Green Festival

What is a Green Festival?

Our Green Festivals are a series of events designed to educate and engage with communities, helping them to make more sustainable choices in their day-to-day lives.

The events are free to attend, and with various stalls managed by local people, small businesses and groups, there are plenty of fun activities for all ages - including arts and crafts, music, local food vendors and games.

Green Festival 2024

If you enjoyed Hemlock Happening’s Green Zone or are curious about living sustainably, why not attend the Green Festival on Saturday 21 September at Coronation Park, Eastwood 12pm-3pm.

Last year, more than 300 people joined us at our Green Festival 2023 to learn about how we can be more environmentally friendly and tackle climate change, whilst supporting local businesses and community groups. 

We had a brilliant range of stallholders from food, to arts and crafts, and even pedal powered smoothie making! With over 30 stalls it was the biggest Green Festival Broxtowe Borough Council has hosted and we're hoping that this year will be even better.

So far, over 40 stallholders will be joining us to share advice on living sustainable lifestyles including

• NG16 Help for Hedgehogs – learn about our wonderful prickly garden friends and how you can help them and other wildlife in Nottingham.
• Mary Broddle - Learn to mend clothes so you don’t have to throw them away in FREE mending workshops with Mary Broddle’s embroidery for wellbeing.
• Nottinghamshire Beekeepers Association - Meet your local bee keeper with the Nottinghamshire Beekeepers Association. Try on a beekeeping suit, learn why bees are so important and buy some local honey.
• New for 2024! Little Bean Homemade - pocket friendly, eco-friendly, homemade reusable alternatives to products we commonly throw away for example sandwich bags, snack bags, kitchen roll and sanitary products.
• New for 2024! T4 Sustainability - come and speak with the experts for holistic advice covering all aspects of carbon reduction, energy efficiency, renewable energy and resource efficiency. 
• New for 2024! The Green Doctor – meet the team of Green Doctors who offer free I practical advice to help you take control of your bills, save energy in the home where possible and access other services and initiatives available.
• Canopy 2050 – Find out more about Canopy 2050’s mission to help our local councils to increase the urban tree canopy through establishing mini nurseries, free trees, workshops, talks and educational videos.
• Butterfly Conservation – learn all about the beautiful butterflies you can find in this area, why these are so important to look after and how you can take steps to encourage them into your gardens/outside space.
• New for 2024! The Woodland Trust - the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity who’s vision is a world where woods and trees thrive for people and nature. Meet the team, learn about their work and the ways in which you can help.
• The Friends of Brinsley Headstocks – a voluntary community group, formed in 2008 with the aim to encourage the native flora and fauna to flourish whilst helping to maintain and develop the old mining site.
• New for 2024! Brinsley Animal Rescue –  come and meet the founders Jon Beresford and Bethan Hewis who are founders of the registered charity run for animals by volunteers.  The charity is run on vegan values, therefore they do not believe in exploiting animals for food, profit or entertainment.  
• BBC Preloved stall – a selection of donated clothes (children and adult), toys and books all available for free so come and take a look and treat yourself whilst helping to reuse unwanted items that would otherwise end up in the bin!
• New for 2024! Bikes Love You – Free Dr Bike sessions. Do you have a bike in need of some TLC?  Then why not book on to a free Dr Bike session with Bikes Love You at this year’s Green Festival.  You’ll be given a 15minute time slot which  you can book via the Eventbrite page,  walk-ins also welcome.
• Pulp Friction CIC – come and make your own ice-cream/sorbet by pedal power and meet the team to dicuss their work as a social enterprise working with people who have learning disabilities and/or Autism to develop their social independence and work-readiness skills.
• New for 2024! Dig in Community Allotment, Stapleford – Dig In’s aim is to create a sustainable Community Allotment where people from different ages and backgrounds come together to share skills, knowledge and experience of food growing, Come and meet the team to find out more.
• New for 2024! Eileen Artworks Face painting – treat your little one to a FREE fun face paint to get into the festival feeling. Facepaints are vegan friendly with FDA and EU compliant.
• New for 2024! Dice and Balls –a non-profit registered Community Interest Company that’s all about creating inclusive and fun experiences for the benefit of the local community. They will be providing giant garden games, a stilt walker and a juggler!
