The Camping and Caravanning Club has announced that it is planning a phased reopening of its campsites across the UK at the start of July.
The organisation is hoping to open to reopen sites in England on 4th July, in line with the government’s phase three plans of the lockdown exit roadmap, and will be releasing further information regarding sites in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in due course.
The Camping and Caravanning Club manages over 2,000 campsites in the UK.
In a statement via its website, the organisation believes that: “we are well-placed to offer you a safe, enjoyable UK holiday, providing a much-needed break away from home” due to “being in the fresh air, the physical space between pitches and with additional social distancing measures [in place]”.
A comprehensive list of social distancing measures has also been released ahead of reopening.
Measures the organisation intends to introduce include reducing the number of campers on site, a contactless check-in, a ban on group bookings, six-metre spaced pitches and markers placed on the floor to remind visitors.
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The statement continues: “It’s important that we give our members a choice as to how they would like to camp, so we’ve introduced some new measures to help keep you and our teams safe.”
“To allow us to operate our campsites in a responsible manner we have increased our cleaning regimes – this places extra demand on our teams and we have had to open some of our campsites without toilets and showers this season, these campsites are better suited to campers who can bring their own facilities.”
“We’ll only open facility blocks if we’re allowed to do so by the government, we will keep our website updated and let you know if anything changes.”
If you’re looking to plan your Great British ‘staycation’ this year, here’s the full list of The Camping and Caravanning Club campsites hoping to reopen next month:
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Open Campsites (with Facility Blocks)
Here are the Club Sites set to be open for the 2020 season with facility blocks available to use, however the reception, play areas, laundry facilities and other communal areas on the site will remain closed.
Alton The Star, Staffordshire
Ashbourne, Derbyshire
Blackmore, Malvern Hills
Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
Canterbury, Kent
Charmouth, Dorset
Chertsey, Surrey
Culzean Castle, Ayrshire
Dartmouth, Devon
Delamere Forest, Cheshire
Derwentwater, Lake District
Devizes, Wiltshire
Dingwall, Highlands
Drayton Manor, Staffordshire
Dunbar, East Lothian
Dunstan Hill, Northumberland
Hertford, Herfordshire
Horsley, Surrey
Keswick, Lake District
Kingsbury Water Park, Midlands
Loch Ness Shores, Inverness
Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire
Milarrochy Bay, Loch Lomond
Moffat, Dumfries and Galloway
Moreton, Dorset
Normans Bay, Sussex
Scarborough, Yorkshire
Scone, Tayside
Sennen Cove, Cornwall
Slapton Sands, Devon
Slingsby, Yorkshire
St Neots, Cambridgeshire
Theobalds Park, Hertfordshire
Tregurrian, Cornwall
Verwood, New Forest
West Runton, Norfolk
Winchcombe, Gloucestershire
Windermere, Lake District
Wolverley, Worcestershire
Wyeside, Powys
You can click here more information about each campsite listed.
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Open Campsites (without Facility Blocks)
Here are the Club Sites set to be open for the 2020 season without facility blocks available to use.
If you do choose to stay on one of these sites, you will need to bring your own sanitation. Separate toilet tents can be used on your allocated pitch to accommodate your own chemical toilet. The reception, play areas, laundry facilities and other communal areas on the site will remain closed to help facilitate social distancing.
All sites will provide access to fresh drinking water, a place to dispose of toilet waste such as a Chemical Disposal Point (CDP), motorhome service points and washing-up facilities.
Pitches will be available with electric hook-ups.
Bakewell, Derbyshire
Bala, Snowdonia
Barnard Castle, County Durham
Beadnell Bay, Northumberland
Bellingham, Northumberland (Open with facilities from 1st August)
Cannock Chase, Staffordshire
Cardigan Bay, Ceredidion
Cheddar, Somerset (Open with facilities from 1st August)
Chichester, Sussex
Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire
Clent Hills, Midlands
Clitheroe, Lancashire
Conkers, Derbyshire
Corfe Castle, Dorset
Crowborough, Sussex
Delamont Country Park, Northern Ireland
Ebury Hill, Shropshire
Graffham, Sussex
Hayfield, Derbyshire
Hereford, Herefordshire
Kendal, Lake District
Kessingland, Suffolk
Oxford, Oxfordshire
Polstead, Suffolk (Open with facilities from 1st August)
Ravenglass, Lake District
Rhandirmwyn, Carmarthenshire
Rosemarkie, Highlands
Salisbury, Wiltshire
Sandringham, Norfolk
Skye, Isle of Skye
Tarland, Aberdeenshire
Tavistock, Devon
Teversal, Nottinghamshire
Walton-on-Thames, Surrey
Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire
You can click here more information about each campsite listed.
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To read a full list of social distancing and health & safety measures being put in place ahead of reopening, please visit The Camping and Caravanning Club website here.
The Camping and Caravanning Club is seeing public demand increasing and asks that you book in advance to guarantee your pitch.
Bookings made whilst sites are closed are fully flexible.
