This year’s festival was awarded £12,000 from Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Major Events Strategic Fund.
The grant was provided to start an internship programme and pay for the recruitment of three local interns; Sean Dickson, 21 from Moffat; Alice Jane King, 22 from Kirkcudbright and Ian Gisbey, 22, from Auchencairn.
Councillor Colin Smyth said: “The Eden Festival really is Scotland’s up and coming music festival, that is showing every sign of a big upsurge of support and increased visitor numbers.
“The site at Raehills is a green oasis for people of all ages to enjoy, and is a chance to take in some fantastic music and family friendly entertainment.”
He added: “Council funding in 2016 has been used to train up three young people in festival management skills, which is in tune with the council’s determination to create employment and opportunities for the young people of Dumfries and Galloway, and to retain people here in our region.”
Eden Festival director Meredith Langley Vine started as an intern herself at the festival back in 2010, working her way up to her current position, and has since then developed a successful career in the events industry.
She said: “Involving young people in the local community has always been at the core of what Eden Festival is about.
“Having run a successful volunteer scheme for the last few years it’s brilliant that this year, thanks to the support from the council, we have been able to develop this into a longer, more focused internship program.”
She added: “Iain, Alice and Sean have been fantastic, getting stuck into all aspects of the festival planning, they are an invaluable addition to the core management team.
Dumfries and Galloway hosts many unique and high quality events, and with the success of these events being so crucial to the area we are pleased to offer a unique opportunity and continue to work towards creating a legacy of young festival and event managers.”
The Eden Festival takes place this month from June 9 to 12 at Raehill Meadows, near Moffat.
