FAMILIES FLOCK TO WOODLAND ARTS FESTIVAL
Hundreds of families from the North West are heading to a Staffordshire woodland in August for the sell-out Just So Festival. The Just So Festival is a family arts festival, which has been dreamt up by two Macclesfield couples who’ve spent years visiting traditional festivals with their children and finding much of the entertainment to be off-limits. They’ve set up a camping weekend in 65 acres of unspoilt Staffordshire woodland where everything - from traditional fairground to artificial beach, from gypsy bands to top name authors - is aimed at giving children and their parents a magical experience.

Camping tickets for the festival have sold out –four months ahead of the event itself, with many of the campers travelling from across the Northwest. While the organisers can’t help but celebrate it does mean that many people are disappointed at not being able to come along for the whole event. Already, indeed a number of people have been in touch to see if festival organisers can squeeze just one more family. The bad news is that they can’t - but the good news is that there are plenty of day tickets still for sale.

Festival Director Sarah Bird said “We are absolutely thrilled! There has been huge interest and excitement about the event, with tickets selling fast as soon as they went on sale. We’re very excited about meeting all the families who are coming in August.”

Highlights from the programme will include music sessions for tots from the Manchester Camerata, Parkour training sessions from some of the UK’s top free-runners, following the Fairy Queen trail with the Fairyland Trust, and one of the organisers favourites, a party with the Moomins.

According to festival director Rowan Hoban, “families will be able to go on this amazing journey of the imagination, participating in a medley of art, craft, music and theatre within a beautiful natural landscape”.

The experience of families going along to the Just So Festival will be a far cry from your average festival. Camping is in small woodland glades. There will be an bedtime noise curfew (though the local rabbits and hedgehogs may not comply), and a large and comfy nappy changing area with changing mats and wipes laid on. The loos will, of course, be lovely.

Just So Festival Community Interest Company is a not-for-profit social enterprise.

Just So Festival 2010 has received funding from Arts Council England and Staffordshire County Council Arts Grants Scheme.

The Just So Festival will take place from 20-22nd August 2010, with an expected audience of 3000. Tickets are on sale from http://www.justsofestival.org.uk. Weekend tickets are sold out. Day tickets for Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd August are available.

KEEPING YOUR KIDS ENTERTAINED (AND EDUCATED!) OVER THE LONG SUMMER BREAK
THE HAPPY PUZZLE COMPANY LAUNCHES ITS SUMMER PRODUCTS

* No parent wants bored kids over the long holidays

* All parents want to see their kids entertained and busy with their siblings and friends… at a low cost!

* And wouldn’t it be nice if they were simultaneously topping up their thinking skills without even knowing it…

The Happy Puzzle Company is recognized as the leading provider of amazing games and puzzles for all ages and for the whole family at prices that won’t break the bank. Whether at home or travelling abroad, parents do not have to rely on the weather being good to keep their children entertained. The Summer 2010 range can be found at http://www.happypuzzle.co.uk

This summer’s most popular toys include:

Landmark 3D Puzzles - These brand new modeling kits of Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower and Tower Bridge are really great activities for children to work on together with their brothers and sisters or friends. They will keep them occupied and give them a great sense of pride when they have completed the model. It is also an activity that parents and grandparents can do with their children if they need some guidance.

Addict-A-Ball - Addict A Ball is an astonishing 3D maze which twists and turns through the middle of a ball. The aim is simply to get the ball from the start of the maze to the finish without it falling off the maze. The start of the maze is simple enough, but it lulls you into a false sense of security as the ball suddenly starts tumbling down stairs and slides and you even need to negotiate a bizarre swing! True to its name, once you’ve started, you won’t want to put it down until you have succeeded.

Paint Your Own Umbrella - Even though it’s summer, we’re confident that this set will come in handy! Get creative by personalising your very own umbrella. Add bright colours to fill in the shapes using the shimmering glitter paints. Each set contains a child sized umbrella, six permanent acrylic glitter paints, a paintbrush and a set of instructions; a perfect incentive to bring a little sunshine to a rainy day. There are two designs available.

Hit The Hat - This hilarious game is exceptionally easy to learn, completely mess-free and will keep your children entertained for hours during the summer holidays! The idea is simple. Players take turns to roll the three dice together. The faces on top of the three dice determine which hat needs to be found. The first indicates the type of hat, the second, the pattern and the third is for the border colour. No matter what faces the three dice display, only one of the 36 hats will match that combination. Be the first player to spot the hat and grab it using your ‘grabber’! The first player to find six hats is the winner!

WaxiDoodles - Kids can design, write, customize, and decorate with reusable WaxiDooles, 150 reusable modeling sticks, which never dry out and are incredibly durable.

The Amazing Clock Kit - This is a clock-making kit with a difference! Both sides of the wind-up clock are transparent, meaning that the workings of the clock are completely visible. So rather than being a tool to help children learn how to tell the time, this is designed to give them an understanding of how a clock actually works. They will be able to see how the swinging pendulum causes the different cogs and springs to rotate, move, turn the hands of the clock and make the bell chime too, this is a real multi-purpose educational kit.

All of the above puzzles are available to buy:

On the website: http://www.happypuzzle.co.uk

By emailing: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Or by calling: 0844 848 2822

Please Note
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