Festival of Stories to bring eco-friendly messages to life in Chatteris, Doddington, March and Wisbech
The third Festival of Stories will bring another exciting programme of storytelling events to families of children from birth to five this month.
Top children’s authors and storytellers are joining the festival from February 21–28 at a range of venues to help families of young children learn more about the importance of caring for our planet.
Following last year’s successful events, this festival will include storytelling events with interactive activities such as litter picking, treasure hunts, nature trails, and crafts using recycled materials.
Many of these events will be held in partnership with Cambridgeshire Child and Family Centres, Cambridgeshire Libraries, Cambridgeshire Skills, Cambridgeshire Sensory Support Team, Barnardo’s, and local community groups.
The events taking place in Fenland are:
- West End Park in March, Thursday, February 21, 10am-noon and 1pm-3pm
- Wisbech Library, Ely Place, Wednesday, February 21
- Chatteris Child and Family Centre down Larham Way, Thursday, February 22
- Oasis Child and Family Centre, down St. Michaels Avenue in Wisbech, Thursday, February 22, 10am-11.30am, Saturday, February 24, 10am-11.30am, Wednesday, February 28, 1pm-2pm
- March Child and Family Centre down Cavalry Drive, Tuesday, February 27, 10am-11.15am
- Wisbech Park, Tuesday, February 27, 10am-12pm and 1pm-3pm
- March Library, Friday, February 23, 10am-11am, Wednesday, February 28, 9.30am-11.30am
- Lionel Walden Pre-School on High Street in Doddington, Wednesday, February 28, 9.15am-10.15am
The Festival of Stories is organised by Talking Together in Cambridgeshire, which was launched by Cambridgeshire County Council’s Early Years Childcare and School Readiness Service in 2018.
Cllr Bryony Goodliffe, chair of Cambridgeshire County Council’s Children and Young People Committee, said: “It’s wonderful to see so many of our partners reuniting for another Festival of Stories.
“Educating young children about caring for our planet is more important than ever, and the engaging storytelling on offer at this festival will encourage them to carry these messages with them as they grow up.”
Marion Leeper, one of the storytellers supporting the festival, said: “The Festival of Stories is a great opportunity to devise a story, especially for families, and based on their everyday experience – spotting litter by the road as they walk along.
“Storytellers often say, ‘You have to tell a story to get a story’ and everyday stories like these encourage so many stories in response – the stories that every family tells with their children, the little, ordinary events that make memories to bind a family together.”
The aim of the Festival of Stories is to work together with families to help young children better understand the world we live in while boosting their communication, language, and literacy skills through the magic of stories.
This year’s Festival of Stories will focus on ‘Caring For Our Planet’, an extension of the Early Years, Childcare and School Readiness Service’s ‘Our Best World’ project to help meet Cambridgeshire County Council's commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2045.
The festival’s theme is summarised by the three Rs:
- Reconnect - Encouraging parents to know the names of different common bugs that might be found in the garden or park as this is a first step in children learning to care for wildlife.
- Reuse - Using household waste items to create bug homes, and games/toys for little ones too, i.e., sock puppets, or pom-pom runs. Other ideas include book swaps, clothing swaps, and repair cafes.
- Recycle - Doing litter picks to remove rubbish to help nature thrive. Sorting the litter or items we cannot repurpose in different colour bags/boxes for the bin workers to collect.
The Festival of Stories is supported by a variety of community groups, including Abbey People, Active Fenland, BookTrust, Busy Fingers Pre-school, Cambridge Sustainable Food, Domino Pre-school, Groundwork East, Huntingdon Nursery School, Kings Hedges Family Support Partnership, Lionel Walden Primary School, Living Sport, Niche Comics and Books, Peterborough Environment City Trust, Teddington Playgroup, the University of Cambridge as well as a number of foodbanks and food-hubs across the county.
All events are free unless stated otherwise. To find out more about Festival of Stories events coming up in Cambridgeshire this February and how to book, visit their Facebook page – @talkingtogethercambs or the Festival of Stories website.