Issued: 29th August 2011

Stone Festival supports local Good Causes
The Stone Festival team has been able to distribute £6,000 again this year despite the rain on Carnival Day. Festival Chairman John Sayer reports that the takings on Carnival Day were very significantly lower than recent years – the rain and the new traffic arrangements at the bottom of Christchurch Way, which meant that the Parade couldn’t go through the High Street both conspired to reduce the cash collections. However some very generous additional cash sponsors came aboard this year and the Spring Funfair had helped the team to find enough to maintain the level of distribution.

The Festival Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 6th September at 7.30 pm at the Stone Station Community Centre, and next year’s Festival is planned for Sunday 10th to Sunday 17th June 2012. The Festival team is already thinking about next year’s events, and the Festival Chairman said that they are always looking for new ideas and helpers.  If you want to help make the 2012 Stone Festival an event to remember then go along to the AGM and talk to the team.

For a complete list of those good causes benefitting from Stone Festival 2011 please click on this link

Issued: 13^th June 2011

Stone’s Carnival Day Success
Rain didn’t dampen the spirits of Stone’s Carnival Parade last Saturday when the largest Parade in recent memory assembled to be judged by Stone’s Town Mayor, Cllr Mrs June Price, the Deputy Mayor & Mayoress of Stafford, Cllr Philip and Mrs Edith Leason together with ‘Elvis’ – local tribute artist Lee Grindey.
This year ten lorry floats took part and eight walking groups, together with several other interesting features, including a group of American Classic Cars, our local emergency services and an ancient Morris Minor decorated in support of the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal.
Tittensor First School’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ was judged to be the best lorry float, with Smarties Day Nursery and Stoke-on-Trent Rugby Club coming second and third respectively. In the Walking groups 1^st Oulton Rainbows and Brownies ‘Teddy Bears Picnic’ was judged to be the best, closely followed by Aston & Little Stoke Scouts and St Michaels First School.
This year the parade had to go along Christchurch Way as the recent experimental changes to the traffic island at the south end of the High Street meant that the lorry floats could not go that way. Ably led by the Stone Scout & Guide Band the parade soon reached Westbridge Park, and then it was time for all the fun of the fair – helicopter rides, the Smiley Train, cream teas, a chance to break a few plates and lots of charity stalls.
The Festival team had organised a breathtaking display by ‘Savage Skills’ a mountain bike stunt and display team – who kept the crowds entertained. The winning entries from Festival’s Top Talent competition were also performing during the afternoon, including Niki Gill, Georgia Brain and Mariana Cassaigne and to round things off –‘Elvis’ performed live on stage.
Speaking after the events had finished Festival Chairman John Sayer said that it had been a really good day; the rain had clearly kept some people away but all in all a very happy event which had once again brought the whole community together.

Issued: 7^th June 2011

Stone Festival’s Steeplechase & Dog Derby
Monday evening of Stone’s Festival week usually means it time for the Steeplechase and Dog Derby, a short fun run through Westbridge Park, the canalside and back through Crown Meadow to the Park. It was no different this year and Stone Town’s Mayor, Cllr Mrs June Price, was present to send the runners off and to welcome them home and present the winners with their medals.
Sixty seven runners of all ages took part in the steeplechase and the winners in each class were:

U16 Girl:                      Elisha Walker
Adult Female:              Kate Connor
Veteran Female:         Maxine Cooper

U16 Boy:                     Bradley Bullough & James Boote (dead heat)
Adult Male:                  Matt Jennings
Veteran Male:             Stephen Hulme

Immediately following the steeplechase the Dog Derby was run over the same course, with twenty two runners – and many of them went again this time with their canine friends.

The Dog Derby results were:

U16 Girl                       Elisha Walker with Ruby
Over 16 Female          Sarah Burton with Scooby
U16 Boy                      Oliver Harrison with Yogi
Over 16 Male:              Daniel Bigham with Tally

The event was a joint effort between the Stone Master Marathoners (who set out the course and marshal it) and Stone’s Inner Wheel Club.

