Children's festival sparks big interest

Officials at locally-based fostering agency Excel, which suggested the event, were delighted at the feedback received at an ideas meeting – and are confident the festival can become an annual feature of the calendar.

The festival, supported by the St Annes Enterprise Partnership (STEP), will be held on Sunday, May 14 in Ashton Gardens – and the aim is for it to appeal right across the junior age range.

Mel Uttley, HR and business development manager at Excel, said: “We have a real fun day in mind and feel it is really important for it to appeal to teenagers as much as younger children.

“There have been some great ideas put forward which will allow us to achieve that but there is still plenty of time for people to get in touch and tell us what they would like to see featured.

“St Annes has a wonderful sense of community and the feedback we have received so far reflects that – we are really looking forward to a great day.”

Ashton Gardens already hosts the town’s Carnival held every July and among the ideas put forward for the festival are a fancy dress theme, a treasure hunt based around various locations in town and a junior cooking demonstration.

Another meeting will be held on March 27 and anyone wanting to find out more in the meantime should contact [email protected] or (01253) 712734.