Over 8,000 people attended the first Chesterfield Children’s Festival at the weekend, with over 4,000 children participating in the weekend’s workshops and activities.
The free two-day event at Queen’s Park was organised by local arts charity, Junction Arts and was funded by Arts Council England. The line-up included live music, comedy, silent disco walking tours, theatre, art workshops, storytelling and games – with children of all ages taking part.
Quote from Parent “We had an amazing time, the children got to experience so many different things from dancing around at the silent disco tour to trying out some circus skills! We loved the comedy show and the brass band that played my little ones’ favourite nursery rhymes. I can’t believe it was all free.”
Junction Arts Project Coordinator, Jemma Burton said: “Wow, what an amazing weekend! It was great to see so many families turn out for our first Chesterfield Children’s Festival, thousands of people came along to Queen’s Park to have fun with family and friends.
“It was a celebration of childhood and imagination with a host of free activities for families to enjoy and take part in. Visitors enjoyed impressive live performances including a brass band, a string quartet, a comedy club, theatre shows, Chinese music and daring circus skills! Children of all ages participated in the various activities trying new things with our interactive art workshops, actual arcade games and silent disco walking tours.
“They also got to explore The Garden of Imagination a newly commissioned artwork for the festival, which took the form of a child’s bedroom and had lots of interactive elements for them to play with, including sound sensors and fantasy characters.
“The aim of the event was to create a welcoming space, where young people and their families could explore art, culture and creativity in an accessible way. I hope that everyone enjoyed it as much as we did and made lots of memories.
“We’d like to thank everyone who came along and created such a lovely atmosphere, we hope to see you all again next year!”
Junction Arts is an award-winning participatory arts charity, that organises a number of festivals and events, including the Tapton Lock Festival and Bolsover Lantern Parade.
