Advance tickets are now on sale for the National Forest Wood Fair, one of the most popular country events in the Midlands. Held in the stunning setting of Beacon Hill Country Park in Leicestershire, on the south eastern tip of The National Forest, over 100 exhibitors and demonstrators will be gathered on Monday 26 August for a wonderful day filled with trees, timber and all things related to woodlands and timber industries.

A family ticket booked in advance costs just £20, and for this two adults and three children (or senior citizens), can spend all day at the Fair from 9am to 6pm. The packed programme will feature exciting displays from the lumberjacks, chainsaw carvers, pole lathe turners in the log to leg races and magnificent heavy horses hauling logs.

Children will love the climbing wall, stories and songs from the Wild Man of the Woods, the chance to paddle a coracle, hitch a ride in the tree lift, and try out eco art.

New for this year is the Forest Food Festival with a fine array of tempting locally-sourced food and drink, and cookery demonstrations will share the stage with a series of woodworking masterclasses. For anyone wanting to see master woodturners and carvers in action and learn some of the tricks of their trades, this is the place to be.

The National Forest is a forest in the making, spanning two hundred square miles of the Midlands. The Wood Fair is a great way to find out about the development of the Forest and how people can get involved. Anyone wanting to create woodland, find out about managing their woodland, or discover all the benefits that woodland can bring to a community and indeed to individuals, will find out more at the Wood Fair. Over the last twenty years over eight million trees have been planted in the Forest - the eight millionth being planted last year by HRH the Duke of Cambridge.

The Wood Fair ends with a charity auction in aid of Tree Aid, a UK-based development charity helping rural communities in Africa's drylands to fight poverty and become self-reliant by tree planting to provide a sustainable harvest. Items from some of the finest craftspeople at the Fair, plus many of the chainsaw carvings created on the day, will be under the auctioneer's hammer at 5pm. It's a chance to pick up a bargain and support a vital charity in the process.

The National Forest Wood Fair is run by the National Forest Company in partnership with Leicestershire County Council. Beacon Hill Country Park, which is owned by Leicestershire County Council, is just 5 minutes from junctions 22/23 of the M1 motorway.

For visitors who wish to stay over and make the most of their visit the National Forest Company has teamed up with Leicester Shire Promotions and the stunning 4 star Quorn Country Hotel to offer attractive rates for a short break over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

From just £109, including tickets to the Wood Fair, you can choose one night's accommodation in a double or twin room with breakfast for two people, upgrade to dinner, bed and breakfast or an executive room if you wish, or enjoy a family offer of one night's accommodation with breakfast, with a family ticket to the Wood Fair from £129.

Quorn Country Hotel is a charming 17th century country hotel with luxury accommodation set on the banks of the River Soar, just three miles from the Wood Fair site.  For more information or to book the National Forest Wood Fair Short Break, contact 0844 888 5181, 0116 299 4444, email info@goleicestershire.com or visit www.goleicestershire.com/short-breaks/wood-fair-short-break.aspx

For more information on the Wood Fair or to book advance tickets 20% cheaper than on the gate prices, visit the website www.nationalforestwoodfair.co.uk

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Media contacts: For further information contact Carol Rowntree Jones at the National Forest Company on 01283 551 211. For background information please visit www.nationalforest.org Digital images available, contact: media@nationalforest.org

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. The National Forest area covers 200 square miles of the counties of Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire.  Its objective is to increase woodland cover within its boundaries from an initial six per cent to about a third. No multi-purpose forest on this scale has been created in the UK for one thousand years. To date the proportion of woodland cover in the Forest has more than trebled to 19.5 per cent and in 2012 HRH the Duke of Cambridge planted the eight millionth tree in the Forest. 

2. Year by year, The National Forest has been steadily turning what was once one of the least wooded areas of England into a multi-purpose, sustainable forest. The National Forest provides environmental, social and economic benefits, including landscape enhancement, creation of new wildlife habitats and major new access and leisure opportunities. It is an excellent example of sustainable development - with environmental improvement providing a stimulus both to economic regeneration and to community pride and activity.

3. To achieve these objectives, the National Forest Company leads the creation of The National Forest, working in partnership with landowners, local authorities, private business, voluntary organisations and local communities and has strong support from Government, politicians and the public.  The Company receives grant in aid from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

4. The Independent Panel on Forestry, in its final report published in July 2012, stated: 'The National Forest exemplifies how a long term, resourced and focused agenda can increase publicly accessible woodland in an area alongside other environmental and economic benefits.'

5. In 2008, the National Forest Company and partners won the inaugural Sustainable Development UK Award, for their work in Ashby Woulds, at the heart of The National Forest.