When we started this Festival, only three years ago, it was with the intention of showcasing the food shops & restaurants on Shaw Road, but over the last three years this has morphed into a much wider community event with two (OK, three) main purposes.

1. To showcase the tremendous variety of shops & businesses within the Heatons.

2. To have a good time.

3. To raise money for charity & good causes.

Now, to do this second & third one we do a number of things, fun stalls, music, & games including the raffle, which you all know about & we give a few stalls to charities to promote themselves.

This year there are two tombolas that we know about, 4HTA have a bottle bola & Heatons Fundrasing Group, part of Cancer Research UK who work in the Heatons in conjunction with St Thomas Church, are having a bathroom bola.

Both of these groups have put out a plea for prizes for their stalls.  Ged on the 4HTA stall wants bottles (full) of anything. Jayne from HFG wants anything for a bathroom, bottles of shampoo, soap, sponges, toilet rolls, toothbrush holders, towel rails, the list is endless, in fact anything you might find or need in a bathroom.

If you have anything at all that you think would be OK & you want to help us raise as much money as we can, please can you consider donating it for either of these stalls.

At present you can bring anything into our shop -  Natural Floors on School Lane in Heaton Chapel & over the next few days, I will endeavour to set up collection points in Heaton Moor, Mersey & Norris, so watch this space. Look at it this way, the more prizes, the more chance you have of winning, reduce the odds, donate a little something, lets make this a real community effort.

I think there are still a few stalls left, so if you are a small business & want to join us, don't leave it too long, or you may be out of luck.