Get ready for four sunny days of trans excellence with an incredible lineup! Camp Trans is a community camping festival with art performances, bonfires, workshops and readings! Ticket price includes free vegan catering across the festival. The festival is run by and hosts people who are trans, non-binary or gender non-conforming.
The festival takes place on 20-23rd July 2023, in Leighton Buzzard. A 1 ½ hour drive from central London.
The programme consists of poetry, performance art, music, installations, talks, workshops, foraging, bonfires, slime wrestling, karaoke, and plenty of time to swim in the lake. The festival is run and staffed entirely by trans people. Camp Trans is a community grassroots project, to exchange skills, crafts, knowledge, and info. A space to facilitate and show work by trans artists and a natural environment to allow trans folk time to process and try out new ideas.
We welcome you to take part in our second year. We were inspired by the annual protest demonstration and event held outside the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival from the late 1990s, galvanised by trans-activist figures including Leslie Feinberg and Riki Ann Wilchins. Read Imogen Binnie's essay and Michelle Tea's essay.
Lineup
Installation / Filmscreening
Jamie Crewe
Léann Herlihy
Rosa Marouane
Performance/ Music
Lou Lou Sainsbury
Meat Strap feat. Biogal
Puer Deorum
Femme Daemonium
Sarahsson
Ms Saati (DJ)
Writers
Hannah Baer
Jordan/Martin Hell
Katayoun Jalilipour
Yas Necati
Workshop
Ailo Ribas - DIY Breastform and Packer Making
Claye Bowler - Plaster Casting
Autojektor - Cameraless Filmmaking
Tomara Garrod - Creative Writing and Trans History
April Lin 林森 - Access Rider
Tatenda Shamiso - Theatre-making
Queer as Funghi - Ecocruising and Foraging
Maria Mautino - Quiltmaking
Jeng Au - Hankie Embroidery
Movement and Body
Bambi Jordan Phillips - Voguing
Nat Li Lin Steinhouse - Acupressure
Savva Raciok - Self-defence
Cole Daniel- Massage
Facilities
One domestic shower and toilet with one-step access, and an accessible toilet without step access. There is a shed with running water and electricity to charge phones etc. There are no tents set up on the campground so please bring your own tents. The garden is huge and lighting is limited so bring a torch.
Catering
The menu is vegan with dairy options.
Click here to read the Menu.
Catering will be provided by chefs Malachy Nuin, Amber Connell, and Barbie.
Please, fill out the allergen form when booking a ticket.
Welfare
Camp Trans is an event for trans people, by trans people. All forms of aggression or abuse will not be tolerated, including but not limited to racism, colourism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, biphobia, wh*rephobia, fatphobia, ableism and classism. Please ask, and don’t assume the pronouns of attendees.
We will have a welfare/safety staff on-site.
The welfare tent is a space for you to consider your feelings and needs, and maybe offer yourself a pause/reset. Please feel welcome to come to the welfare area with anything that’s on your mind, whether a celebration, something that feels tricky, or the need for a moment of calm. They are there to hold a space for you to sit with them on your own, or together with them.
Accessibility
Camp Trans is a relatively small festival. The weekend comprises a combination of performances and interactive workshops. There is a lake in which attendees can swim in, a campfire and many opportunities for socialising with the Camp Trans community. Attendees are expected to organise their own tents and sleeping arrangements. Main mealtimes are catered.
This is the second year of the festival and whilst we are excited to have a repeat of the joy of last year, we also aim to continue to grow and change to accommodate the different needs of people in the trans community. We have adapted some elements of the festival this year and are always interested in hearing suggestions of how we can make Camp Trans more accessible. The aim of this description is to be clear about the layout of the camp so that attendees can make an informed decision about whether Camp Trans matches their access needs but if there is something preventing you from attending please let us know as we may be able to organise further adaptations.