Issued: 6^th June 2011
Stone Festival starts with a Splash
Raft Racers helped to launch Stone Festival week with one of the largest entries in recent years taking part.
21 Rafts took to the River Trent at the Darlaston Inn and all made it through to the finishing line at Westbridge Park, the winner being ‘Dark Destroyer’ which managed to complete the course in 57 minutes, with ‘The Abyss’, previous winners, coming second in 61 minutes and the ‘Winghouse Spirit’  third in 65 minutes. The Raft Race sponsors, Cottage Furniture, took 73 minutes to complete the course, and the slowest teams took in the region of three hours.Festival Chairman John Sayer remarked that the Raft Race is the traditional curtain opener to Festival Week, and he thanked the Darlaston Inn, for their enduring support for the race, the Stafford & Stone Canoe Club for providing safety boats and St John’s Ambulance for being there in case of mishaps.

Also in Westbridge Park the Dog Show attracted a record entry – the Best in Show being judged to be Jack, a whippet from Whitgreave, with the reserve being Boogie, a poodle from Etching Hill. All in all there were 15 classes with something for every dog in Town if they had come along. Sponsored by Sean’s Pet Emporium and CobbyDog this event has become one of the must see events in the local calendar.Later in the evening the Festival Quiz at Granvilles attracted a record entry, with 16 teams taking part in a fun but demanding quiz. The winners – a two man team – were Aguilera who won six bottles of wine. 

Issued: 6^th June 2011
Carnival Day Capers in Stone
Stone Festival builds to a climax next weekend with a 60’s Night at the Crown Hotel on Friday evening, followed by Carnival Day on Saturday.
The 60’s Night features the top local group ‘The Breakers’ and promises to be one of the highlights of the week
The Parade this year will be biggest in recent memory, with 10 Lorry Floats and 8 Walking groups drawn from local community organisations. Featuring in the Parade will be Elvis – riding in a Cadillac – on his way to introduce the winning acts in Stone Festival’s Top Talent competition. In all there will be four American Classic Cars, all supplied by the American Auto Club North West, with the Stone Town Mayor, Cllr Mrs June Price, travelling in one.
Earlier in the day 100 year old Mary Evans will be celebrating her forthcoming 101^st birthday with a helicopter ride over Stone. A resident of St Mary’s Home in Stone, Mary is always looking for something new to do and the helicopter really caught her imagination.
During the afternoon the Savage Skills Mountain Bike Display team will be appearing in the Park and as an added bonus they will also be performing in Stone’s Market Square during the morning. Also throughout the day the Savage Skills team will be providing an experience course in Westbridge Park – an opportunity for members of the public to give it a go. The experience is suitable for all ages.
Festival Chairman John Sayer remarked that the Festival team has put a great deal of effort into making this year’s event one to remember and he hoped that many people would come along and enjoy the day.

Issued: 31^st May 2011
Stone Festival Gets Underway
Stone’s Annual Festival week gets underway next Sunday (5^th June) with the traditional Raft Race, starting from the Darlaston Inn at 10.00 am. Always a popular event this year promises to be as entertaining as ever with several teams already lined up to take part and try to avoid a ducking on the short trip down the Trent to Westbridge park.

It will be a busy day for Festival followers – several attractions in Westbridge Park, including the Dog Show, the Westbridge 5 Road race and a Car Boot Sale. During the afternoon the quarter finals of the Festival Bowls competition will be taking place in Stonefield Park and then the Festival Quiz in the evening at Granvilles.
Stone Festival is sponsored by Target Windows and Conservatories. Target is very much a local company and they wanted to be able to put something back into our community. Stone Festival provides an ideal opportunity for just that. All the usual attractions will be on during the week, including Strictly Dancing at the Crown Hotel on Wednesday 8^th June and ‘The Breakers’ to start Carnival weekend with a ‘60’s Night’ night out, also at the Crown Hotel on the Friday. Tickets for both of these events are available from Home & Colour in the High Street. Festival Chairman John Sayer said that ticket sales are going well, and although tickets should be available on the door, if you want to be sure of being part of these events then it would be best to purchase them early.

