Leamington was once again lit up with a dazzling display of lanterns for the town centre’s popular annual Lantern Parade.
Hundreds of people gathered at the bandstand in the Royal Pump Room Gardens to join and enjoy the light spectacle known as ‘Luminate Leamington’, organised by BID Leamington.
The parade is a festive favourite and this year large sharks and whales, alongside elephants, reindeer, butterflies, hearts and beautifully decorated Christmas trees were among the array of lanterns that delighted spectators.
The lanterns included some that have been made in homes by families over the past month, as well as many that were started in woodland workshops hosted by BID Leamington in November.
After gathering around the bandstand for Christmas songs led by local entertainer David Harrop, around 200 lanterns paraded through the town centre behind shimmering stilt-walking angels from Flambé Circus Theatre.
The procession ended at the Town Hall with Christmas carols accompanied by the Royal Spa Brass Band and the Baptist Church Choir, and there was also a surprise visit from Santa too.
Stephanie Kerr, executive director of BID Leamington, said: “It was very special to see the Lantern Parade return this year after two years away.
“It takes quite a lot of work to prepare, so I always feel a little overwhelmed with joy watching it culminate with lanterns winding their way around the whole perimeter of the Pump Room Gardens – it is very beautiful.
“This year I really enjoyed the setting of the woodland workshops in Foundry Wood and as always, I am blown away by the creativity, diversity and joyfulness of everyone who takes part.
“Also, I would like to thank our local businesses who support this event and all the volunteers from the University of Warwick, Rotary Club and others, who helped at the workshops and the parade.
“BID Leamington still has a number of other festive events coming up and we look forward to seeing everyone support our town centre in the run-up to Christmas.”
BID Leamington has already deployed the Christmas Angels to add some sparkle to the town centre, and families can enjoy the Elf Workshop in the Royal Priors on weekends and post letters in Santa’s Post Box, located in Regent Court.
This year Thursday late-night shopping will begin on December 16th through to December 23rd, and there is also an Elf Hunt running until Thursday December 23rd with a £100 shopping spree up for grabs.
Town centre CCTV has captured footage of a naughty elf who has been let loose in Leamington in the run-up to Christmas – and families are being invited to discover his antics and be in with a chance of winning a prize.
View the naughty elf footage here:
BID Leamington is launching an ‘Elf Hunt’ in partnership with the creators of ‘Atmap’, where participants can follow the footsteps of a cheeky elf and decipher his clues.
The elfs trail can be followed by downloading the local events app Atmap onto a smartphone, and participants will need to locate the elf’s trail of destruction around seven Leamington shops.
The app will allow people to scan a QR code in a shop, giving them a secret letter and a clue to where to find the next one.
Once the codeword has been revealed – participants can head to the final location, pick a mystery treat and enter the prize draw where a grand prize of £100 to spend in Leamington shops could be won.
Stephanie Kerr, executive director of BID Leamington, said: “Four elves originally came to Leamington to deliver Santa’s Post Box in the town centre – but only three left.
“One naughty elf stayed behind and caused quite a bit of mischief in the town centre, and we’re encouraging the public to follow the clues, find the elf’s hiding place and be in with a chance of winning a prize.
“The Elf Hunt will be a fun way for everyone to explore the town centre in the run up to Christmas – and we’re hopeful there’ll be plenty of people taking part who can find the elf’s final location!
“We are also grateful to be working with Jack Gibson and his team at Gibsonhaus who developed this idea and the new events app – Atmap.”
Also hidden in the trail is an Elf with a hearing aid that has been made by Ashlea Lines, of Me & You. She adapts toys so every child is able to relate to and love them, and is selling these handmade elves with 10 percent of sales going to the National Deaf Children’s Society.
The Elf Hunt will run from Wednesday, December 1 to Thursday, December 23.
It will also coincide with Small Business Saturday, a national campaign on Saturday, December 4 to highlight small businesses and encourage people to use them over the Christmas period.
All off street car parks will be free to park in on the day, and BID Leamington’s ‘Christmas Angels’ will be giving away 250 ‘goody bags’ full of vouchers for town centre businesses.
To find out more about the Elf Hunt, Me & You Inclusive Toys and what’s happening in town this Christmas please visit www.loveleamington.com/elf-hunt/. Download Atmap on Google Play on Android or the App Store on iPhones or visit www.atmap.co.uk for more details.
Discover Santa’s Post Box in the heart of Leamington Town Centre.
Find Santa’s Post Box in the heart of the town centre in Livery Street, Regent Court (nr Bar Angeli). You can’t miss it!
