Summer of Family Fun to take place in Hanley
A month-long Summer of family fun is set to take place in the City Centre.
A series of free weekly events and activities will form part of Smithfield Summer, which will officially launch on Saturday 2 August.
Open daily, events throughout the month will include live music, kite flying and a big family BBQ, plus free access to a newly reinstated Urban Beach located in the public realm of Smithfield, which is located in Hanley’s cultural quarter and will be staffed during opening times.
Local artist Kidda Kinsey has created designs specifically for the urban beach fencing and several local organisations, and friends of Smithfield, have provided support for some of the activities which are taking place.
(Image by Smithfield)
Adele Simmons, Community Manager at Smithfield – who have organised Smithfield Summer – said: “We have a great space at Smithfield and we wanted to create something for local families to enjoy during the school holidays, which is why we are delighted to announce Smithfield Summer.
“We cannot wait to have our urban beach open where there will be lots of free activities taking place throughout August – weather permitting. We would also like to say a huge thank you to those who have supported us with this, as this has enabled for us to provide even more activities and entry free of charge for the whole month.”
Support has been provided from the Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce, Stoke-on-Trent City Centre BID, Victoria Hall ATG , Martin & Co estate agents and some of Smithfield business tenants such as Barclays and Purple Digital.
Chris Plant, Deputy Chief Executive of the Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce, who are based just down the road from Smithfield, in Etruria, said: “We’re proud to support Smithfield Summer which is bringing such a vibrant programme of free, family fun to the heart of the city.
“Events like this not only create lasting memories but also boost our local economy by drawing people into the city centre.
“It’s a fantastic example of community, culture and commerce coming together to make Stoke-on-Trent an even more exciting place to live, work and visit.”
Richard Buxton, CEO of Stoke BID said: ”We are delighted to be supporting the Smithfield Works initiative which will help and entertain families throughout the summer.”
Creative People and Places programme – Appetite – will also be hosting a two-day Big Feast at the site where visitors will have the opportunity to experience groundbreaking virtual reality installation VOLO – which along with other activities has been supported by Smithfield.
The Urban Beach will be open from 10am – 4pm daily – weather permitting.
Smithfield Summer events include:
Saturday 2 August – Launch of Smithfield Summer – local artist Ash Wall will be performing courtesy of the Victoria Hall
Saturday 9 August – Children’s activities
Saturday 16 August – Kite Flying
Friday 22 and Saturday 23 August – Big Feast and VOLO with Appetite
Saturday 30 August – Big Summer BBQ