Carnival Saturday (the 11^th June) will feature the Parade, followed by an afternoon of fun and entertainment in Westbridge Park, including the now regular Helicopter rides and this year ‘Savage Skills’ a breathtaking Mountain Bike display team and, of course the winners of Stone Festival’s Top Talent Competition, including the fantastic voice of Niki Gill, Festival’s Top Talent of 2011.   Full details of all of the Festival events are in the Festival magazine, published in May, and some free copies are still available in Stone Library.

Issued: 29^th May 2011
Stone Festival’s Football Success
A really successful day’ was the way that Stone Festival Chairman John Sayer described this year’s Junior Football Tournament, held at the Yarnfield home of Stone Dominoes on Sunday 29^th May. Close to 1,000 people watched or took part in the fifth annual event, which is now one of the must see events on the Stone Festival calendar.
32 teams of young footballers played in a Champions League format in the morning followed by a short knock out competition to decide the winners in each age group, and there were some very close finishes in each of the age groups.

The event was managed on the day by the Stoke City Community Programme – who provided the match officials and kept a tally of the results. It was sponsored by Dave Rhodes Grounds Maintenance and M-Way Vehicle Rentals.
Cllr June Price, Stone Town Mayor, presented the winning teams with their trophies and medals at the end of a very exciting day’s football.

The winners and runners up in each of the age groups were:
Under 12 Girls: Lichfield Diamonds beat Hednesford Town on a penalty shoot out after drawing 0-0 at full time
Under 14 Girls: Walsall Ladies beat Lichfield Diamonds 1 – 0
Under 8 Boys: Hednesford Town beat Stourbridge Glass Boys on a penalty shoot out after drawing 1 – 1 at full time
Under 9 Boys: Blythe Bridge Lions beat PSV Stone 1 – 0
Under 10 Boys: Holy Name FC beat Stafford Falcons on a penalty shoot out after drawing 1 – 1 at full time. (Holy Name FC are based in Erdington)
Under 11 Boys: Eccleshall Eagles Blue beat Lane Head Raiders (Walsall) 2 – 0
Under 13 Boys: Stafford Rangers Stripes beat Stonefield Warriors 3 - 2

Full scores and tables available on the Results Page

Issued 25th May 2011
Stone Festival Kicks Off in Style
Stone Festival kicks off this Sunday with the annual Junior Football Tournament, and already a record has been set with 32 teams registering. The Tournament, now in its fifth year, goes from strength to strength and this year will feature a girls’ tournament in addition to the boys’ event. The seven-a-side tournament takes place at Springbank Park in Yarnfield, the home of Stone Dominoes, and the first kick off is scheduled for 11.00 am, with the gates opening at 10.00 am.
Teams will be competing in age groups in a Champions League format during the morning, with the winning teams going forward to an afternoon knock-out stage. The finals of each age group will be played between 2.30 and 4.00 pm.
The Stoke City ‘Football in the Community’ team is running the Staffordshire FA affiliated Tournament, which has been sponsored by Dave Rhodes Ground Maintenance and M-Way Vehicle Rentals.
Mindy Davies, the Stone Festival organiser of this event, said she was looking forward to a great day of  football, involving over 300 young people and if previous experience is anything to go by, some really good young footballers showing off their skills. The World Cup features 32 teams in the Finals – and who knows one of the players on Sunday might well go on to feature in a future World Cup.

Issued: 22^nd May 2011
Stone’s Carnival Parade Re-Routed
Stone’s Carnival Parade this year will have to go along Christchurch Way and miss the High Street. The recently extended traffic island at the South end of the High Street means that it is no longer possible for Lorries to turn right out of the High Street, without driving across the new feature. 
Festival Chairman John Sayer said he was extremely disappointed for both the Parade participants and the High Street Traders – the Carnival Parade is always a highlight of the year in Stone’s High Street. He had been in discussion with Staffordshire Highways to try and find a solution to the problem since the Festival team had seen the new arrangement being installed. Highways had offered to provide steel ramping to take the Lorries across the new island.  However the Festival team had to take into account the instability that would have been created on the Lorries, and had reluctantly taken the decision to re-route the Parade.
Nicola Norvall, the Parade organiser, said that this year’s Parade promises to be one of the largest in recent years, with nine lorry floats and eight walking groups taking part.  The Parade will feature several Cadillacs – and ‘Elvis’ –top local tribute act Lee Grindey - who will be introducing the winning acts from Stone Festival’s Top Talent competition in Westbridge Park

