Leeds Waterfront Festival kicks off this weekend with a summer of activities by the riverside

The largest waterfront festival in the north kicks off this weekend with a fun packed programme of events and activities at Leeds Dock, Granary Wharf, Brewery Wharf and the Tetley.

The summer-long celebration will showcase the best of what the city’s waterfront has to offer, with a mix of music, performances, workshops, arts and fun for all ages to enjoy.

"Our involvement, and what we like about the festival, is that it's an opportunity to showcase everything that we're up to," said Hannah Keating, communications manager at the Tetley.

"It's another chance to celebrate everything that's happening on the south bank; it's just really nice to tell the story of everything that's happening south of the river in Leeds."

Across the summer the Tetley will be hosting a range of fun activities suitable for the whole family, from art exhibitions and yoga to the Sunday makers market featuring sustainable food, drink and crafts from local sellers.

This year's festivities marks Tetley's second year of participation in the festival.

"[Last year's festival] was such a nice thing last year for us," Hannah went on to say.

"We were just really getting into the swing of things being open again, because it's crazy to think that this time last year, we'd only reopened towards the end of May.

"It was just like a nice chance to showcase everything we had going on after a period of closure."

At Granary Wharf, Canal and River Trust will also be running a host of free activities including kayaking, canoeing, paddle boarding, face painting and arts and crafts, as well as a climbing wall on Sunday.

Party People Project will be DJing on both days from noon until 4pm, providing the perfect soundscape for a weekend by the River Aire.

The Waterfront Festival starts on Saturday with plenty of free activities running across the whole weekend and throughout the summer.

For full event listings please head to www.leedswf.co.uk/