Tag: Darren Dodd

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NEWS: Erdington High Street Community Market on Saturday 25 July – 10am to 4pm

Words by Ed King

Erdington’s High Street Community Market is back on Saturday 25 July – with stalls and children’s games open to the public from 10am to 4pm.

Held on the pedestrianised area in between Wilton Indoor Market and B&M Superstore, the Community Market will bring back some of its favourite regular local traders – joined by some new stalls – selling arts, crafts, toys, clothes, and homemade cakes, brownies, and sweet treats.

The free bouncy castle will be open to children from 10am to 4pm, with a free face painter decorating young face from 11am to 2pm.

Children enjoying a free bouncy castle at Erdington High Street Community Market / Photograph by Ilona Zielinska

Arts All Over the Place will also be back with their arts and crafts stand – offering a peaceful time out for both young people and adults, in a shady corner of the High Street.

Live steelpan drum music will be played by Jamani, giving Erdington High Street some calypso vibes as people have a relaxing browse across the stalls and local businesses.

Browsing the stalls at Erdington High Street Community Market / Photograph by Ilona Zielinska

Erdington Business Improvement District will also be offering free bottled water from the High Street Hut through the event, with the occasional free ice cream handed out to attendees during the day – helping everyone stay cool in the summer heat.

Click here to visit the Facebook event page for the Erdington High Street Community Market on Saturday 25 July.

Having a cuppa and a natter at Erdington High Street Community Market / Photograph by Ilona Zielinska

The Community Markets are organised by the Erdington BID, with support from Birmingham City Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority – as part of the BID’s LOVE YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY and Celebrate Erdington campaigns, helping promote Erdington Town Centre.

A spokesperson from Erdington BID told: “Our July High Street Community Market will be mark six months since we started these monthly events, and it has been an absolute joy to see people come into Erdington Town Centre and have a fun afternoon together.

“Plus, the stalls are selling some truly unique gifts – from local traders and crafters – which you simply won’t find anywhere else.

“So, if you’re looking for a special birthday present or gift, then you should definitely come down and check out what’s on offer.”

Browsing the stalls at Erdington High Street Community Market / Photograph byBianca Pirvuceanu

Erdington BID is also building a group of local volunteers, to help support events and work on other activities that support Erdington Town Centre – such as community litter picks, gardening, and outreach work with local care homes and residential centre.

Anyone interested in volunteering should email: erdingtonhighstreet@hotmail.co.uk

PICTURE GALLERY: Erdington High Street Community Markets / Photographs by Ilona Zielinska, Ed King, Darren Dodd, and Bianca Pirvuceanu

For more from the Erdington Business Improvement District visit www. erdingtonhighstreet.co.uk

Or follow Celebrate Erdington on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CelebrateErdington

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FEATURE: “It’s just brilliant to be here,” over a twelve hundred locals and visitors attend Castle Vale Community Festival

Family after taking part in the Colour Run at Castle Vale Community Festival ’25 / Photograph by Tracy Fisher

Words by Tracy Fisher

On Saturday 30 August, Castle Vale Community Festival returned to Farnborough fields – as organised by The Pioneer Group and Compass Support.

Despite the wind and rain, The Pioneer Group reported over 1,200 Castle Vale locals and visitors attended throughout the event – enjoying a free fun-filled afternoon exploring a variety stalls, activities, and entertainment.

Laura Grigg, Compass Support Community Hubs Manager, told Castle Vale Local: “This is a great opportunity for the whole community to come together, and we have got quite a few of our partners here today… it’s an opportunity for people to highlight what they do in the community.”

The festival also offered local businesses the chance to showcase their work. Rachel Beard, who runs Raquel’s Decoupage and Crafting, told: “I’m based on Castle Vale [and] I just love coming out and meeting the community.”

She added: “It’s about meeting people, making connections and just having a good vibe on the day; it’s just brilliant to be here”.

Activities and attractions included the Animal Man, aka Nature’s Burrows, who proved popular with young and old alike.

Paget Rangers FC offered youngsters free football coaching sessions, and there was live music from Birmingham Irish Pipes and Drums, alongside face painting, soft play and bouncy castles for children.

Luke McClean, from YoungStars Community Hub, said: “We’ve been going around speaking to all the community, meeting some of our obviously regulars who come to youth club [and] advertising a little bit about what we do.”

McClean also praised the YoungStars dance acts who demonstrated their talents in the main arena to the sounds from festival hosts, Switch Radio.

Mid-afternoon, crowds suddenly dispersed and made a dash for the start of the annual Colour Run.

Castle Vale resident Tiffany, who brought along her family to the event and took part in the Colour Run, summed up what the festival means for locals.

