If you went down to Witton Lakes on Saturday, you were sure to have a great time.

Bears were the theme of the day, with everything from having a picnic (with your teddy bear of course), designing your own teddy, prize raffles to win a teddy bear; and if this was not enough, there were also real life teddy bears roaming around – keep an eye on those picnic baskets!

To add to all this fun, the park was given over to a wide variety of activities, stretching all the way from the car park at Faulkners Farm Drive, Wyrley Birch, to the Velvet Community Orchard – with a bouncy castle, hook a duck, an events field full of activities, ice cream, fun eco crafts and lots more.

The Velvet Community Orchard was open for everyone to have a look around and the Tearoom did a roaring trade – refreshing all those thirsty children and parents.  And for those who wanted a drink of a different kind, we had our very own stocks – where you could throw wet sponges at brave volunteers – including our Homes and Property Manager, Gareth – who was a good sport on the day!

“I’m having a nice time and happy I’ve got to bring my own teddy” said Tien, age 7, while having a picnic with her mum and brother Broly, age 4, who smiled and said “I’m really having fun.”

Local resident Abdul Quaium, commented: “Today is fantastic.  I’ve been planning to come with my family for over a week.  We’re really enjoying it and seeing the children smiling and having a great time.”

The day was also an excellent opportunity to raise support for the campaign to prevent the closure of the Lakeside Children’s Centre in nearby Wyrley Birch.  The petition was circulated widely and with very strong support to keep this important community facility –actually the only such facility in Wyrley Birch- open.

The day ran very smoothly, thanks to the big enthusiastic team of volunteers from The Challenge Network (and Birmingham South and City College), the Friends of Witton Lakes (FOWL) and local residents.

Linda Hines MBE, Chair Friends of Witton Lakes, who helped organise the event says “What a very busy day we had and it was really worth it.  We’ve had an absolutely fantastic afternoon, a great atmosphere, lots of happy faces and it really was great to see.  The Teddy Bears Picnic has spread right across the park and it’s been heartening to see so much support for our campaign to save the Lakeside Children’s Centre from closure.  Thank you to everyone who made the event a big success and we look forward to a busy summer of events coming up.”