Paralympic hero to star at big lights switch-on
WITH Christmas now just a month away, festive fun for families is getting in full swing this weekend.
Celebrations will take place across the borough, including the lights switch-ons in Rawtenstall and Whitworth.
Crawshawbooth Community Centre will hold a family Christmas shopping event on Friday, November 25 from 7pm. Mulled wine and cakes will be available in the coffee bar and the Brownies and Scout teams will provide craft activities.
Rawtenstall’s Christmas Market runs from 11am on Saturday, November 26, with Christmas food, drinks and musical entertainment throughout the day.
Rossendale council leader Alyson Barnes is getting in the festive spirit.
She said: “I think it’s going to be a really lovely time as it usually is.
“The Christmas events build on a lot of work done throughout the Valley and I would encourage as many people as possible to go along and support them.”
Three Christmas fairs will be held in Haslingden on Saturday, November 26. Santa and Rudolph will host the fair at Man- chester Road Methodist Church from 10am.
Joining them will be the Charlotte Ormerod School of Dancing, the Haslingden Concert Band and the Cottonshed Choir.
St James Church will host its own fair with a chance to pick up some festive bargains from 11am the same day. A great variety of stalls and games is promised, along with an excellent cafe.
Meanwhile, still in Haslingden, Highfield Hall will host a winter fair from 1.30pm with craft stalls, cakes, cards, toys, a guess-the-doll game, Father Christmas and a tombola. Entry is free.
The Boo Theatre in Waterfoot is back on Saturday and Sunday with its seasonal craft and art market from 12noon to 4pm with hand-made gifts, mince pies and mulled wine.
A Christmas fair and family fun day will be held on Sunday, November 27 from 1pm-4pm at Whitewell Bottom Community Centre, on Burnley Road East.
Entry is free and will include a Santa’s grotto, clothes stalls, henna, toys, Body Shop, sweets, cupcakes, Christmas presents, raffle, tombola and also tea and coffee.
The event will raise funds and awareness for epilepsy.
The Riverside Christmas Lights Switch-on in Whitworth will take place on Sunday, November 27 from 5.30pm.
The Mayor of Whitworth, Coun Madeline De Souza, will attend the event, which will feature performances from the Whitworth Community Choir, Christmas songs from Whitworth Vale and Healey Youth Band, festive portraits by Howard Wilkinson and a visit from Father Christmas.
Mince pies, mulled wine, gingerbread and hot chocolate will be on offer, with the lights switch-on at around 6.30pm.
There will be a Christmas afternoon tea costing £5 per person at Green Brook House, Cowm Park Way, Whitworth, in aid of Springhill Hospice from 2pm to 4pm on Sunday, November 27.
Mario’s Christmas Market is the place to be in Bacup on Monday, November 28 from 6pm to 10pm, with stalls selling a selection of goods from jewellery to handmade chocolates.
Food and drink, mince pies and mulled wine will be available. There will also be a raffle in aid of Rossendale Hospice.
The East Lancashire Railway will also host its Santa Special train rides from November 26 to December 24.