Post your letter, then push the button to the right of the letterbox and watch it fly all the way to Lapland …
If you include your name, mobile and email on the letter, or envelope, you will be entered into a fantastic £100 prize draw.
Thank you for supporting our town centre businesses this Christmas.
Note: This is a local promotion and not a Royal Mail Post Box, so there is no need to include a postage stamp on letters.
FREE Workshops
Write your letter to Santa and enjoy a small craft activity in the Elf Workshop all for FREE! (1 activity per child, subject to availability).
Find it on the Lower Mall in Royal Priors Shopping Centre on Saturday 4th, 11th, and 18th December between 10am- 4pm and on Sunday 5th, 12th and 19th December between 11am- 4pm.
We have a letter template you might like to use, and you can also download a ‘reply’ from Santa which you can personalise. We have a choice of messages below.
CLICK HERE see the full T&C’s – Royal Leamington Spa Santa’s Post Box Prize Draw
A spooky pumpkin treasure hunt will lead families through Leamington town centre this Halloween – with a chance of prizes at the end.
The Pumpkin Path, organised by BID Leamington, will take families round a choice of two trails to collect clues from 46 shops in the town centre. It will run from 9am to 5pm starting on Saturday October 23, with final entries being taken at 5pm on Sunday October 31.
Once all the clues are gathered, participants can work out where the final postbox is to post their entry and be in with a chance of winning the grand prize – £200 worth of treats from a range of Leamington businesses.
For those who gather ten or more clues, there will also be a number of runners-up prizes worth £300 in total – including vouchers from Fat Birds Café, free burgers and fries from Libertine Burger, games donated by Coventry Building Society, and much more.
New businesses are also taking part in the Pumpkin Path this year, including Cats Protection, Head Records, Decanter Spirit, Dodo Pizza, Esquires Coffee, Casa Valle, Space Health Care, New Look, Jones Bootmaker, and Little Cup Café.
Alison Shaw, project manager at BID Leamington, said: “The Pumpkin Path has been really well-received in previous years, so we knew we wanted to bring it back once again.
“This year, we’ve split the path into two trails because of how many Leamington shops are taking part, and it’s great to see plenty of new businesses getting involved this year.
“We’d love to see families get into the Halloween spirit by dressing up in their spooky outfits, having a go at finding all the clues and reaching the final postbox in its secret location.
“It’s a fun way of getting out and about this half term and re-discovering the wide selection of wonderful shops Leamington has to offer.”
Entry forms are available at all participating shops and at the Upper Mall of the Royal Priors Shopping Centre from Thursday October 21.
Some of the best amateur cooks in Warwickshire will battle it out at one of the county’s biggest food festivals this weekend to be crowned as champion.
The Home Cook of the Year competition is being held at the free Leamington Food and Drink Festival in the Pump Room Gardens on its second day – Sunday September 12 – and the three finalists have been revealed.
The competition is just one attraction at the festival – organised by BID Leamington with the support of local businesses – which is retuning once again after being cancelled last year due to COVID-19.
Abigail Brown, Martyn Jones, and 2019 finalist Laura Noble all qualified for the final after submitting their three-course menus to competition organisers and prominent Leamington butchers, Aubrey Allen.
The three will cook their meals from 1pm on the Sunday, with judging taking place between 2:30 and 3pm.
Aubrey Allen will be supplying short ribs of beef, chicken, and rump of lamb for the finalists to use.
Russell Allen, Managing Director of Aubrey Allen, said: “All three finalists’ menus look absolutely fantastic, and we can’t wait to see what they produce on the day.
“We’re really looking forward to hosting the competition once again this year and being part of such a fantastic festival which celebrates the best of Leamington’s food and drink.”
The festival will be held from 10am to 6pm on Saturday September 11 and Sunday September 12 – and will have a huge range of food and drink from local businesses for visitors to try.
Around 110 exhibitors will be present this year, with Japanese, Vietnamese, Indian, Caribbean, Mexican, Greek, Mediterranean, Italian, Thai, Spanish, and English cuisines all featuring over the weekend.
Alongside the Home Cook of the Year competition, the Live Kitchen will feature cooking demonstrations from 12 noon on both days, including Zimbabwean creations from Caz Gundu, the perfect pork fillet by Sophie Hyam, and Aubrey Allen butchery school teaching attendees the best way to prepare meat.
The Kids Make and Bake Cookery School will also return, with parents being able to book a spot on the same day for their child from 11am.