For a map of the route click here

Issued 17th May 2011
Niki is the winner!
Niki Gill became Stone Festival’s Top talent in 2011 when she beat off several other challengers at the auditions in the Alleynes School Theatre.  Niki will now appear in Westbridge Park on Carnival Day, June 11^th, and in addition to her cash prize will enjoy a recording session in top sound engineer Matt Bishop’s studios.
Niki, a student at St Dominic’s Priory School, really wowed the judges with an unaccompanied rendition of the Adele song, ‘Someone like You’. Niki’s powerful voice entranced the judges who remarked that her performance was brilliant and a beautiful unique sound.
Second in the auditions was Georgia Brain with her version of ‘Your Song’, the Elton John classic. The judges thought she was wonderfully talented and gave a different interpretation to the recent Ellie Goulding version.
Third was Mariana Cassaigne, who sang the Puccini classic ‘Mio Bambino’. Mariana had been expected to appear as part of a group, but unfortunately her keyboard player had been stranded in Portsmouth. Mariana decided to audition alone, with a different song. She was the first act in the auditions and really engaged with the audience and set a very high standard for the following acts.
The Highly commended acts, MLE, The Soul Sisters and Tiny Wings will also be invited to take part on stage in Westbridge Park on Carnival Day. The competition, organised as part of Stone Festival, was judged by Elaine Bird and Sara Christie, from Stone’s local stage and drama schools, with Tim Wedgwood from BBC Radio Stoke and Marten Joustra, Stone’s brilliant local musician. Speaking after the auditions the judges remarked that this year had seen a very high standard and they had had a very difficult job in deciding upon the few who would be invited to take part on Carnival Day.

Issued: 9^th May 2011
Stone Festival helping young people to grow
Trinity Skills for Life exists to help young adults with learning difficulties. Providing a supportive yet challenging experience they encourage independence and confidence in the young people they help. They encourage them to undertake productive work and help them with all aspects of independent living. One training opportunity is an allotment in Stone – where the students spend time growing their own vegetables. The organisation is supported by a group of ‘Friends of Trinity Skills’ who raise funds to provide some additional support to the young people – and the Friends approached Stone Festival to see if they would help with a project for the organisation’s allotment.
They wanted to expand the growing season and extend the students’ knowledge by the purchase of a poly tunnel. The Festival team readily agreed when allocating funds from the 2010 Festival – and representatives recently attended the official opening of the tunnel.
Speaking at the opening, Bob Harrison, from the Friends, remarked how pleased he was that Stone Festival had been able to support this project – it would really help some of the young people to develop additional skills.
John Sayer, Stone Festival Chairman, observed that Stone Festival is a community event which each year provides entertainment for very many people and also raises funds for the benefit of local good causes. The whole Festival team had enthusiastically supported the request for funding and he was pleased that representatives from Festival had been able to be at the event.

Issued: 5^th May 2011

Stone Festival’s Top Talent Competition gets underway
Stone Festival’s Top Talent Competition looks as though it will be one of the best yet.  Auditions are being held in the Alleyne’s High School  Theatre on Sunday 15^th May and the public are invited to come along to hear a varied programme of acts, all vying to appear on Westbridge Park on Carnival Day, Saturday 11^th June. The audition’s doors open to the public at 10.30 am – with the first acts appearing from 11.00 am.
The judges, including BBC Radio Stoke’s Tim Wedgwood, renowned local musician Marten Joustra, with Elaine Bird and Sara Christie from local Stage Schools, will be deciding between a variety of acts, including local rock bands, and several singing and dance acts. With significant cash prizes on offer as well as a recording studio session for the best act, there is bound to be strong competition.
Festival’s Top Talent organiser Jane Lockley said that the Festival team are looking forward to an entertaining few hours at the auditions. It is still possible to enter – visit the Top Talent Page or ring the Festival hotline on 01785 819807 to reserve a last minute ‘slot’.

