Family-friendly festival to be hosted on University campus

A one-day, family-friendly festival is returning to the University of Reading’s Whiteknights campus on Saturday 17 May 2025.

Running between 12pm and 5pm, this will be the third consecutive year the University has hosted the Community Festival.

The Community Festival brings together residents from across the Thames Valley for a day of fantastic live music, theatre and performance, incredible street food and a packed programme of hands-on activities for children and grown-ups to get involved with.

Featuring multiple indoor and outdoor venues, this event will feature local artists and performers on the main stage, located in the Meadow, as well as lots community organisations and local businesses.

Visitors can also get active with a host of outdoor games and sports taster sessions, interactive workshops or a stroll around the stunning Whiteknights lake and gardens. 

The Community Festival will once again showcase some of the world-leading research currently taking place at the University. There will be research talks and hands-on activities for both children and adults covering a range of topics, and the opportunity to engage with Reading’s top academics. 

A new format for this year will see the introduction of different zones across the festival: Time, Earth, Bodies and Imagination.

Molli Cleaver, Community Engagement Manager at the University of Reading, said: “Back for a third-year running, the University of Reading Community Festival promises to be another fantastic event for all ages to enjoy.

“We are looking forward to welcoming staff, students and regular visitors, as well as those that have never been to our beautiful Whiteknights campus before. Come along to find out more about the world-leading research that takes place on your doorstep and discover some of the amazing artists, musicians and organisations that we have within our local community.”

This year the festival will also feature the Neck of the Woods: Local Food & Drink Experience at Park House, where visitors will be able to buy tokens and explore some of the best local drinks in the area. Neck of the Woods will be running all day and into the evening.

The festival is being hosted by the University and Reading Students’ Union, in collaboration with partners from across the local area. 

The full festival line-up will be announced soon. Find more information about the Community Festival on our website.