And live music from local acts on the bandstand will provide the perfect soundtrack for visitors to enjoy as they eat and drink.
Alison Shaw, BID Project Manager at BID Leamington, said: “It’s not long to go now until the Food Festival returns, and it’s going to be another fantastic event.
“The Home Cook of the Year competition is sure to be a great demonstration of brilliant amateur cooking, and it’ll be fascinating to see who is crowned the winner.
“And the huge variety of exhibitors this year means there’ll be interesting food and drink for everyone to enjoy.
“We can’t wait to welcome everyone back to what is sure to be a fantastic weekend of food, drink, and music.”
For a small town, we are blessed with a lot of paces to find art.
Leamington town centre boasts twelve art galleries specialising in everything from photography and decorative arts, to street-inspired contemporary works.
With affordable art from the next big thing or investment pieces by famous names, there’s something for all tastes and budgets.
Though it’s OK just to look too.
The art is there for everyone and you are invited to go and enjoy it.
The University of Warwick’s free Creative Futures Incubator based in Leamington Spa’s co-working space 1 Mill Street is already powering up new local businesses, but now is also powering pedestrians up the Parade in Leamington, with 2 e-trikes. These innovative pedicabs provide a creative, environmentally friendly way for residents to get around the town centre and access the shops.
The Creative Futures programme gives small creative businesses six months free access to state-of-the-art offices, meeting spaces and collaboration networks at 1 Mill Street (which is based on the corner of Mill Street and Leam Terrace). It also provides tailored coaching sessions, access to enterprise experts and mentors and the ability to network and learn from other businesses in the Incubator and Mill Street members.
In discussions with local partners about how the programme could use creativity and ingenuity to benefit residents and identify another cohort of creative businesses to work with, the team spoke to BID Leamington and hit upon the idea of supporting the link from bus stops to shops, by offering a fun, comfortable rides up and down the Parade while it is closed.
From 12noon to 4pm on 15th and 16th July and 11am – 4pm on 17th and 18th July, the Creative Futures Incubator will be providing two sponsored electric Pedicabs to provide pedal power to Parade pedestrians who wish to access shops and services. Pedicabs developed by Hailservices, a Coventry-based zero emission taxi and delivery services company, are powered by friendly riders, and will be stationed at the top and bottom of the ‘closed’ area when not enroute. Passengers are invited to flag them down and enjoy the ride completely free of charge.
Stephanie Kerr, Executive Director, BID Leamington said
“Businesses supported by Creative Futures have already been making a positive impact in the town centre, so we are delighted to support this programme. We are also keen to explore future sustainable access, mobility and delivery options that serve both businesses and customers, so felt this this might be interesting idea to try out”
In 7 months, the first 5 businesses in the Creative Futures Incubator raised £101k worth of finance, created 3 new jobs and gained 9 new clients. The University of Warwick through this scheme delivered 101 hours of 1:1 coaching, 23 hours group sessions & introductions to 64 business or academic contacts. The businesses also benefited greatly from connecting with over 250 small and medium enterprises in the 1 Mill Street community and connecting with the wider creative cluster which is the largest outside of Greater London.
Clare Green, Creative & Digital Communities Manager at the University of Warwick said:
“We want to help creative business accelerate, so finding a creative way to help pedestrians accelerate up and down the Parade while we look for the next cohort of creative businesses feels appropriate. Leamington pedestrians have between 15th and 18th July to take us up on our pedal power offer, but creative business have until the end of the month to apply to join the programme”
Details on how to join the scheme can be found here:
For your chance to win £50 to spend in Leamington Town Centre take a ride and post an image (photos, video or selfie) on either ‘Twitter’, ‘Facebook’ or ‘Instagram’ using the hashtag (#) ‘#LiftLeam’ between the dates of the promotion, to be entered into the prize draw. (T’s and C’s apply)
The Great Easter Egg Hunt returns to Leamington Town Centre this April! The trail is aiming to hatch a bit of fun while encouraging families to support their high street as lockdown restrictions ease.
Encompassing 50 shops the trail will run from Thursday April 1 to Wednesday April 28 and will also introduce treasure hunters to some new businesses as well.
BID Leamington has organised the trail where colourful eggs will be displayed in shop windows with a choice of two trails, blue or green or you can do them both!
There are two ‘golden eggs’ to be found, one on each route and once found the treasure hunters just have to jot down the name of the shop (s) onto the entry form to be entered into a grand prize draw to be in with a chance to win one of five £50 vouchers to be spent in Leamington Spa Town Centre shops.
