The Gingerbread House Festival Competition Terms & Conditions

1. The Promoter

Organiser: Grasmere Gingerbread® Ltd.

Address: The Grasmere Gingerbread Shop, Church Cottage, Grasmere, Ambleside, LA22 9SW.

Contact: For support queries please contact info@thegingerbreadhousefestival.com

 

2. Eligibility & Categories

Consent: Entrants under 16 need parental consent and must be accompanied to the event by a person aged 18 years or over.

Individual Categories:

o Aged 4-11 years old

o Aged 12-18 years old

o Adult (Aged 18 years and over)

o Culinary Professionals

Group Categories:

o Primary Schools

o Secondary Schools

o Social, Community and Hobby Groups (Under 18)

o Social, Community and Hobby Groups (Over 18)

o Students (Aged 18-25 years old)

o Businesses

o Family (Minimum of 1 Adult and 1 Child)

 

3. How to Enter & Fees

Entry Fee: A fee of £20 per entry must be paid in full in advance as part of the online entry and confirms your agreement with the competition rules and criteria.

Charity: 50% (£10) of every entry fee will be donated directly to Shelter.

Refunds: All entry fees are strictly non-refundable.

Limits: The £20 entry fee allows for one entry to The Gingerbread House Festival Competition.

Deadline: Online entry forms must be submitted by 23:59 on Saturday 31st October 2026, however the organiser reserves the right to refuse entries earlier than this date should the allocated number exhibitors within a category be exceeded.

 

4. Attendance & Exhibition Venue

Venue: Low Wood Bay Resort & Spa, Windermere, LA23 1LP.

Arrival: You will be contacted to confirm your allocated delivery time slot by 06/11/2026. Contestants should aim to arrive by their designated time slot but no later than midday on 21st November 2026.

Display: All entries will remain on public display for the duration of the event.

Collection: Entries must be collected by 5:00 pm on Sunday 22nd November 2026.

Disposal: Uncollected entries will be discarded after the 5:00 pm deadline.

 

5. Construction & Material Rules

Kits: The primary creative focus of The Gingerbread House Festival is to encourage original, artistic and surprising designs with a ‘wow’ factor to win plaudits from the judging panel, thrill and delight visitors and catch the eye of regional and national media; therefore, Gingerbread House kits are not allowed.

Supports: Internal non-edible supports are allowed.

Electricity: There will not be any access to electricity however battery powered lighting will be allowed.

 

6. Judging Criteria

Date: Judging takes place live on 21st November 2026.

Judges: Panel appointed by Grasmere Gingerbread®

The judge’s decision is final.

Criteria:

  1. Theme/idea: Extra marks awarded for creative deviations away from the core ‘gingerbread house’ theme as we are looking for iconic and unusual constructions and/or a meaningful, personal story behind your entry;
  2. Construction: Extra marks awarded for exceptional technical construction and a true, lifelike representation;
  3. Inclusion of gingerbread: Extra marks awarded where over 55% of the construction is made of gingerbread. The constructions will not be marked on how they taste;
  4. Decoration: Extra marks awarded for innovative techniques and ingredients which help to bring the theme or story of your ‘gingerbread house’ /construction to life;
  5. Overall presentation: Extra marks for a gingerbread construction which demonstrates superlative attention to detail;
  6. The WOW Factor: Our judges’ ruling on whether your ‘gingerbread house’ has the WOW Factor (or not) is final.

Right to refuse entries:

The Gingerbread House Festival reserves the right to disqualify entries it considers to be inappropriate, offensive, defamatory, sexually explicit, or otherwise not in keeping with the spirit of the promotion. Entries containing political, religious, or discriminatory statements will be void.

Commercial brands:

The Gingerbread House Festival will not accept entries that are either submitted by – or include – commercial brands of gingerbread.

 

7. Prizes & Timeline

Prizes: Details will be published when confirmed.

Exchange: Non-cash prizes are non-transferable and non-exchangeable.

Announcements: Winners will be announced live at the venue by 5:00pm on 21st November 2026.

 

8. Media & Intellectual Property

Rights: Entrants grant Grasmere Gingerbread® full image rights.

Usage: Photographs may be used for marketing and promotional purposes.

Credits: Grasmere Gingerbread® will credit bakers where possible.

 

9. Liability & Data Protection

Damage: Grasmere Gingerbread® is not liable for structural collapses or public damage during display.

GDPR: Personal data will be used for competition administration and to communicate with you about your entry. Where you have provided your consent, we may also contact you about future events, offers and competitions linked to The Gingerbread House Festival. You can withdraw your consent at any time.

By entering this competition, your personal data will be processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy and as set out in our Entry Form. Our Privacy Policy provides further details about how we use your personal data, including your rights. You acknowledge and accept that the processing of your data is necessary for us to perform our contract with you (to administer your entry and participation in the event, and to communicate with you throughout the competition).

For entrants under the age of 16, a parent or legal guardian must provide consent and act as the primary contact.

 

10. Cancellation

In the event of circumstances outside reasonable control, The Gingerbread House Festival reserves the right to cancel or amend the promotion or these offer terms and conditions, at any stage, but will always endeavour to minimise the effect to participants in order to avoid undue disappointment.