18/08/2026
Five days. An incredible line-up. Thousands of people. And a brilliant example of what can happen when local organisations work together. ❤️
As the final notes of Salt & Tar fade away, we just wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who made this year’s festival such a success.
A special thank you to Sefton Council, who deliver Salt & Tar and particularly the Hospitality Team - Yates & of course Finesilver - the whole team. It’s been a pleasure working alongside you to animate the canal side and create something really special for Bootle.
We’ve been running festivals down here at Lock and Quay for 10 years. Over that time we’ve learned, adapted and honed the space - figuring out what works, how people move through it and, most importantly, how to create that perfect festival vibe.
And we’ve loved hearing so many people say how much they enjoyed it! 😍
That’s something we’re incredibly proud of. Lock & Quay is community owned and not-for-profit, and every event we host helps support a community asset that exists for the benefit of local people and the wider Bootle community.
We were also delighted to work alongside our good friends at Scrapyard Studios CIC, another brilliant local CIC, who brought grassroots and emerging talent to the VIP stage and busking zones. Giving local artists a platform alongside some of the biggest names in music is exactly the kind of collaboration we love.
And what a five days it was - culminating in Nile Rodgers closing the party. 🎶🔥
Huge respect too to the hardworking Salt & Tar crew and our own Lock and Quay team. Festivals look effortless from the outside, but they take an enormous amount of graft, organisation, teamwork and good humour behind the scenes!
Most of all, this week has shown what we can achieve when community organisations, CICs and the council work in partnership, bringing our different strengths, experience and assets together.
There’s a lot of talk about partnership working. This is what it looks like when it works.
So… what else could we achieve together? 👀
