Community Events

COMMUNITY EVENTS Community welcomed back to town centre

Shoppers and visitors alike were most certainly ‘welcomed back’ to Leek town centre recently when Leek Town Council hosted a community event.

The event, which was hosted using some of the Government’s ‘Welcome Back Fund’ included live music, circus workshop, and street entertainers.

Here are just a few pictures which have been kindly sent in to us by some of our readers from the day.

Have you been to a community event recently? Email us your photos to our Editor Belinda at news@timesandecho.co.uk, for possible use in our publications.

Photo by Kirsty King

Izzy with some of the street performers. Photo by Liz Salmon

COMMUNITY EVENTS Festival helped wash away the Covid blues

Having skipped a year due to the pandemic, the ninth annual Leek Blues & Americana Festival was back with a vengeance in early October with five days of live music featuring 70 acts playing in 20 venues around the town.

Despite the lingering effect of Covid-19 and a limit on capacity at ticketed events, festival goers were treated to some great music from artists from the UK, Europe, and north America.

Headline acts included US singer songwriters Jerry Joseph and Jesse Malin, blues and gospel singer Kyla Brox, anarchic harmonica and beatbox virtuoso, Son of Dave and a solo performance from hard-hitting blues singer/songwriter, Ian Siegal.

The free live music programme started on the Thursday with bands playing gigs up until the festival ‘Last Call’ at the Roebuck on the Sunday night where any musicians still standing took to the outdoor stage for one final jam session.

Festival organiser JR Mountford said: “After what has been an especially tough time for musicians and the hospitality industry it was great to be able to stage the 2021 Blues & Americana Festival. “The musicians, the audience and the venues were so eager to enjoy the occasion and the music and atmosphere didn’t disappoint. “Thanks to the help of all the great venues and our sponsors 90 per cent of the performances are free entry. There is twelve months of hard work goes into this and I’m personally grateful to all the organisers who volunteer their time, the great venues, our sponsors and of course the talented musicians and devoted fans who bring the festival to life.”

One post on Facebook summed up the festival, saying: “Thanks for a great couple of days in Leek, my new favourite town – hope to come back soon.”