She explained: “It’s brilliant they brought the festival back to Castle Vale; it’s a great turnout, lots to do and the colour run was good fun.”

PICTURE GALLERY #1: Castle Vale Community Festival / Photographs by Tracy Fisher

PICTURE GALLERY #2: Castle Vale Community Festival / Photographs by Darren Dodd

For more on The Pioneer Group visit www.pioneergroup.org.uk and for more on Compass Support visit www.compass-support.org.uk

The Pioneer Group and Compass Support are key partners in the Erdington Local COMMUNITY ANCHORS programme – supporting independent local and community journalism.

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NEWS: Erdington BID to host free Summer Fun Day on Erdington High Street – Saturday 23 August

Words by editorial team

The next Summer Fun Day comes to Erdington High Street on Saturday 23 August, as organised by the Erdington Business Improvement District (BID).

Completely free to attend, the August Summer Fun Day runs from 12noon to 5pm on the pedestrianised area between Wilton Market and the B&M Superstore.

Hosting a range of free games and activities for children, there will be arts and crafts sessions, live music from local artists and choirs, and a bouncy castle for young people – all free to enjoy and paid for by the Erdington BID, as supported by local retailers.

Children on bouncy castle at Erdington BID’s Summer Fun Day on 26 July ’25 / Photograph by Ed King

Alongside the activities for young people, local community groups and services will be hosting tabletop displays, introducing residents to the volunteer and support activities they can access across the constituency.

Groups that have been present at the Summer Fun Days include Erdington Litter Busters, Erdington Walking Group, Short Heath Fields Trust, Erdington Lunar Society, Aquarius, Hope in Action, POMOC, Make a Change, Incredible Surplus, Arts All Over the Place, Erdington Arts Forum, Witton Lodge Community Association, and Erdington Local.

Erdington Lunar Society stall at Erdington BID’s Summer Fun Day on 26 July ’25 / Photograph by Ed King

Erdington BID will also be hosting a special pop-up kitchen, cooking up some burgers, hotdogs, and baps with fresh produce from longstanding Erdington butchers, City Meats – located in Wilton Market.

All money raised for the sale of food will be reinvested straight back into Erdington Town Centre, supporting future community events and projects on and around the High Street.

Erdington MP Paulette Hamilton will also be hosting a constituency surgery from a branded gazebo between 12noon and 2pm, inviting residents to talk to her directly about their concerns and issues affecting them on the local area.

Community groups stalls at Erdington BID’s Summer Fun Day on 26 July ’25 / Photograph by Ed King

Members of the local police team will be at the event, meeting local residents and talking to people about the work carried out by the Neighbourhood Police Team across the Town Centre and wider constituency.

West Midlands Fire Service Green Watch will also be bringing a real-life fire engine from the local station and inviting people to explore the emergency response vehicle and meet the fire fighters.

Organised over the summer months, the Summer Fun Days have run from June to August – brining hundreds of people and families to Erdington High Street, as part of a programme of community focused events from the new Town Centre Management team.

Children and families sitting on hay bales at Erdington BID’s Summer Fun Day on 26 July ’25 / Photograph by Darren Dodd

Erdington BID has organised the Summer Fun Days as part of its LOVE YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY campaign – encouraging people to celebrate the positives of Erdington Town Centre.

As the autumn and winter months come in, future events will be held that reflect the seasons – utilising the pedestrianised area and others spaces up and down the High Street for community activities and engagement.

A spokesperson from Erdington BID told: “We’re looking forward to another fantastic Summer Fun Day and hope to see families, residents, and shoppers back in the Town Centre for another free afternoon of family fun.”

LOVE YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY banner and volunteers at Erdington BID’s Summer Fun Day on 26 July ’25 / Photograph by Ed King

They added: “We’ve had a lot of fun over the summer months, and it’s been amazing to see so many people have such a good time back on Edrington High Street.

“Now we’re looking at what we can do in autumn and winter, how we can build on these first community events, how we can better celebrate our Town Centre, and how we can continue to encourage people to LOVE YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY.”

Check out some pictures from the previous Erdington BID Summer Fun Day events.

PICTURE GALLERY #1: Erdington BID’s first Summer Fun Day on 21 June / Photographs by Darren Dodd and Selina Gooden

PICTURE GALLERY #2: Erdington BID’s second Summer Fun Day on 26 July / Photographs by Darren Dodd and Ed King

For more information about the LOVE YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY campaign, or any events and activities in the Town Centre, please email Erdington BID at: erdingtonhighstreet@hotmail.co.uk

For more information on Erdington BID visit www.erdingtonhighstreet.co.uk