Double the fun with music and gala at festival

The town council has planned a brass band concert followed by a gala day and live music at Barnsley Road Recreation Ground next month.

Celebrations will begin on Friday, July 21 with the concert at The Grove hall from 7pm. The gala will then get underway at 10.30 am on Saturday, July 22.

Highlights include stalls, fairground rides, a nature safari with creatures including snakes and skunks, equestrian displays, a children’s fancy dress competition and a giant inflatable assault course. The day will finish with a party in the park style evening of live music, from 2.45pm until 9pm.

Town council admin officer Kerrod Willoughby said: “We have tried to make it inclusive for people of all ages. There’s something on gala day that we think everyone will enjoy.

“We want it to be a fun and affordable day out for the whole community.”

The event was held for the first time last year and coincided with the Queen’s 90th birthday celebrations. Organisers said it attracted around 200 people at any one time.

It was born out of the long-standing tradition of holding an annual civic Sunday event featuring attractions and entertainment in the town.

Mr Willoughby said: “The feedback we had last year was that people were really happy that it there had been a change and that this fresh new event was taking place.

“People said it was long overdue. The bands especially went down really well and appealed to a lot of our younger members of the community. We have our fingers crossed for good weather and we are hoping to build on the success of last year.

“We’d encourage everyone to come along and enjoy the day.”

Tickets for the brass band concert cost £2 and are on sale now from The Grove. Entry to the gala is free.