It is the season of sunny days and summer delight: Pimm’s on the lawn, strawberries & cream, afternoon tea, picnic in the park, barbeques with friends and family – all the wonderful things fond memories are made of.  The festival bonanza continues as The Great British Food Festival returns to Kelmarsh, see pages 70-71, and Oundle International Festival offers nine days of spectacular entertainment, see pages 18-19.  Car fanatics will cherish Silverstone Classic, see page 60-61, which promises a cracking weekend of racing and rocking.

Throughout the summer months, there will be endless summer fairs, flower festivals and fêtes in our villages celebrating the best of our community and raising funds for charity at the same time.  As the children break up for the holidays you may find inspiration in the pages ahead for fun days out and entertaining activities to keep everyone happy.  Our local country parks are putting on a huge selection, see pages 44-45; Kettering Borough Council will run playschemes in some of our villages as well as Kettering by the Sea, see pages 38-39; there is storytelling at Kelmarsh, see pages 70-71; Lyveden hosts Wildlife Wednesdays and outdoor theatre performances, see page 78; and there will be an impressive range of sports and drama activities taking place at Oundle School, see page 86.  The Vikings will be coming to Rockingham Castle, see page 72; Wistow Maze is in the shape of Sherlock Holmes for some serious whodunnit-solving and offers readers of Village Connect the chance to win tickets, see pages 66-67; and open-air cinema screenings will take place throughout our region, see page 90.

Don’t forget to check our recently updated website and to like our Facebook page to be kept up-to-date with the latest events and offers.  I wish you all a delightful summer with lots of sunny days.

Hillcrest House

Church Hill

Geddington

Northants

NN14 1AH

Tel: 01536 744700