We aim to update the access information as we approach the festival date. Some aspects of creating an accessible space may be confirmed closer to the time as booking and budget constraints are made clear.
design by Jason Gilby
The site
The campsite is accessed via double gates which have a gravel path leading up to a house on a slight incline. Outside the house is where the allocated car parking is. Following the path up to the house, it starts to decline slightly as you head towards the campsite. Here the gravel starts to lessen and becomes a collection of twigs, grass and the occasional stone.
There is a grassy path behind the food prep building that leads up towards a woodland area. This path is grass with lights on either side and trees lining the right-hand side. This path is covered in moss and inclines all the way up. Once you are at the top of this path, there is a treehouse surrounded by a sparse patterning of trees. Opposite this structure are a few trees and a sharp drop that falls behind the food preparation area. This area is on a hill and is the highest point of the camp. If you continue to move forwards, leaving the moss-coated path behind you, there is a campfire site lined with tree stumps. You can continue to move forwards and left and follow the hill down to the Willow Tree stage. This hill is covered in grass, bumpy and has a sharp decline that does not have a natural path. The softness of the ground will depend on recent rainfall.
The accessible camping section is the section of the field closest to the entrance. This area of the field has a small building on the left and a large tree towards the centre back. Behind this, there is a row of hedges which separate the field from the main road. Tents will be pitched with enough room for wind ropes to be pinned out if needed and there is a wheelchair-accessible portable toilet. We will aim to pitch tents so that a clear pathway can be left to move past tents and to get to tent entrances. Moving through the field further there will be further tents, the general camping area. At the far end of the field, there is a gate, enclosing a few alpacas in the neighbouring field and a Wellbeing area containing pillows, blankets and a selection of sensory equipment. The well-being space is a quiet space but will not be silent due to the surroundings.
The lake is oval-shaped and does not have a gate or barrier around it. As you approach the lake the ground may start to feel softer underfoot. The best place to enter the lake is by the alpaca field as the ground lowers and there is a clearing in the reeds. The lake is lifeguarded, and it gets deeper as you get towards the middle. Over the other side of the lake is the Lake stage. There is a small pathway that leads behind the lake, with tree roots underfoot. If you follow this pathway around until the lake is on your right-hand side you will be facing the food prep and information building in the distance, with the Lake stage behind you. Moving towards the information point there is a large collection of firewood to your left.
Opposite the accessible camping section and below the campfire area, there is a building split into 4 sections (a barn with 2 stables attached). The section closest to the entrance of the Camp contains stables. The first stable is the Welfare area and the second is the information point. The next section contains a plumbed toilet and shower. The entrance to the toilet and shower is under a brick overhang. The door pushes inward to reveal a room with the toilet (can’t quite remember if the toilet is through another door or if it is to the left of the small room?). At the back, there is a shower room accessible by a step up into the room and a further small step into the shower on the right. The final entranceway (the barn) takes you into a large room with charging points at the back left, and a tall fridge at the back right. The building is on a section of gravel and this gravel is surrounded by grass.
There are maps available at the information point and signs around camp directing you to the main sections.
Personal assistant and transport
Personal assistant (PA) and companion tickets are available free of charge upon request. Companion/PA Tickets are provided on the expectation that Companion/PA’s are willing and able to assist you throughout your visit, and would be available and able to help you in the event of an evacuation. Please fill out the access form to request a PA ticket.
There is limited parking available, please fill out the access form to request a parking spot.
Access information by Kacey Malony (he/they)
Getting there
The exact location will be revealed upon ticket purchase.
By car: The site is 13 miles from Junction 11a M1. The camp is accessible by car. There are 10 free parking spots.
By public transport: Leighton Buzzard station is two miles away. (Euston to Leighton Buzzard in 30 minutes). It is possible to either take the bus from the train station (1 hour or a taxi 15 minutes.) It is possible to bike from the station.
There are grocery stores and a pub 1-2 miles away from the campground.
