The puppet folk will be surprising visitors in Saltburn during the Saltburn Folk Festival, taking place from August 7 to 9, as part of the newly expanded Valley Woods Family Festival – a programme of free family activities designed to introduce families to folk arts. Saltburn Folk Festival will bring colourful puppet characters to the seaside town as part of the expanded Valley Woods Family Festival (Image: Michael Sreenan)Ms Hill said: "I love creating characters that feel as though they belong in the landscape around us. Saltburn Folk Festival will bring colourful puppet characters to the seaside town as part of the expanded Valley Woods Family Festival (Image: Michael Sreenan)"They are curious, chaotic and fascinated by absolutely everything – even bins, bushes and small steps. The Valley Woods Family Festival is a newly expanded part of this year’s Saltburn Folk Festival, offering a programme of free events and activities aimed at families, with the aim of showing that folk festivals are about so much more than concerts. While weekend tickets for the main festival have sold out, all Valley Woods Family Festival events, puppet appearances, bandstand concerts, dance displays and pop-up performances around the town are free and do not require a ticket unless otherwise stated.