Childern's Art at Kingbur Mill

Exhibition of children’s art at Kingbur Mill

Coinciding with the Gathering of Historic Boats and Festival of Transport, Kingbur Mill will host an exhibition of canal-themed art, created by the children of Audlem St James Primary School.  Doors will open from 12-4.30pm on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th July.

Pupils in years R-2 will exhibit collaborative art pieces and those in years 3-6 will show individual pieces, which will each be numbered. Visitors will be invited to vote for their favourite individually-created artwork in a secret ballot, by writing down its corresponding number and dropping their vote into a ballot box.  Winners of the competition will be notified to the school so that medals can be awarded in September. Thank you to Liz Morris at Audlem school for coordinating everything.

Although we've had some interest already via the lettings agency, we are still searching for commercial tenants for the ground and first floors of the mill. Remaining connected to the village community while we do so is a high priority, and opening the doors over this busy weekend in the village is a great opportunity to do just that.  It was this time last year that we held our open day, inviting locals, boaters and visitors to the village to share what they’d like to see in the mill – we're really looking forward to being open again for this year's village event.

In addition to the art exhibition, we’re hosting a busking spot on Saturday 25th July from 12-4pm in aid of Mid Cheshire Hospitals Charity End of Life Care Fund. Thank you to Dale from the Shroppie Fly for getting the ball rolling, Mary from the charity for managing the collections and even huger thanks to Simon from the music festival team for making it all happen.  Do come along and join us to listen to a variety of music in aid of a great cause.

Continuing the theme of community, Dave and Colin (from the Bridge Inn), Dale and I recently met up to discuss how we could build on our unique position together along the wharf. With the large numbers expected to be visiting the historic boats and heading out for refreshments after the Festival of Transport, we felt that this was the perfect weekend to launch our approach – do keep an eye out for our posters. Thank you to Kelvin Avis for help with the poster design. As usual, the Shroppie Fly will have a bustling bar and this year, on Friday 24th the Bridge Inn is hosting a Greatest Showman singalong and BBQ in the evening.

While we continue to look for tenants, we'll be exploring ideas for other pop-up event opportunities like this in the future, particularly in collaboration with our pub neighbours.  Looking back to when we purchased the mill, just before the festivals in July 2025, it’s been a busy time getting the mill up and running to where we are now.  My final thanks go to my dad, Geoff Seddon, for all of his help and support over the past year.

We’re really looking forward to welcoming the village back in through the doors again.

Di and family

Kingbur Mill

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