providing reasonably priced mass transit options (coaches) and promote opportunities for attendees to come by Public and Active Transport options
- Waste Management & recycling policy with an aim to recycle 100% of festival waste.
- Tent recycling opportunity
- Combining freight where possible to reduce supply chain impact
- Environmental deposit scheme which encourages audience to minimise waste
Continuous Improvement
We recognise that reducing environmental impact is a continuous process. Kelburn Arts is working to implement a tree-planting programme at the Kelburn Garden Party which will see several thousand trees planted across the Estate and in other key locations in Scotland.
This Environmental Policy will be reviewed on an annual basis by the Management Team.
The Environmental Bond
What is the Environmental Bond Scheme?
The Environmental bond is a returnable deposit scheme to help encourage good behaviour, increase the awareness of the safer spaces policy and reduce the festivals environmental footprint and impact on the land on which we party.
All Weekend Ticket holding Adults and Young People (those with a youth ticket) must make a pledge and pay their £10 Environmental Bond in order to use the land.
The £10 Environmental Bond is paid when you buy your ticket and it will be returned as cash if you keep your promise to respect the your fellow campers and the environment. We ask everyone not to litter in the arena, in the glen and in the campsites: leave nothing but your footprints, and have packed up, tidied up and left the campsite by 1pm on Monday.
You can reclaim your £10 Environmental Bond by handing in a binbag full of your litter, a small bag of cigarette butts, or by showing us a photo your properly packed up tent (a photo of your cleared pitch will suffice). This is done at Box Office, which will be open for processing deposit returns at the end of the event, between 5pm and 8pm on Sunday and 9am and 2pm Monday only. A member of the team will give you back your tenner and cut the recycling symbol from your wristband and you can go home feeling happy that you helped keep the site clean and the atmosphere electric.
IMPORTANT: You must present your wristband still attached to your wrist in an undamaged state to reclaim your bond.
By entering Kelburn Garden Party you pledge to:
- Respect your fellow campers; be inclusive and curious, enjoy the festival together safely.
- Respect the environment, avoiding littering and protect the natural environment – separate your recyclable materials, use the bins and recycling facilities, Leave No Trace
- Leave toilets as you would like to find them, please let us know if there are any problems.
- Join the call and look after yourselves and others.
- Pack up your belongings, leaving no trace in the campsite by 1pm on Monday
- Your Environmental Bond will be forfeit if any of the pledges are broken
Bond repayment opens 5pm – 8pm on Sunday and 9am – 2pm on Monday.
Anyone joining the bond repayment queue after the 2pm deadline will be turned away having forfeited their bond.
Day ticket Holders
Day ticket holders do not pay an environment bond, but are still bound by the pledge. Day Ticket holders will be charged a £10 non-returnable late camping charge should they leave the site after 2pm the day after their day ticket was valid, and if they are still onsite by 5pm they will be charged the final tier full weekend ticket upgrade price.
People over Profit
Kelburn Arts loves the community which is created whenever our festivals and events are on. Events and Festivals cannot happen without people.
We are indebted to the many thousands of people who have generously given their time to get us to where we are now, and while we rarely do make any profit there is always a chance that we might!
In 2026 the Neverending Glen, on of the festivals more iconic spin-off and elements received its very own charitable status, which Kelburn Arts is committed to continue to support.
Fair Work First
Fair Payment: For all of our paid positions Kelburn Arts are committed to pay the real Living Wage (as a minimum). For our Voluntary positions your voluntary hours are calculated at the Real Living Wage and voluntary hours are capped at the equivalent cost of a weekend ticket.
Listening to the workers: Through team meetings ahead of, during and after the festival, crew feedback forms and team debrief meetings Kelburn Arts is committed to maintaining a safe environment and open channels for workers voices, both individually and collectively.
If you have a problem while working for Kelburn Arts, you will be listened to and treated fairly, if your problems are of a sensitive nature, we have discreet a safeguarding and resolution channel in line with the Safer Festivals Policy. See your crew information pack (sent to you afer registration for details of how to contact the Safguarding team)
Workforce Development By offering opportunities for training and development we can broaden transferrable skills and benefit from a well informed and engaged workforce. In 2025 our team attended a range of training on Accessibility, Equality and Diversity and Inclusion. In 2026 additional SMT training on Safer Festivals Culture will be delivered by our partners FLAPS.
We oppose the use of Zero Hours Contracts, fire and rehire and other corporate practices. All members of the crew are contracted on fixed term contracts with agreed and confirmed hours and work patterns given at least one month ahead of their commencement.
As eclectic and diverse as our stages and artistic offering is, so too is the Kelburn family. We are an inclusive welcoming employer and we recruit and pay fair, regardless of your gender/disability/race/pregnancy and maternity/sexual orientation/relationship status/religion and belief. We monitor our performance against this objective each year through out crew feedback form, please help us out by completing it!
We offer flexible and family friendly working practices: with companion/babysitting tickets, family activities and a general principle of helping our team members flourish in their own unique and wonderful ways! If you are working at the festival and have a small family onsite, please let us know, we work with families to accommodate our pop up crew village and city, but obviously some areas of the festival site are dangerous.