Rochdale has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2025
Emily Sergeant
Rochdale has officially been named Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture for 2025.
Taking over the reins from Bolton – which held the title in 2024 – and following in the footsteps of Stockport before that, which held the title in 2023, and even hosted a massive ‘Town of Culture Weekender’ festival with 50+ free events to celebrate and bring its title year to a close, it’s now the turn of the north-eastern Greater Manchester borough of Rochdale.
Rochdale’s year will build on the town’s already-rich cultural history and international reputation as the home of the co-operative movement.
More than 35 arts organisations will be bringing together an ambitious programme of festivals, exhibitions, events, and performances throughout the year.
Unfamiliar with what the ‘Greater Manchester Town of Culture’ title is all about? It’s an accolade that’s handed out every year to different boroughs across the region.
Bury was the inaugural title-holder 2020 and held onto it in 2021 too due to the COVID pandemic, before being followed by Stalybridge in 2022, Stockport in 2023, and of course, Bolton in the year just gone.
The title celebrates Greater Manchester’s culture and heritage.
As well as getting a new title to shout about, it also sees the towns given a grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) culture fund to help develop a programme of cultural events and activities throughout the year.
Rochdale has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2025 / Credit: The Manc Group | Rochdale Council
In Rochdale’s case, you can expect the ‘very best local talent’, as this year is promising to put ‘people power’ centre stage, with residents helping to plan, develop, and deliver a lineup of creative activities, alongside a number of major events.
This includes the popular free days out for families, an exciting new urban arts festival, two different food and drink festivals, a lantern parade, the Ignite Fire Festival, a Pride parade, and so much more.
You can also expect live music performances, a new people’s gallery, and even some major international collaborations that are yet to be announced.
Rochdale is taking over the reins from Bolton, which held the title in 2024 / Credit: Rochdale Council
“Rochdale is a place with a rich cultural history, so it is great to name it Greater Manchester’s town of culture as it’s town hall and town centre enter a new era,” commented Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham as the borough was crowned this week.
“Rochdale submitted a fantastic bid for this which, was incredibly exciting and ambitious, while being firmly rooted in its local talent and deep history.
“We are definitely going to see the very best of what Rochdale has to offer over the next 12 months and people will come from far and wide to see it.”
Featured Image – Rochdale Council
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The Lowry Theatre undergoes revamp following Biffa Award grant
Danny Jones
The Lowry in Salford Quays has had a bit of TLC with one of its biggest theatre spaces undergoing a pretty significant refurb this past month.
Following a well-deserved grant distributed via the Biffa Award, a multi-million-pound fund that helps to build communities and transform lives through community and environmental projects across the UK, the legendary local theatre received nearly £75k last year.
As a result, all 440 seats and various other aspects of The Lowry‘s Quays Theatre have now been renovated and refurbished.
The short story is, she looks more gorgeous than ever – see for yourself:
Being initially handed over in March 2024, The Lowry was awarded a total of £74,816 to reupholster seating in the venue’s Quays Theatre with new padding and fabric.
After almost 25 years of constant use as one of the most popular theatres in the North, the seats in the Quays Theatre were much in need of a refurb, and with work completed in December, Lowry visitors can now enjoy watching the venue’s wide range of theatre, dance, comedy and drama in comfort.
The work was actually carried out between July and December, with seats being carefully removed in batches and reupholstered off-site.
This was made possible due to the Biffa Award’s most recent ‘Cultural Facilities’ theme, which aims to improve recreation, interest and education, drawing funds from the UK government’s wider Landfill Communities Fund.
The old fabric and padding were disposed of sustainably, with lots of it being repurposed where possible to minimise waste and all the new materials used meet current guidance for safety and quality.
The Lowry’s Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Development, Gwen Oakden, said of the long overdue update:“It is so important that our audiences are able to enjoy our world-class performing arts programme in a comfortable and welcoming space.
“For many visitors to the Quays Theatre, this is their first experience of live performance – often to see a family show or as part of a school trip. We really want it to be the best experience possible, and for them to begin a lifelong relationship with Lowry.
“As a registered charity, without the generous support of this Biffa Award, for which we’re hugely grateful, we couldn’t have carried out this important work for our audiences.
As we head into our 25th Anniversary year, we are delighted to be able to welcome audiences and visitors can enjoy the beautiful and revived Quays Theatre.”
As for the Biffa side of things, Grants Manager Rachel Maidment added: “We are delighted to have supported The Lowry in refurbishing the Quays Theatre seating, ensuring audiences can continue to enjoy performances in comfort.
“Through Biffa’s Cultural Facilities theme, we fund projects that provide engaging and inspiring spaces for communities. The Lowry is a key cultural venue, and we’re proud that our funding, made possible through the government Fund, has helped enhance the experience for visitors for years to come.”
Like most Mancs, we love The Lowry, so here’s to hosting countless more theatregoers in the most comfortable seats possible for generations to come.
We’ve been to some brilliant performances around here of late.
Emily Sergeant -
17th June 2020 