The Great Easter Egg Hunt coincides with the planned reopening of shops on April 12, and Alison Shaw, BID Project Manager at BID Leamington, hopes it will encourage people back into the town.
She said: “We wanted to spread a bit of Easter fun around Leamington and give families a reason to come back into the town and visit our fantastic shops.
“It’s a great way for people to explore the town again, visit a wide range of retailers and enjoy themselves after what’s been a tough year.
“We hope plenty of people give The Great Easter Egg Hunt a go, and we’re looking forward to seeing our shops welcome back their customers once again.”
Treasure hunters can also view artwork from youngsters who participated in the ‘I Love Leamington’ campaign organised jointly with Go Go Makers, who asked children to create a self-portrait inside a heart – including the words ‘I Love Leamington’. Their pictures are now on display in a selection of shop windows until April 6, and will then be displayed in the Royal Priors Shopping Centre after April 12.
Alison added: “We’re delighted with what the young artists have created. Their work and the Great Easter Egg Hunt will both help to encourage people into town as our shops reopen.”
Entry forms for the Great Easter Egg Hunt can be downloaded online at www.loveleamington.com, can be picked up from the white unit on the Lower Mall of Royal Priors, or can be found in the Leamington Observer. Forms will also be available from shops once they have re-opened.
Leamington is to get its very own ‘walk of fame’ to shine a light on the stars of the town over the festive period as part of preparations for Christmas arriving earlier this year.
The Spa Stars walk of fame is being created by BID Leamington and will feature the names of 100 local people nominated for being a shining light.
The sparkly stars will decorate walkways around the town centre, including spaces around the Royal Priors Shopping Centre, Regent Court and the Town Hall.
People are now being urged to nominate friends and loved ones for a star between November 1 and 8.
The nominations opening marks the start of Christmas coming to Leamington earlier than usual in order to give people more time and space to shop and enjoy the festivities.
Alison Shaw, project manager at BID Leamington, said: “From the start of November, we are going to be lighting up Leamington with a host of festive attractions including the Spa Stars walk of fame to enable people to avoid the usual Christmas rush.
“With the road closures to support social distancing and the measures implemented by businesses, we already have a safe shopping environment and by bringing Christmas to the town centre earlier we are giving people more time and space to enjoy the festivities.
“The idea of Spa Stars is for people to nominate someone who is a shining light in their life for a chance to see them celebrated in our walk of fame.
“It could be a friend, family member, neighbour or colleague and we are asking for a short reason for each nomination. It could be for a kind act, for their friendship or simply because they are loved.
“One hundred names will be selected at random to feature on a star that will make up the walk of fame around the town centre, and those not selected will be celebrated online via our Love Leamington website.
“The stars will be gold and sparkly so will be a great addition to Leamington’s display of lights and decorations, and another attraction for people to come into the town centre over the festive period and support business on their doorstep by shopping local.”
To nominate a shining star, complete the Spa Stars entry form available at www.loveleamington.com from November 1 to 8.
Halloween’s arrived there’s no place to hide
As ghosts and witches come alive
52 Orange pumpkins waiting to be found
In shop windows all around town
Each with a clue to help you unlock
the place you will find…the ‘scarey post box’
Post your form in the giant witches pot
Whether you gathered all the clues or not?
A trail of pumpkins will be carving its way through Leamington town centre to lead families on a treat of a treasure hunt to celebrate Halloween.
Collect clues from any 10 shop windows to enter the prize draw to win prizes for ALL the family including a family meal, sweet treats and gift cards (please note that due to current restrictions there are no treats this year and ALL clues will be found on the outside of shop windows).
The treasure hunters will be challenged to collect at least ten hidden clues from participating outlets. Along the way, they will find the mystery location of the Scarey Post Box for their entries to be posted.
For the first time, you can complete the Pumpkin Path on this website! The game is simple, find 10 of the 52 pumpkins hidden around this website, and enter the competition.
Over £1000 worth of prizes will be up for grabs with businesses taking part in this year’s Pumpkin Path organised by BID Leamington from Saturday, October 24th to Saturday, October 31st with entry forms being available at participating outlets and in the Upper Mall of the Royal Priors Shopping Centre from Saturday, October 24.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Read More
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
BID Leamington is launching an ‘Elf Hunt’ in partnership with the creators of ‘Atmap’, where participants can follow the footsteps of a cheeky elf and decipher his clues.
The app will allow people to scan a QR code in a shop, giving them a secret letter and a clue to where to find the next one.
