SOUTHAMPTON will be alive with sound and colour this summer as a free festival lands in the city. 

Southampton’s Cultural Quarter is going to stage an inclusive arts, fashion, and music festival organised by young people - and it's part of a UK first. 

What's Next Southampton will be held on Saturday, June 24, and is aimed at children, young people, and families. 

Thousands of people are expected to flood the city to take part in the free event. 

The event is part of Connecting Culture, a ground-breaking project led by the University of Southampton supported by a £75,000 grant from Arts Council England. 

Six young people from Southampton were recruited from a public call out. 

They are Dan, a 17-year-old sixth form student; Damian, a 24-year-old programmer working at a city centre start-up; Nichole, a 22-year-old student at the University of Southampton; Christopher, a 26-year-old manager at the Business and Intellectual Property Centre (BIPC) at Southampton City Council; Abdourahman, a 19-year-old poet; and Jason, an 18-year-old grafitti artist.

Each recruit has developed their own contribution for the event. 

These include Stories of Southampton, a graffiti workshop, a "give it a go" music workshop, coloured paths, a Southampton fashion show, and art talk. 

The festival will take place at Guildhall Square and across Cultural Quarter venues Central Library, Southampton City Art Gallery, City Eye, John Hansard Gallery and MAST Mayflower Studios.

Louise Coysh, associate director, arts and culture at the University of Southampton, said: “We’re excited to be launching 'What’s Next Southampton?', first public celebration in the Connecting Culture project, centring the voice of children and young people from across Southampton at the heart of our city’s cultural development – enabling them to be heard and acted upon in such a positive way.”

Carolyn Abel, head of culture at Southampton City Council, added: “We are thrilled to have been part of this partnership project led by the University of Southampton from the beginning, building on the significant investment in regenerating the city’s Cultural Quarter.

"What’s really exciting about Connecting Culture is that children and young people are at the heart of shaping this project."