^{This Years Competition Host}

For full details and entry form please click on the link below:

Festival Football Tournament 2011 - Full details and Entry Form

Festival Fever starts to build
Stone Festival’s Spring Funfair was a great success. Organised at short notice by the Warwick family and the Festival team as a tribute to Fred Warwick, who had brought his funfairs to Stone Festival for over 40 years, it provided an ideal taster for the main event in June.
Stone Festival Week gets underway with the Raft Race on 5th June and already teams are signing up to take part. Bookings are also coming in to Festival organisers thick and fast for other events. The Helicopter is proving to be another success, so if readers need to fly to fly at a specific time then they should book before the day – by dropping into Home & Colour on Stone’s High Street who will sort it out for them, and they will save £5 on the ticket price.
The Top Talent auditions will be on Sunday 15th May at Alleynes High School  – with some really great prizes on offer, including a recording studio session, the Festival team are looking forward to an entertaining few hours as the cream of Stone’s entertainers vie for one of the spots in Westbridge Park on Carnival Day.
This year the junior football tournament will be on Sunday 29th May at the Yarnfield home of Stone Dominoes a superb football experience for all those local teams who take part – and plenty of good football for the spectators to enjoy.
Carnival Day, on Saturday 11th June is expected to follow the tried and tested formula, the Carnival  Parade through the Town, followed by and afternoon of fun and entertainment in Westbridge Park. This year the Festival team have brought in the Savage Skills Mountain Bike Display team to demonstrate their amazing skills and stunts – truly an event not to miss!
There are two events during Festival Week at The Crown Hotel - Strictly Dancing on Wednesday 8th June, which will be featuring the latest dance craze – Zumba - definitely an evening to enjoy good company and learn a new dance. And on Friday 10th June a 60’s Night, featuring ‘The Breakers’. If you like a good night out this is the place to be. Tickets will be available from Home & Colour in the High Street.

Issued 3rd April 2011
Festival Fun is nearly here!
Plans for this year’s Festival are well under way now – helicopter bookings are coming in regularly so if you need to fly at a specific time you will need to book before the day (and you will save £5 on the ticket). Use the voucher on this page or just go into Home & Colour in the High Street and they will sort it out for you.
The Top Talent auditions will be on Sunday 15^th May at Alleynes High School  – with some really great prizes on offer, including a recording studio session, the Festival team are looking forward to an entertaining few hours as the cream of Stone’s entertainers vie for one of the spots in Westbridge Park on Carnival Day.

Festival has started a little earlier this year with a Spring Funfair (already over by the time this magazine hits the doorsteps). Fred Warwick who has been the man behind all of Festival’s funfairs over the past 40 years passed away in early March – a shock to all of us who knew him – but his family has taken on the organising of our Funfairs and in order to show their commitment to the Town brought a Spring Funfair to Westbridge Park for the last weekend in March.

Festival week will follow the usual programme –the Funfair will be in the Park for the second half of the week with lots of amusements for all the family especially on Carnival Day (June 11^th). Once again the Smiley train will be here taking passengers young and old for sedate trips around the attractions.

Look out for next month’s Gazette – and your Festival programme which will have all the details, or visit the Festival website www.stonefestival.co.uk to find out what is going on.

Issued: 22^nd March 2011
Stone Festival Springs into Action
Stone Festival is starting a little earlier this year – this week in fact!
A Festival Funfair will be in Westbridge Park from Thursday 24th March through to Sunday 27th March – incorporating many of the Town’s favourite rides.
Organised by the Warwick family on behalf of Stone Festival it promises to give local residents a taste of what will be coming again in June during the main Festival week.  John Sayer, Festival Chairman, said that the whole Festival team was shocked when Fred Warwick passed away in early March and indeed was a little worried for the future of the Festival Funfair, however the family will be keeping the business going and wanted to make an immediate commitment to Stone and asked if they could run a Funfair to support Festival and our local good causes.
“Whilst sad at the passing of Fred we are delighted that the family is rallying around and showing Stone just how committed it is to the Town.”

