A POPULAR Cumbrian festival is set to go ahead as planned after some uncertainty following a licensing review for this year.

After the news that Solfest was having the review a few days ago some people were a little concerned that 2016 might not take place, however Solfest director Tom Kay has confirmed that Solfest 2016 will go ahead as planned.

He said: “I'm over the moon with this common sense decision of the Licensing Panel. Events like Solfest represent an opportunity for people in our communities to come together and enjoy some good music, arts and entertainment and it would have been a real shame to have to take this away from them.

"We've been running this event for 13 years and it wouldn't have been possible without our great team of volunteers who give up their time for free to organise it.

"For many, Solfest has put the Solway Firth on the map and this is invaluable to our local economy.This year has been a real fight against bureaucracy, we've never experienced anything like this before and I hope that events like ours won't be crushed by paperwork."

Solfest will take place this weekend and features the likes of Craig Charles Funk and Soul Show, Dreadzone and many others.