Tag: community

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Thornton Artisan Festival 2026

Thornton Artisan Festival 2026 to Celebrate Local Creativity and Community Spirit

A brand-new celebration of art, craft, food and community is set to bring Thornton to life this summer as the Thornton Artisan Festival 2026 takes place from Friday 26th to Sunday 28th June at the Thornton Community Centre and Grounds, Main Street, Thornton.

Organised by the Community Events Committee supported by local artists and crafters, and residents McSmith Events.

The three-day festival aims to showcase the area’s creative talent while uniting residents and visitors for a vibrant, family-friendly weekend.

The festival has been designed with a clear purpose: to promote local talent and independent businesses, boost community pride, attract visitors to the area, and support small creative enterprises and local food producers.

All profits will go towards funding new central heating for the Community Centre, with £24,000 needed to complete the essential replacement of a failing 53-year-old system.

Festival organisers promise a lively and inclusive atmosphere, with the Community Centre and its grounds transformed into a hub of creativity and entertainment.

The Featured Artists Gallery in the Main Hall will display a curated exhibition of local art, photography and sculpture, while the Craft & Makers Market in the Sports Hall will showcase handmade goods from talented artisans and independent creators.

Outdoors, the Artisan Food & Drink Zone will celebrate local producers offering quality food and refreshments, and a Children’s Zone will keep younger visitors entertained. A Community Gallery Wall and live music will add to the weekend’s festivities, ensuring there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

The festival will open on Friday evening with a special ticketed performance by one of the UK’s best-known Celtic music bands, Govannen. Tickets are priced at £20 and must be pre-booked via thorntonvillage@aol.com.

Daytime entry to the festival on Saturday and Sunday is free, with funds raised through stallholder fees, sponsorship, advertising and a community raffle. Organisers are currently seeking prize donations and sponsorship from local businesses to help support the event. Sponsorship offers valuable promotion and visibility while directly contributing to the improvement of the Community Centre.

Artists, crafters, entertainers, food vendors and sponsors are all invited to get involved in this exciting new community venture. Those interested in booking a stall, donating raffle prizes or becoming a sponsor can request further details and a booking form by contacting thorntonartisan@gmail.com.

For updates and announcements, follow the festival on Facebook at Thornton Artisan Festival and on the village website www.thorntonvillage.org.

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Workshop – Thornton Community Centre

Sunday March 1st 10.15-11.30

We have something a little bit different at Thornton Community Centre.

St Peter’s Church would like to invite you to a (free) workshop where you’ll create little metal charms called Milagros. Their full meaning will be explained on the day but they have a spiritual connection.

Our time together starts and ends with contemporary Christian song and a period of reflection or prayer.

Leading us will be the talented artist Hayley Fern from St. Johns Church, Hugglescote – some of you may recognise her from her pilgrimage to draw all the churches in the Leicester diocese.

https://www.instagram.com/hayleydrawschurches?igsh=MTE1cHVnYWw4MWFyOA==

Please do join us for a very creative hour or so. No age restrictions.

No charge, all materials provided and no experience required!

Please contact Delia if you have any queries on 07796391859

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Thank you – Thornton Nurseries

Thank you Ben from Thornton Nurseries for supplying the plants and planting up the four planters along the driveway at Thornton Community Centre this week.

They look great. The plants have certainly been very well ‘watered in’.

In a strange anomaly it was discovered last year when some long lost plans of the centre were located in the Parish Council offices, that the driveway is not part of the lease agreement between the Community Centre and the Parish Council and therefore the maintenance of the borders is actually the responsibility of the PC.

The PC have worked within a very limited budget to get the borders tidied up to enhance the approach to the centre, and have relocated four large planters (donated by Bardon quarries) from the approach roads to the village where they had remained ‘unloved’ and ‘unkempt’ for a few years, onto the the borders on the understanding that they are maintained by the Trustees of the centre.

The trustees approached Thornton Nurseries for plants and Ben has kindly supplied and planted them up for the Centre at no charge.

Thank you so much for your Community spirit in helping the trustees maintain and improve the facilities at the Centre for the community and visitors to the many events planned over the next few months.

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Sarah’s Paper Theatre – Thornton Community Centre

Sarahs Paper Theatre proudly presents a rare performance of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’

An English Toy Theatre play made and hand coloured from Victorian printed sheets, a charming atmospheric delight for the senses. It is a happy tale of how Jack rescues the fairies from the giant’s castle by climbing a beanstalk grown from magic beans.     

Sarah is among a handful of paper & toy theatre maker-performers in the UK, a specialist of the craft with a repertoire of handmade shows based on short stories and fairy tales performing at a wide range of UK venues as well as international festivals.  https://sarahspapertheatre.co.uk/

Available for paper theatre workshops, demonstrations, exhibitions and talks.

Show 25 minutes. Suitable for aged 8 years +  

The evening will also feature a brief introduction to Victorian toy theatre before the show with a Q and A and a look behind the scenes after the show. Theatre style seating in rows, limited to maximum 30 tickets.

The performance date is Friday 30th January 2026 in the Meeting Room in the Community Centre, Thornton

Doors open 6.30pm for a 7pm start to the evening.

