The Festival of Lights is returning to Caldmore Community Garden on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th November 2025 — and we want you to be part of the magic!
There are plenty of ways for local families, groups, and individuals to get involved in this year’s Lantern Procession on Sunday 9th November. From making your own lantern to joining our movement workshops, everyone is welcome to help light up Caldmore!
Lantern-Making Workshops
Wednesday 29th October – Family Lantern Making Workshop 11am–2pm Caldmore Community Garden, WS1 3RH Delivered by Bostin’ Arts, this fun and creative workshop is perfect for families and children to make their very own lanterns to carry in the Festival of Lights procession.
Saturday 1st November -Garden Saturday: Join the Procession Movement & Puppetry Workshop!
Would you like to be part of the Lantern Procession on Sunday 9th November? Now’s your chance!
This Saturday 1st November, join Autin Dance Theatre at Caldmore Community Garden for a special Garden Saturday workshop. Families are invited to learn how to move together as a group, carrying beautifully lit-up props that will form part of this year’s magical Festival of Lights procession.
You’ll also get to explore the basics of puppetry — discovering how to bring props and creatures to life through movement, rhythm, and teamwork.
This friendly, creative workshop is open to everyone, of all ages – no experience needed!
Monday 3rd November – Women’s Lantern Workshop at Aaina Community Hub 11am–2pm Aaina Community Hub, 1 Bath Road, Walsall WS1 3BZ A relaxed and welcoming women-only session with Bostin’ Arts — create your lantern and connect with others in a creative, friendly space.
Thursday 6th November – Tots Lantern Session 10.30am–12pm Caldmore Community Garden Our regular Tots at the Garden session will be all about little lights! Bring your little one to make a lantern for the procession. This session will be delivered by Bostin’ Arts
Saturday 8th November –Lantern Making with New Art Gallery Walsall 4pm – 5.30pm Caldmore Community Garden Your last chance to make a lantern before the big night! Drop in and get creative with New Art Gallery Walsall — all materials provided. Together, we’ll light up Caldmore with creativity, colour, and community spirit. We can’t wait to see you there!
With thanks to National Lottery Community Fund and Arts Council England for making these opportunities possible!
Join us on Saturday 20th September for a fun packed family day welcoming Autumn to the garden!
12-4pm
We’re celebrating the changing seasons with a day of family fun, this year we’re working in partnership with Froglife, who will be showcasing their Coalface to Wildspace project.
What’s On
Exhibitions, stalls & creative activities with Juneau Projects
Arts & crafts inspired by autumn, hibernation, frogs & mushrooms
The Mushroom Show by Scratchworks Theatre at 1pm – a magical performance for all ages
Interactive workshop with the theatre company at 2pm (spaces limited to 30 participants – you can book your spot in the interval)
Come along, get creative, and celebrate autumn with us!
with thanks to National Lottery Community Fund, Heritage Fund and Black Country Touring for making this event possible
Step into an inspiring world of stories, games, and shared experiences with multidisciplinary artist Tina Hofman – performer, director, researcher, and co-founder of Notnow Collective and the Migrants in Theatre network. Born in former Yugoslavia, Tina’s work is rooted in movement and storytelling foregrounding questions of memory, chaos and fantasy, care, and migrancy.
Across three playful and immersive workshops, participants will explore themes of Home, Journeys, and Community. Guided by Tina’s signature approach – from participatory performance, dynamic storytelling, sensory experiences, and multilingual games – each session is an invitation to connect, create, and reflect together.
The workshops will culminate in the Tile Shifting Mural – a collective artwork built tile-by-tile, each representing personal identity, memories, and ideas related to the Yam from Here project. Through visual design and short audio descriptions, the mural becomes a shared space for dialogue, inclusivity, and discovery.
Expect laughter, learning, and a celebration of diverse voices. Whether through games, choral storytelling, or creative making, you’ll contribute “a little piece of me for the whole of us” – leaving with not just art, but a stronger sense of community.
Find out more: tinahofman.org | @hofmanica | notnowcollective.com
Delivered by the European’s Welfare Association
Funded by Heritage Lottery Fund
What?