• BBC Parks and Open Spaces – meet our very own Parks and Open Spaces team to discuss the work they have completed this year so far and their plans for the coming months. Pick up a free tree when signing up to Green Rewards or why not design your own wildflower seed packet and the team will provide some free wildflower seeds for you to take away for your garden.
• BBC Waste and Recycling – meet our Waste and Recycling Engagement Officer to learn about what you can and can’t put in our recycling bins and why it’s so important to recycle. There will be some fun crafting activities to take part in as well.
• BBC Refuse Truck – meet our very own Refuse Team, take a look around one of our refuse trucks and learn more about where your waste goes. 
• Co-op – visit the team from Coop to learn how about how they support local communities as well as their sustainability actions Responsible Retailing: 30 Years On.
• Off the Hook Crocheting
• New for 2024! Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust – Meet the Wilder Nottinghamshire Network Team and learn how you can get involved and make a difference for nature supporting the 60 years of work that has protected and enhanced some of the most important places for nature in Nottinghamshire.
• New for 2024! Nottingham Energy Partnership - a climate change and fuel poverty charity providing home improvement measures to improve the energy efficiency of homes throughout Nottinghamshire. Speak with our local experts about all things retrofit and home energy improvements as well as advice on available funding to help you.
• Broxtowe Community Projects – a registered charity providing a self-referral food and nappy bank in the NG9 and NG16 areas of Nottingham with the mission of supporting families across the Borough of Broxtowe by providing them with access to balanced, nutritious food parcels and other support, whilst fighting food waste.
• New for 2024! Nottingham Breathe Easy – based in Eastwood offering support, advice and information on loving with and self-managing a lung condition whilst also providing a chance to meet and socialise with people in a similar situation. The team will also offer advice in disposing of inhalers in an environmentally friendly way.
• BBC Dog wardens and dog show - Following the success of last year’s dog show the wardens are back and ready to judge each of the categories this year. There will also be dog behavioural advice on hand throughout the whole event.
• Frothy’s Coffee Van – offering a variety of wonderful hot and cold drinks and snacks throughout the festival.
• New for 2024! The Friends of Bennerley Viaduct (charity) – learn all about Bennerley Viaduct the iconic Grade II* landmark in the East Midlands and the recent work to construct a ramp to allow a fully accessible connection over the river valley.
• Eastwood Town Council – hear the latest news from your local Councillors.
• Nottingham Climate Assembly (Nottingham Youth Climate Assembly) - Made up of 16-25 years olds to help deliver Nottingham’s first Citizens’ Assembly. Hear all about their work taking place across the Borough.
• New for 2024! Tiger Community Enterprise CIC - The community enterprise was set up to support enterprises and assist individuals and organisations to grow. Whilst it started with the focus on supporting local business and community organisations the enterprise has evolved to encompass the delivery of projects that support their core aims – to help people help themselves. Working in conjunction with partners they offer the widest range options to the community to enhance their own skills and opportunities.
• New for 2024! Nottingham County Council Climate Change Team – Find out more about the County Council’s commitment to protecting and enhancing the environment and its action plan setting out activities that must take place to support this.
• New for 2024! Broxtowe Women’s Project – here to help women living in the Borough of Broxtowe who are experiencing domestic abuse. The team will be attending to provide advice and signposting. There will also be a cosy corner for children to have some time to relax and read books.
• New for 2024! Cycling 4 Broxtowe – cycling advice and activities available across the Borough.
• New for 2024! Energy Savings Trust – learn all about Electric Vehicles including myth busting.
• New for 2024! The Faux Butcher Ltd

When we come together to act on climate change, we can all make a big impact. #SmallChangeBigDifference

Green Festival Schools Competition 

New for 2024 all primary schools in the Borough  have been invited to take part in the very first Green Festival school competition.

Children have been asked to create a piece of artwork or a creative piece of writing relating to the environment.

All entries will be judged with the winners announced at the Green Festival itself! 

Green Zone at Hemlock Happening 

Thank you to everyone who attended Hemlock Happening 2024 and came along to see our Environment and Parks Teams at our Green Zone. With nearly 9,000 of you in attendance it's been the biggest and best yet!

We'd also like to thank our fantastic stallholders that took part:

• NG16 Help Hedgehogs
• Green Doctor
• Nottinghamshire Beekeepers Association
• RideWise
• Mary Broddle’s embroidery for wellbeing
• Weleda UK
• Little Bean Homemade
• T4 Sustainability
• Canopy 2050

 #SmallChangeBigDifference