Well Redd

Reddfest Weekend Roundup    

If I was to ever have picked out a career path then I’m glad it wasn’t as a weatherman. Quite clearly my wonderful prediction of '15 degrees and cloudy, no need for a brolly for the weekend’s festivities' was greeted with an almighty two finger salute, as the rain not only visited us but it felt like the rivers Tame, Medlock, Irwell and Mersey had taken it upon themselves to visit from up above. No bother though, we’re a hardy lot up North and a bit of water certainly isn’t going to dampen our spirits.

And so, to Reddfest. I walked/swam, to be greeted by organiser Cllr. Kate Butler (complete with new name tag) and Vince Mather, who were both proud to show off this year’s selection of stalls. From the Reddish building’s preservation trust (manned by Cllr. Paul Moss) to the Youthspace stall, it showed that there is clearly a great amount of community spirit in the area. However, there were a few stalls there that I feel I should single out for praise;

The Kindling Trust: Whilst it might not be hugely in the public knowledge, the Kindling Trust along with Phil Arnold of Reddish Vale College, Mark Rogers of Stockport Homes and a few others are planning a £1m bid for five years of funding to promote sustainable and green living in the area. This looks like a really exciting and interesting project and can’t wait for us to report more about it over the coming months.

Fi and Me: Fiona and Lucy, two sisters, have come together to produce a fantastic array of handmade cards/gifts/jewellery. Really impressed. Definitely worth checking them out at the various craft fairs that they attend locally.

ARC: I was only vaguely aware of their work prior to this but it looks like a fantastic community group. ARC, Arts for Recovery in the Community, aim to promote the well being of people who are experiencing emotional or psychological distress by encouraging creativity in the art. They had some great pieces on display and told me about their Summer Art Fair on the 30^th June.

Overall, the event seemed very well attended considering the downpour and I’m hoping that next year will see an increase in business based stalls. Clearly a bit of warmth is too much to ask for!
Did you attend Reddfest? Did you enjoy it? click on contact and let us know.




Failing to Produce

Not only was Reddfest on this weekend but we also saw the first producer’s market too. I popped down, along with two other members of the Reddish news team and, well, underwhelmed doesn’t cover it. We had already spoken of our concerns with regards to lack of promotion of the event but to be greeted with only three stalls was shocking. I’ve visited Heaton Moor market before and, whilst not the biggest, it was relatively thriving. I don’t want to come down too hard on it because we should be supportive of these efforts, I just felt that subsequent ones could do with significantly better promotion.

On the positive side, Ben and Ana hadn’t visited Broadstone Mill before and had a great time there, especially in the kitchenware’s section.

By Jez Myers