A free workshop series exploring Home. Journeys and Community in the Black Country hosted by theatre-maker Tina Hofman.
From storytelling, performance-art and tile-making, each session is an invitation to connect, create and reflect together.
Join Fiona and Albert to investigate the properties of ice. Learn how to pick up a block of ice with a piece of string and cut a block of ice with out using a knife! Make an ice rainbow and create glowing spinach.
Wed 13th August
Friction Science
Join Fiona and Albert to discover the importance of friction in everyday life. Investigate ways of reducing friction. Make a friction ramp using an empty shoebox (if possible please bring your own shoebox).
Thurs 14th August
Open Tots – older siblings welcome
Fri 15th August
Bubble day
Sat 16th August
Garden Saturday: Making summer resin necklaces
Wed 20th August
Magnetic Science
Join Fiona and Albert to investigate magnetism. Discover what materials are magnetic. Use magnetism to make a compass. Make a magnetic fluid and use a magnet to build a tower of metal nuts.
Join us at Caldmore Community Garden on Saturday 20th July for our Summer Garden Party!
We will be joined by HandMade Theatre who will be performing their puppet show Tell Me A Story in the garden at 1pm and 3pm. Look out for them walking about the garden during the day!
‘Everyone has a story to tell and a memory to share. Unlock yours in this family adventure down memory lane, experience the stories of people, places and objects we hold dear.’ Tell Me A Story is a show lovingly created by HandMade Theatre. The piece explores childhood memories and draws inspiration from our creative work in care homes for those with dementia. This piece aims to bring generations together to share their stories, exploring experiences of childhood and unlocking the similarities and differences we all share. A fun family show featuring HandMade Theatre’s signature mix of dynamic storytelling, live music, original songs, beautiful puppets and colourful characters.
Suitable for children aged 2-10 and their families. We particularly encourage parents and Grandparents to join their children in a shared experience together.
Poets, Prattlers, and Pandemonialists will be adding a poetry vibe to the day. Pop by to see Gracey Bee at her Poet Tree, and she’ll help you to create rhyming poetry to hang amongst its branches.
Or why not ask for a poem of your own to take away? Emma Purshouse and Steve Pottinger will be writing Poetry on Demand. You could request a poem for yourself or a loved one. Or perhaps ask for a poem written about your favourite aspect of nature.
Gracey, Emma, and Steve will also be happy to talk to you about what to expect from the poetry workshops that Poets, Prattlers, and Pandemonialists will be running over the next few months at Caldmore Community Garden.
To celebrate the beginning of the summer holidays there will be a bouncy castle, face painter, arts and crafts, family games to play and a Nature Treasure Hunt to solve with prizes to win.
The Community Cafe will be open so pop in and grab yourself a slice of tasty cake!
We look forward to seeing you on Saturday for lots of fun in the garden!
Thank you to Black Country Touring for their support
Thank you to the Inclusive Communities Fund award, with this fund we will be able to empower our community, address real issues and create a lasting legacy.
Thanks to the Heart of England Community Foundation, West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), United by Legacy, UKGOV and the Commonwealth Games organisers for this incredible opportunity
We are looking for a range of visual artists in the Black Country (within the Walsall, Sandwell, Dudley and Wolverhampton boroughs) to deliver creative sessions as a part of our Women’s Tuesdays group meeting on Tuesdays 10-12.30pm, May to December 2024.
We are especially keen to commission artists who use various creative means and media to respond to the natural world and explore diverse cultural heritage.
You will be working with a group of creative women from diverse backgrounds who enjoy learning about arts and crafts and using them as a way to engage with natural environment and other cultures.
The fee is £150 per session, with up to £50 for materials. We are keen to book blocks of two sessions, with various artists, the first being an introduction of an art form / medium and the second further exploration.
We are also looking to commission two artists to carry out larger projects at the Garden which lead to the collaborative creation of a work / body of works which will be installed in our outdoor space. We have £2000 for each of these projects and expect them to include at least two participatory workshops.