Code of Conduct
Camp Trans is an event for trans people, by trans people. All forms of aggression or abuse will not be tolerated, included but not limited to racism, colourism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, biphobia, wh*rephobia, fatphobia, ableism and classism. Please ask, and don’t assume the pronouns of attendees.
Entry
Camp Trans is an 18+ event. All attendees of Camp Trans must bring a form of photo ID along with their ticket to gain entry. We understand that ID’s may show a previous name, attendees are welcome to cover any information that they do not want organisers to know (we just need to see date of birth and the photo). If you do not have a form of photo ID, please speak to the organisers. We strongly advise that all attendees take a covid test before arriving at Camp Trans.
You will not be searched on arrival at Camp Trans, but please note that the following items are not permitted at Camp;
Medical Emergencies
By buying a ticket to Camp Trans, you consent to the welfare team or wider staff contacting an ambulance should we believe you need emergency medical assistance.
Please do inform the welfare team if you have any medical conditions that they will need to be aware of.
Alcohol/drug Policy
We ask that the festival be a sober space, except at the party on Saturday night or privately within tents/away from the main camp. This is out of consideration for sober people, and those in recovery. There will be sober only areas at times where drinking is permitted.
We have no alcohol permit to sell alcohol. Alcohol will not be provided, and you cannot purchase alcohol at the event. There is a Co-op shop 0.9 miles away from Camp should you wish to buy drinks or snacks.
Please do not drink out of glass cups or glass bottles - we encourage you to bring your own reusable plastic drinking bottles/cups. Please also remember to drink water and stay hydrated.
Please do not swim unless you are sober. The lake will be out of bounds during the party on Saturday night.
We will not take any disciplinary action if drugs or alcohol are consumed at camp, and we encourage you to practise harm reduction around your substance use. Please feel welcome to check in with Welfare if you’d like any advice about this. Please be mindful about your conduct around others if under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
If you need medical, emotional or any other support under the influence, you can safely disclose this to our team. We just ask that all attendees be mindful of sober members of the community and limit consumption outside of designated times and areas. Our welfare worker, Dani, is trained and happy to support you with anything that comes up around substance use at any point during the festival.
Sex & Nudity Policy
Camp Trans is a sex-positive event but is not a sex-on-premises venue or a sex-focused event. Nudity is permitted and encouraged! Attendees are reminded to gain explicit consent before engaging in sexual acts with other attendees and are asked to be mindful of others around them, not to engage in such acts within eye-shot or ear-shot of other non-consenting attendees. Nudity is not an indicator of consent. Condoms and lube will be available at the welfare tent should you need them and our Welfare officer, Dani will be available should you need someone to talk to. If you feel someone is behaving inappropriately towards you or someone else, please report this to the welfare staff as soon as possible.
Dogs
Dogs are welcome at Camp Trans. If you’d like to bring a dog, please inform the Camp Trans organisers before your arrival. Dog owners are responsible for their dogs at all times, dogs should be monitored while around other dogs and other attendees. We advise that dogs should be leashed unless properly trained with good recall.
Privacy Policy
Please be aware that not all attendees of Camp Trans will be ‘out’ and activities at Camp Trans should be kept confidential. Please do not take photos or videos of other attendees without their explicit consent.
The address of Camp Trans is confidential and is only given to attendees. Please ensure to not ‘doxx’ the location of the event on social media to protect the event and attendees.
Fire Safety
Attendees at Camp Trans are not permitted to start their own fires. The bonfire will be available to enjoy nightly under the supervision of Camp Trans staff and volunteers.
Rubbish
Please be sure to pick up your own rubbish and dispose of it in the bins provided.
Breaches of Code of Conduct
The code of conduct is in place to ensure the safety and ‘good-time’ of everyone at Camp Trans. Breaches of the code of conduct will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Serious breaches may result in you being asked to leave the site.
All attendees are expected to read the terms of the code of conduct. Ignorance of the rules will not be accepted as justification for breaches.