A new festival is coming to Croydon this spring – and it is set to be gender balanced.

In April, Cro Cro Land will bring more than 30 bands together for a one-day music festival.

It has been started by the pair behind the Croydonist blog, Julia Woolams and Angela Martin.

The blog was started in 2015 and focuses on the positives of Croydon including music and events.

Julia, 39, has always lived in the borough and thinks Croydon has more to offer than people think.

“We want to bring people into Croydon from elsewhere and to celebrate Croydon’s musical history,” said Julia, who now lives in East Croydon.

“It was the birthplace of punk and a big place for guitar bands.

“We want to put Croydon back on the circuit for bands.”

The line-up is a mix of local and national bands and organisers are keen to make the event gender balanced.

They want to see women making up 50% of the line up – a rule which applies to the staff too.

“A lot of industries have an issue with gender balance and a lot of festivals are male slanted – We wanted to make sure our bill is half and half,” added Julia.

The day-long event will take place on April 6 at the space Urban Xchange at the Lansdowne Hotel.

There will be three stages and more than 30 bands and DJs playing.

The line up includes Bug Eye, which Angela is a member of, and Croydon-based bands The Weird Things and Jetstream Pony.

Also performing will be Blood Red Shoes, The Lovely Eggs, Nova Twins and Bang Band Romeo.

Cro Cro Land will also support Croydon-based Lives Not Knives, giving £1 from the sale of each ticket to the charity.

The event will also collaborate on a mentoring programme offering young people who have experienced social exclusion, been victims or perpetrators of crime, support and work experience.

Some will be shadowing professionals before and during the event.

Julia said tickets are already selling well for the event and is hopeful it will sell out.

This year there is capacity for 700 music lovers and if it goes well it could be a staple of the Croydon music scene.

It’s not the only new festival planned for Croydon next year – The Ends Festival is coming to Lloyd Park on May 31.