We are hoping the programme will end with a celebration and exhibition at the end of 2024 / beginning of 2025.
To express your interest, please e-mail Anna Webster at caldmoregarden@gmail.com with a short written proposal describing your creative experience and record of delivering creative projects and workshops (no longer than one page), visual examples of suggested work, and your availability (for example specific months). We are hoping to hear from you by 27th May 2024.
The arts programme at Caldmore Community Garden is funded by West Midlands Combined Authority’s Inclusive Communities Programme operated by the Heart of England Community Foundation.
We’re recruiting a Creative Projects Co-Ordinator to join our friendly team. You will work closely with artists and partners, help put on events, and engage with the local community, community groups, volunteers and creatives. You will contribute to the planning, evaluation and delivery of the arts programme.
The successful applicant will have a passion for creative arts, poetry, performance and strong co-ordination and admin skills. You will be experienced in working creatively with a range of artists and organisations and be committed to working with communities and artists in Walsall.
Contract: 2 days a week, June to December 2024.
Salary: £14-£15 per hour (£25,480 – 27,300 pro rata), depending on skills and experience.
Download the Recruitment Pack as a Word Document or PDF below to find out how to apply. If you’d like to talk with someone in the team before you apply, e-mail caldmoregarden@gmail.com.
Email your completed application to Anna Webster at caldmoregarden@gmail.com by 8am on Monday 13th May 2024.
The arts programme at Caldmore Community Garden is funded by West Midlands Combined Authority’s Inclusive Communities Programme operated by the Heart of England Community Foundation. The poetry project is co-funded by Black Country Touring.
Caldmore Community Garden in Walsall are looking for a Poetry Project Co-Ordinator to develop and deliver a programme of monthly poetry workshops at the Garden, leading up to a special poetry event and a creation of a poetry trail.
We are especially keen to commission poets who respond to the natural world and explore diverse cultural heritage in their work, and who have contacts and experience in organising the poetry scene in the Black Country.
We hope that the project will bring new audiences to Caldmore Community Garden, explore the nature and environment of the Garden, listen to stories of people involved in or visiting the Garden, and inspire our visitors to engage with the outside space in new ways.
The project will take place between late May and late November / early December 2024.
The project involves:
Development, promotion and delivery of 6 monthly poetry workshops at Caldmore Community Garden – 2 days a month at £350 per day (co-ordinator’s fee of £4,200 in total, with an additional materials and refreshments budget);
Development, promotion and delivery of 2 events – one poetry event and one engagement workshop at an open community event at the Garden (co-ordinator’s fee of £700 in total, with an additional materials budget);
Working with the Community Garden team to design and develop a poetry trail to be installed at Caldmore Community Garden.
To express your interest, please e-mail Anna Webster at caldmoregarden@gmail.com with a short written proposal describing your creative experience and trackrecord of delivering poetry workshops and events (no longer than one page), as well as examples of your work.
The deadline for applications is Friday 10th May at 12pm. We will contact shortlisted candidates the following week.
The arts programme at Caldmore Community Garden is funded by West Midlands Combined Authority’s Inclusive Communities Programme operated by the Heart of England Community Foundation. The poetry project is co-funded by Black Country Touring.
– 12.30pm and 3pm – Easter Egg Hunt for children aged 1-4 – have a go at finding chocolate eggs at the Garden! Little ones must be accompanied by a grown-up, no older siblings allowed in the tots area. Please don’t be late!
– 1-3pm – Easter Egg Trail for older children – complete an Easter Egg trail, solve the clues and claim your chocolate egg! No need to come at a specific hour, your child can do it at any time during the event.
There will be lots of other activities, including:
Easter arts and crafts Children’s entertainment with Happy Child Tombola Face-painting Cake and drinks at our Community Cafe
It’s a Pay as You Feel event – we are a charity and need your support putting events like this for the benefit of the local community. Put some spare cash into a box or pay by card to help us bring you more activities in the future.
What’s On 
Come along, get creative, and celebrate autumn with us!
Easter arts and crafts
Caldmore Community Garden 