The Areas of the Folk Group are based on location and organise camping meets and other events throughout the year, usually within their boundaries.”Weekend meets” frequently last four or five nights, but you are welcome to come for one or more nights! Where there is an evening dance, it is also usually possible to attend as a visitor – contact the area for details.
You can camp with any area within the Folk Group. By default, you will be allocated to your local Area when you join the Folk Group. You can choose to belong to another area if you wish – please talk to the Membership Secretary, Margaret Hoggard, to arrange this.
Home Counties – http://hcfdsg.org.uk
Home Counties cover a wide area – from North London to Northamptonshire and from the East Coast in Norfolk and Suffolk all the way across to Oxfordshire in the west. We generally hold weekend meets from March through to October, and hold some Winter Social days and walks through the Winter months.
Midland – http://midlandfolkgroup.weebly.com
Midland camp mainly around the West Midlands area, covering Birmingham and the Black Country, along with Warwickshire and Worcestershire. Our weekend meets generally include folk dancing, music sessions, craft and a ukelele band, along with other social activities. We normally have a get-together on a Saturday morning, and a bring-and-share supper during the Saturday evening ceilidh.
North Central – http://ncfolkgroup.org.uk
North Central camp around the North and East Midlands, covering Staffordshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. One of our popular meets is in September each year in the village of Abbots Bromley, where the local Morris side celebrate the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance.
North West – http://www.northwestfolkgroup.co.uk/
The North West Area covers a large geographic distance, from Cumbria in the north to Cheshire in the south, and across into North Wales. One of the highlights of the North West calendar is a “rolling meet”, covering 3 5-day meets in a row.
The Ridings – http://theridingsfolk.org.uk
The Ridings Area covers the county of Yorkshire, and goes up into Durham and Northumberland. Our weekend meets always have at least one ceilidh with a live band. One highlight of our year is a meet for the Epworth Folk Festival.
South West – http://swfolk.org.uk
South West Area camp all over the South West of England and into South Wales. We generally have 5-day meets with a hall every night. our ceilidhs always have a live band.
Wessex – http://wessexfdsg.org
Wessex cover Hampshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire and Dorset. We camp throughout the summer and have 2 meets in the winter to keep in touch. Two highlights from our camping calendar is a meet at Kilima Farm, Lacock for the Chippenham Folk Festival and a meet at Awbridge for the Romsey Beggars Fair.