A Devon festival has announced that it is partnering with a leading Dartmoor charity to put on next year’s gathering.

The Dartmoor Tors Festival first took place in May this year, with a series of walks, talks, and performances exploring and celebrating Dartmoor.

Now the co-founders of the event, Alex Murdin and Sophie Pierce, have revealed they will be working with pioneering Dartmoor charity, the Dartmoor Preservation Association, who will be the lead partner for next year’s festival.

Sophie said: “We are so excited that the DPA are coming on board. They have an incredible history of fighting for Dartmoor for more than 100 years, and their current work aligns beautifully with the ethos of the festival, which is about cherishing Dartmoor and fostering people’s relationship with this extraordinary environment.”

The Dartmoor Preservation Association was founded in 1883 as a response to industrial scale mining, military encroachment and threats to historic rights of access for Commoners. Today it remains a campaigning organisation, advocating on National Park policy and funding, championing public access for all, and running land conservation projects.

They have a particular interest in young peoples’ access to Dartmoor. Chief Executive Tom Usher said that an important part of their work is about access and dialogue.

‘Dartmoor faces many challenges and we work to bring people together in partnership for the good of this very special place. The Dartmoor Tors Festival builds on a rich tradition of Dartmoor’s cultural life, creating a forum where this can happen: ideas discussed, stories are told and Dartmoor is celebrated through words, music, workshop, walks and performances.’

The first Dartmoor Tors Festival took place in May 2025 and featured, among others, Devon folk musician Seth Lakeman, international artist Garry Fabian Miller, writer and environmentalist Guy Shrubsole, storytellers Sara Hurley and Lisa Schneidau, archaeologist Lee Bray from Dartmoor National Park, access campaigner Kate Ashbrook from the Open Spaces Society, and Dartmoor guide Paul Rendell.

Next year’s festival will take place on the early May Bank Holiday weekend, running from May 1 to 4, 2026, and, as before, is being put on in conjunction with Ashburton Arts Centre and the Field System Gallery, which is also based in Ashburton.

The festival also has the support of Dartmoor National Park. Across the weekend There will be talks and conversations on the Saturday and the Sunday at Ashburton Arts Centre, various workshops and performances.

In addition there will be walks all over Dartmoor in a variety of locations including Dartmeet, Two Bridges, New Bridge, Wistmans Wood and Brisworthy near Sheepstor. Two of the walks are being organised by the Dartmoor Preservation Association; these will be free to attend.

The line-up and full details of the 2026 Dartmoor Tors Festival will be announced in the early part of next year. For more information see the website https://dartmoortorsfestival.co.uk.