Saddled up for summer fun

3:00pm Sunday 20th July 2008

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IT felt like a real British summer in Worcestershire at the weekend with hundreds of people out and about making the most of the warm weather.

On Saturday, families were at Gheluvelt Park in Barbourne, Worcester, for a fun cycling event.

Pedal In The Park included a stunt team, climbing wall, mountain bike challenge course and guided cycle ride, along with free bike safety checks and fancy dress contest.

Elsewhere, St Richard’s Hospice opened a new shop in King Charles Place, St John’s.

The store vacated its previous base five months ago due to redevelopment of the area, and on Saturday morning made a welcome return.

Dan Corn, commercial director for St Richard’s Hospice, said: “I think we’ve been missed. There were people in the shop as soon as the doors opened, and the second customer we had spent £57 on gifts for family and friends.”

The store is open Monday to Saturday each week. Anyone interested in volunteering is urged to drop in or call St Richard’s on 01905 763963.

In Droitwich, businesses were celebrating a year since devastating floods forced many of them to close.

The High Street Summer Party was a Caribbean-themed feel-good extravaganza with live samba music, dancing in the streets, puppet shows, craft stalls, face painting and photographic exhibitions.

Denuka Jones, owner of Butterfingers Cook Shop, has recently started selling local produce and offered Worcestershire foods to passers-by.

“It’s nice to see so many people,” she said.

“This time last year we had everybody here for the wrong reasons. Now, it’s a different story. Although the water did not reach us, we lost a lot of business because the road was closed. This is really going to help and show people that we’re still here, still trading and worth visiting.”