Tickets are available from Sarah via email: sarahspapertheatre@gmail.com  £7.00 each

Featured in ‘Homes and Antiques’ magazine December 2024

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Comedy Night – Thornton Community Centre

They’re back .. following the success of the first Comedy Night at Thornton last October McSmith Events & Comedy Hotspot are proud to present a new act at the Centre on Friday 20th February 2026.

Space is limited so make sure you buy your tickets early – an ideal Christmas present perhaps.

Comedy Hotspot only bring the very best comedians to their shows, and our show at Thornton Community Centre is no exception. A line up of varied styles, who are all hilarious in their own right. Add a wonderful audience to that and it only means one thing, a superb night of live comedy. We will run the evening like a professional comedy club, ensuring we have the best possible atmosphere and conditions for live comedy.
We cannot wait to welcome you to what is going to be a great second Comedy Hotspot Comedy Event.

There will be a licensed bar at the centre.

Proceeds of a raffle will be donated to the Community Centre.

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Annual Christmas Craft Fayre – 22nd November 10am until 2pm

Raising money for the repair and improvement of St Peter’s church.

22nd November 10am until 2pm at Thornton Community Centre.

Local food stalls including specialist beers, honey, jams and pickles, cakes and samosas, as well as beautifully crafted items.

Refreshments available all day.

Plus games and a chance to see Father Christmas in his grotto.

A village event not to miss.

Please help us raise money to help look after our lovely church.

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McSmith Events – Comedy Night

A new events company based in Thornton, McSmith Events, hosted their first event at Thornton Community Centre on Saturday 11th October.

Together with Comedy Hotspot they brought the first of what is hoped to be many Comedy nights to Thornton.

It was a hoot, three excellent comedians and a very funny host entertained us over a two and a half hour period, with the occasional short break to replenish our drinks from the bar set up in the meeting room and kitchen.

Don’t miss the next one on Friday 20th February 2026 – tickets available soon.

All in all a thoroughly enjoyable evening and something very different for Thornton.

In keeping with their ethos, McSmith Events ran a raffle with some excellent prizes, to raise money for the Community Centre (a charitable organisation that relies on donations, grants and bookings). Plus promised a £1 from every ticket sold to be donated to the centre.

The Trustees sincerely thank McSmith Events for their donation of £204 towards the running costs of the Centre.

McSmith Events are a family-run company based in Thornton, Leicestershire, bringing top-quality entertainment to local community spaces.

From comedy nights to quizzes and parties, our events supports talent, community spaces, and good causes.

Email – info@mcsmithevents.co.uk

Mobile – 07359 894186

Website – https://www.facebook.com/people/McSmith-Events/61578637385404/#

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Heritage Open Days & The National Churches Trust ‘Ride & Stride’

Welcome to England’s largest festival of history and culture!

Every September thousands of volunteers across England organise events to celebrate our fantastic history and culture. It’s your chance to see hidden places and try out new experiences – all of which are FREE to explore.

Heritage Open Days are England’s largest community led festival of history and culture events which celebrate our heritage, community and history.

https://www.heritageopendays.org.uk/whats-on/printable-area-lists/leicestershire.html

Also every September the National Churches Trust organises ‘Ride and Stride’ for churches – sponsored cycle rides and walks that raise money for the restoration and maintenance of our historic churches and chapels.

https://www.lhct.org.uk/ride-and-stride/

Check out the two links for more information on sites and churches open during September, and please drop in at St Peter’s, Thornton, to view the church and the display of local history. Refreshments available.

Limited street parking. Access from Church Lane by the Corner shop, or take a stroll along the path at Thornton reservoir and walk up to the church from the reservoir.

St Peter’s Church, Thornton

Very largely Early English in character; the nave and the two aisles dating from the beginning of the 14th century or slightly earlier.

St Peter’s church is Grade I listed.

The west tower and spire and the nave clerestory are Perpendicular, added in the 15th century, and the chancel was rebuilt in 1864. The north arcade of the nave has massive octagonal pillars, while that on the south side has quatrefoil pillars. The north aisle has a rare window of ‘ox eye’ design, a cusped spherical triangle. The nave has a full set of Tudor benches, dating from the 1560s their bench ends having carved linenfold panelling.

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St Peter’s – church news and notices.

It’s the first Sunday of the month, 6th July and so, as usual, it is the …. C𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁 – 

𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲.  

Breakfast, (full English, Continental or both) is served from 9 to 10 am, with activities for everyone. 

This is followed by our breakfast church service from 10.15. 

Everyone is welcome. 

There is no charge for the breakfast, though donations are welcome.

This week’s service will look at St Peter, to whom our church in Thornton is dedicated, and whose ‘feast day’ was at the end of June.  The service is being led by Pauline. 

We have a couple of other notifications for you:

The funeral of our dear friend, Phil Reader, will be held in St Peter’s at 2.30pm on Thursday 24th July.

This will be a celebration of Phil’s life and the family have asked that people dress accordingly – in colourful, rather than sombre, clothes.

A forward notice, too, for Sunday 13th July – we have visiting preacher Jacob Hussain  joining us on for our J22 service!!

Exciting! Spread the Word!

Back to this weekend and we do hope you are able to join us this Sunday at the Community Centre!

Best Wishes,

Lis