THE fund raising Bestival Ryde Slide will return to Union Street this coming July 17.

And with its new design, this year the slide will be faster than ever.

Bestival curator Rob da Bank said: “Yes folks, we’re back! Sliding down the street on a crazy inflatable has never been so much fun, so we had to do it again. And this time, with added fancy dress and a little bit of tinkering, it’s going to be even better. So please enter the draw, donate to a load of good causes and let’s get sliding”.

Former Mayor Cllr Wayne Whittle said: “It's happening again in Union Street, Ryde, thanks to Bestival and our supporting friends HSS, Island Roads & Isle of Wight Council who make this event possible. We will once again be handing the profits to our Ryde Big 5 Community Groups & Charities who will also be helping out on Bestival Ryde Slide day.

It's still the wackiest way to fundraise and I have it on good authority that the more money you donate the better our chances for a sunny Sunday on July 17”.

With 600 places available, hopefuls who want to be in with a chance of skimming down the slide at top speed are asked to make a donation of £5 to be entered into a prize draw. All donations go to five Island charities: Aspire Ryde Community Centre (Holy Trinity Church), Ryde Inshore rescue (Independent lifeboat), Wight Brainy Bunch, Ryde Arena and The Waterside Trust.

The Bestival team say they don’t just want you to get your swimming caps on - you’ll have to get your thinking caps on too, as they are running a fancy dress competition for the 600 people lucky enough to be chosen to slide.

"From futuristic frogmen and novel Neptunians to space age seadogs and ladies of the lake, let your imaginations run wild ", they say, and you could win prizes including tickets to this year’s Future-themed Bestival and Bestival Ryde Slide t-shirts.

There will also be a Bestival Soundsystem with DJs including Rob da Bank to keep the party atmosphere going all day long.

The event will run from 11am - 6pm on Sunday 17th July 2016 from the top of Union Street, Ryde, Isle of Wight.

For more information on Bestival please contact Get Involved - 020 7604 2944: