Community & social events in Walmsley Parish

We warmly invite you to our twice monthly Coffee mornings at St. Andrew’s Church Hall and at Walmsley Parish Community Hall:

Please support our social & community fund-raising events. And if anyone out there would like to help with/share any fundraising ideas, please get in touch. There is so much going on in our Parish and wider team. Please do make a note of dates and come along to events whenever you can. We would love to welcome you.

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We invite you to a very special SONGS OF PRAISE on Sunday 14 September at 3.30pm at Christ Church Walmsley

TICKETS £10 including refreshments (Under 16s FREE)

Bolton Hoover Brass Band has a strong connection with Christ Church with several members attending now or in the past. They have kindly agreed to perform for us, with all funds raised going to Christ Church to help with the current list of repairs, etc.

You are invited to choose your favourite hymns, from which the band will play a selection. You may introduce the hymn (if you wish) and explain why it is your favourite …or write it down so it can be read out.

They will also play several beautiful hymns especially arranged for Brass Band. We will have a special guest, Andrew Lofthouse – one of the best cornet players in the country – who attends Christ Church. He will play with the band and a Solo from the suite, Hymn to the Highlands – Flowerdale.

 Accompanied children can come along free of charge – and they will love the excitement of an AMAZING BRASS BAND – playing whichever of their favourite hymns they wish to choose!!!

PLEASE SUPPORT US as this is a fund-raising concert – to afford to pay for much needed repairs – and the new church boiler (so that we don’t freeze in church over winter!!!!) 😊

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The award-winning TURTON TECH CLUB POP-IN is available at our CAFÉ IN THE HALL : Laptop, Mobile and Tablet Help & Support ~ Ask us ANYTHING! Nikki Barlow will be on hand to deal with any of your tech problems. Open to the Parish, the Team, the Mission Community and beyond! So please come along with or without a device and ask away. Never miss an opportunity to learn a new skill, and spread the word…  NEXT DATE: SATURDAY 20 September

Here are the dates for the rest of this year for our monthly event held in Walmsley Parish Community Hall. Please support our fund-raising and social events.

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Our Parish Community Hall Manager: John Clayton, and Committee Chairman: Sandra Morris, have organised some SUPER, EXCITING events at the Hall; please DO COME ALONG and support things. We are in danger of losing this much-loved facility if we can’t afford to maintain it!!
Please click THIS LINK to read a report from Sandra M about the situation with Walmsley Parish Community Hall.

Forthcoming attractions at Walmsley Parish Community Hall

Sunday 21^st Sept – ‘A Bit of Lanky Panky’ –  2pm to 4pm: – This is a unique event of laugh-out-loud comedy, stories, catchy choruses and joiney-in bits with Buzz Hawkins and Dom Collins and a very special surprise guest. The performance runs from 2pm to 4pm. Tickets £15

Our Hall Manager, John Clayton, is absolutely certain that this will be a lot of fun and should go down a storm. Bradshaws fans will probably have a good idea who the ‘mystery guest’ will be! For those who don’t care to buy tickets online, John has a supply of them (50 in total) which he is happy to exchange for £15 each… Contact him on 07306 129997 or parish-hall@walmsleyparish.org

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Friday 26^th Sept – Macmillan Coffee Morning – Every cuppa and every penny counts to support people living with cancer in the UK. 10.30am -12.00

  

Let’s make time for coffee, cakes, the people in our lives – and raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support. Please come to our World’s Biggest Coffee Morning on FRIDAY 26 SEPTEMBER 10.30am til noon at Walmsley Parish Community Hall. Please note: this is a CASH ONLY event.

Jo Woods – who is organizing this event – would be very grateful for any offers of help and donations of home-baked cakes, prizes … and support on the day. Please contact her on 07970 593849. If you are unable to attend and wish to make a donation to Macmillan Cancer Support, please click this LINK or, to support Jo’s Campaign, please use this QR code:

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Sunday 28^th Sept – Fun With Trains – back for another session of super-charged train tracks!
Children can’t wait to play with all their favourite character motorised trains.

Monday 2^nd Nov to Saturday 8^th Nov – WCAODS presents ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ An epic and thrilling musical based on the novel, with songs from the Disney film. For info and tickets visit https://walmsleychurchaods.co.uk/book-tickets

Saturday 15^th Nov – Coffee Morning Christmas Fair – gift ideas galore alongside all your usual coffee morning treats. 10am to 1pm

Saturday 15^th Nov – Variety Night Fundraiser presented by LaVolta Dance Bolton. An evening of music and dance raising much-needed funds for the Parish Hall.

Saturday 22^nd Nov – Fundraising Concert with The Frequency. All your favourite rock and pop classics…be prepared to boogie!

Friday 28^th Nov – Northern Soul and Motown Show – after the success of her Cilla show earlier this year, Sandy returns to the Parish Hall with a show packed with toe-tapping hits from the 60’s and 70’s. For tickets visit https://www.ents24.com/uk/tour-dates/a-night-of-motown-and-northern-soul-belle-voix-trio

Sandy Smith is returning to Walmsley Parish Community Hall… and it will be a Northern Soul/Motown show, so a good excuse for everyone to get out their dancing shoes.

Sunday 30^th Nov – Craft and Makers Market – the perfect opportunity to buy that special Christmas gift for a loved one….or you could just treat yourself! The market opens at 11.

Friday 12^th Dec to Sunday 14^th Dec – Stagedoor Theatre Productions present ‘Aladdin’…the pantomime where all your wishes come true. For info and tickets visit: www.ticketsource.co.uk/stagedoor

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We held a very special concert on Saturday 7 June, when Ilona Hepburn performed with her fellow musicians for our delight and enjoyment… Thank you to all who came and supported.

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Celebrating the Life and Music of the legendary Cilla Black, Cilla & The Swinging 60s is a highly entertaining show, starring the unforgettable voice of Sandy Smith.

What a fabulous evening of entertainment!! ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!! A feel-good night that we  could have honestly enjoyed all over again. Sandy Smith was a super singer, and brought everyone together to have a fabulous time. We look forward to her coming back to perform again.

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Our first Craft and Makers Market here at Walmsley Parish Community Hall with Evergreen Events on Sunday 2nd March 2025was wonderful!
Over 30 local talented small businesses will be showcasing their lovingly made creations, with unique gifts, home decor, local artists; it had something special for everyone. It was a wonderful opportunity to find one–of–a–kind pieces whilst investing into your community.
With food and refreshments provided by our Walmsley ‘Café in the Hall’ Team.
[Proceeds from the refreshments were for Walmsley Parish Community Hall fundraising.] 

 

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2024 ~ Successful events earlier this year:

Advent Prayer and Activity Day – St. Andrew’s Church
Saturday 23^rd November 10am – 4pm

A day filled with fun, faith and friendship when members of our two churches came together and volunteers shared their talents and skills on an Advent / Christmas theme, with time for prayer at the beginning, at lunchtime and at the close of the day’s activities. Thank you to Angie Foster for organising it. To read more about it and to see photographs, please click the blue link to this post

Photography Competition

To raise awareness of the ecology of our area and encourage conservation.
Five categories to enter: Waterways – Walkways – Woodland – Wildlife – Wild Flora.

The exhibition of entries were on display at Christ Church Walmsley on Sunday October 6th 2024 .

The entries received for the photography competition were so very professional; real skill was shown in capturing some amazing scenes and wildlife. Thank you to everyone who entered, and thank you to Ken Holt for organising this to highlight the amazing beauty and diverse ecology we have across the Turton Moorland Team.

The photos were on display in church when the Bishop of Bolton joined us for a joint Harvest Service at the beginning of October. They really were stunning – so professional – and it was good to talk to some of the photographers about them !! They would grace any wall in our homes!

Macmillan Coffee Event: FRIDAY 27 SEPTEMBER 11am to 1pm . 

Thank you to everyone who supported the Macmillan event at Walmsley Parish Community Hall. Jo Woods is pleased to announce that the total of £802 will go to this worthwhile charity.

Thank you to Jo and ‘team’ for organising this.

WALMSLEY LIVE LOUNGE 4 – Saturday 21 September @ 7.30pm in Walmsley Parish Community Hall. This was a wonderfully laid-back and relaxed musical evening with some amazing singer/song-writers showing their skills… What a fabulous way to spend an evening in the company of friends.

Piano and violin recital at Christ Church Walmsley                     

Saturday 7 September – 4pm – FREE entry with retiring collection + CAKE!!!!

   

A rare opportunity to hear some of the best upcoming musical talent in the country from local young performers.

Dana is an 18 year old violinist from Ukraine, now living in Egerton.  She has a place to study violin at RNCM starting in October.

Harry is a 17 year old pianist from Belmont, attending Canon Slade 6th form and hopes to go to a London conservatoire after his A levels.

They met at the Royal Northern Junior College where they both attended Saturday school.

They will curate a programme of classical music to include some solo violin and solo piano pieces and also some items in which Harry will accompany Dana.

What a fabulous concert we were treated to at Christ Church Walmsley that afternoon. The incredible musical skills of 18-year old Dana filled every corner of our church with her amazing violin playing and the superb pianistic talents of 17-year old Harry made our beautiful Bechstein grand positively resound with joy!

The repertoire was wonderfully varied and ranged from Bach & Telemann to Messiaen & Massenet, with Chopin, Tchaikovsky & Debussy en route.

Thank you to everyone who helped in the planning, preparation and cake-making, with special thanks to Nicola K, Sheila B, Church Warden Hilary D … and also to cuppa pourers Anne McC & Abigail B.

And huge thanks to everyone who came to enjoy the performance … and support with their donations, which are to be split between Sing for Pleasure and our church roof repairs. 

ECO DAY in and around CHRIST CHURCH WALMSLEY on SATURDAY 17 FEBRUARY:

A FUN DAY FOR ALL THE FAMILY

Thank you to everyone who helped with – or came along to participate in – the activities at our ECO DAY. Everyone seems to have had a great time … see if you can spot the new nesting boxes as you walk through the grounds up at Christ Church Walmsley and the bug hotel as you walk around the back of church.

Thank you to HOWARTH TIMBER & BUILDING SUPPLIES, who donated all the materials for making the nesting boxes.

Huge thanks also to Ken Holt, who was the inspiration for the activity, to Nick Hitchen, who cut, prepped and assisted youngsters in the making of the nesting boxes, and to Aubrey McCreesh, Phil Shaw and Jenny Murphy, who helped on the day with building the BUG HOTEL and litter picking.

To see photos of the day, please access the separate post: https://walmsleyparish.org/eco-day-at-christ-church-walmsley-saturday-17-february-10am-4pm/

This was an opportunity for children – of all ages – and adults to get involved, make bird boxes, learn about our eco challenges, etc…

LIVE LOUNGE 2 – 7pm on SATURDAY 17 FEBRUARY

This was an excellent evening at Walmsley Parish Community Hall.

Thank you to all the performers for sharing their musical skills and talent – and to Dean Lane and John Clayton for organising it.

Reverend Hannah Lane, our enthusiastic, energetic and enigmatic Team Curate here in Walmsley Parish, was the inspiration for this amazing concert to CELEBRATE the 185^th YEAR of Walmsley Church – a wonderful concert performed by ASTLEY UNLIMITED BAND & CHOIR – 7pm on SATURDAY 24 FEBRUARY in Christ Church Walmsley.

See our Walmsley Parish Facebook page for a write up of this amazing evening … and to watch Rev Hannah’s TERRIFIC TUBA SOLO if you’d like another listen :

(https://www.facebook.com/walmsleyparish/videos/408790791544681)

Astley Unlimited Choir were amazing also, with a wonderful repertoire, a skilful accompanist who made our Bechstein parlour grand ‘sing’ … and we were treated to beautiful solos by Kathryn Whitfield (who happens to be Rev Hannah’s Mum!)

Our EASTER THEMED CAFÉ in the Hall at WALMSLEY PARISH COMMUNITY HALL on SATURDAY 9 MARCH: 10am til midday was a good community event. Thank you to all who attended or helped in any way. Special thanks to Wendy, Anne & Kim, who worked so hard in the kitchen with the other volunteers – and made beautiful Easter gifts.  They also knitted beautiful pink buttoned hearts ‘with love’ for all the ladies on Mothering Sunday in church.

SATURDAY 9^th MARCH 2024

Thanks you to all who came along and had a wonderful time at the Ceilidh in Walmsley Parish Community Hall with a night of music and dancing for all ages and all levels of skill/ability. 

Special thanks to Sandra Morris for organising it and to our Hall Manager John Clayton (and his son-in-law, Josh) who manned the extensive bar.

We held an OPEN DAY at Christ Church Walmsley on SATURDAY 13 APRIL 10am-4pm. We hope you popped in, had a look around and learned lots about your church …

And, as this coincided with our Café at Walmsley Parish Community Hall from 10am til midday, we hope you came and shares a brew and a breakfast barm … maybe with a cake too + a browse of the stalls.

 

UNFORTUNATELY, THIS TEAM EVENT HAD TO BE CANCELLED, due to having sold few tickets…