The Funfair will open at 6.00 pm on Thursday and Friday and at 2.00 pm on Saturday and Sunday

25th February 2011
Stone Festival Targets another successful year.
Plans for Stone Festival, sponsored once again this year by Target Windows and Conservatories, are now well underway – Carnival Day on Saturday 11^th June promises to be another day to remember for the Town, with the traditional Parade and entertainment in Westbridge Park. This year the Savage Skills Mountain Bike Display team will be entertaining festival goers with an impressive range of stunts, and also the winners of Stone Festival’s Top Talent will be on stage along with a mystery guest who will entertain the whole audience.
The Helicopter will be back for a chance to see Stone as you have never seen it before – and if a more sedate form of transport is required how about the Smiley Train, an instant success last year and back by popular demand. As always there will also be a wide variety of Charitable and Trade stalls in Westbridge Park on Carnival Day - and anyone wishing to run a stall may download the appropriate application form from the Festival web-site: www.stonefestival.co.uk/concessions.htm

Festival gets underway with the Top Talent auditions on Sunday 15^th May – in the Alleynes High School Theatre. The judges this year are expected to include Marten Joustra (our local composer with an impressive track record in the music scene, including TV and games soundtracks) and Tim Wedgwood from BBC Radio Stoke – so why not come along and see our local talent showing just what they can do. For those who wish to take part – entry forms are available from the website or from Home & Colour in the High Street. With cash prizes, the chance to be a key part of Carnival Day and a day in a recording studio for the best musical act it really is a competition worth entering. Also during May the preliminary rounds of the Festival Bowls competition get underway, details are also on the website, and on Sunday 29^th May the Festival Junior 7 a side football tournament takes place out at Motiva Park in Yarnfield. This is always a good day out with some impressive young footballers showing off their skills.

Sunday 5^th June sees the start of Festival week, with the Raft Race, Dog Show and Car Boot Sale in Westbridge Park followed by the Festival Quiz in the evening at Granvilles, with all the regular attractions during the week. There are two events this year at The Crown Hotel - Strictly Dancing on Wednesday 8^th June, which will be featuring the latest dance craze – Zumba - definitely an evening to enjoy good company and learn a new dance. And on Friday 10^th June a 60’s Night, featuring ‘The Breakers’. If you like a good night out this is the place to be. Tickets will be available shortly from Home & Colour in the High Street.

Last year’s Festival distributed £6,000 to local good causes, a record, – and the Festival team want to increase that figure again this year. Stone Festival is put together by a group of volunteers from our local Service Organisations, including Inner Wheel, Lions and Rotary, and does not seek any payment from our local councils, indeed the Festival now has to pay to use local facilities such as Westbridge Park and Stonefield Park.  

During Festival week all the usual attractions will be taking place and perhaps a few new ones - look for the Festival Magazine, to be published in May, or visit the Festival website to see just what is planned.

Stone Festival - just 4 months away!
The helicopter is booked and so is an exciting mountain bike display team.  So once again Stone's carnival day on Saturday 11th June promises to be one to remember for the Town.
The festival team have arranged for the Savage Skills Mountain Bike Display Team to be in Stone for the whole of carnival day. Throughout the day they will be putting on a safe skills course to cater for all ages and during the afternoon will be entertaining festival goers with their impressive range of stunts.
They really do have to be seen to be believed.

Festival gets under way with the Top Talent auditions on Sunday May 15th - with the winning acts invited to perform in Westbridge Park on carnival day.
Once again, this year, the Festival team has arranged an opportunity for the winner to have some time in Inspire Music's recording studio, and with a cash prize on offer it really is a chance for our local Top Talent to make an impression.  Entry forms are available from Home & Colour in the High Street or you can simply download one from this link. 

The Sunday before Carnival Day (5th June) will feature Stone Festival's traditional curtain raiser, The Raft Race, whilst also on that Sunday the Dog Show, Car Boot Sale and Westbridge 5 events are expected to make for a busy day in Westbridge Park.  Later on Sunday evening the Festival Quiz at Granville's will give you an opportunity to flex your brain.

During Festival Week all the usual attractions will be taking place and perhaps a few new ones. Look for the Festival magazine to be published with the May edition of the Gazette or visit this web site on a regular basis to see what is planned.

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