Queen's Baton Relay - one week to go

Newcastle-under-Lyme has been selected to be part of the historic Queen’s Baton Relay and next Monday, 18 July, the Queen’s Baton will visit the borough in the run-up to the start of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Events organised to mark this unique visit to the borough will include Keele University, Belong specialist care village, Harecastle’s historic canal and tunnel and Newchapel Pump Track.

The Leader of Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, Simon Tagg, said: “This is a truly momentous day for the borough. It is a huge honour to be selected as part of the historic Queen’s Baton Relay journey and we’re going to provide some unique entertainment and activities while the baton is here.”

The Queen’s Baton will arrive at Keele University, the first stop-off, at around 10.30am, where a series of outdoor activities has been organised with local schools.

Mike Huss, Operations and Active Lifestyles Manager at Keele, said: “It is with great pleasure that we welcome so many young people to Keele University Sports Centre to help us celebrate the Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton passing through Newcastle.

“We hope the event inspires future generations of sporting talent in the local area.”

From Keele the Queen’s Baton Relay will travel to Belong specialist care village in Newcastle’s town centre where, at around 11.15am, a dedicated programme of entertainment will be provided including dance performances with children from Blackfriars Academy and St. Mary’s Catholic Primary School.

The children have been trained specifically for this event by former English National Ballet soloist Daniel Jones, who is based at Jubilee2 in Newcastle.

The Van Buren Circus will then pay homage to the father of the modern circus, Philip Astley, who was born in Newcastle-under-Lyme, with a ‘circus’ performance.

Belong’s CEO, Martin Rix, said: “We’re really excited to be part of this historic occasion. It couldn’t be more fitting that we have the opportunity to showcase Newcastle-under-Lyme’s heritage as the original home of modern circus, and residents, colleagues and local schoolchildren are all looking forward to joining in the spectacle as the Queen’s Baton follows its route through the Belong village heritage gallery.

For the events in Kidsgrove, which will start at around 12.08pm, members of the Harecastle Tunnel and Trent and Mersey Canal, Canal & River Trust, have organised an exclusive visit for the Queen’s Baton as it will be carried for a short time on a narrowboat along the canal. This will be followed by a themed programme of activities with local schools and members of the community.

Residents who want to attend this event are being advised to arrive about half an hour before the set time.

Ian Lane, head of strategic projects and lead for the Commonwealth Games at the Canal & River Trust said: “It’s fantastic that the Queen’s Baton Relay will travel along our canal at Harecastle tunnel and that we can open this event up to the public so they can celebrate the baton travelling through Newcastle-under-Lyme.

“As part of this wonderful occasion, we are really excited to deliver activities that showcase and celebrate the work of the Trust and the local communities we work with, highlighting the fact that our canals are not only important historically, but also important to people's health and wellbeing.”

The final venue for the Queen’s Baton Relay in Newcastle will be Newchapel Pump Track, where children from local schools will take part in organised activities. The Queen’s Baton is expected at the track at around 12.33pm.

The events at Harecastle Tunnel and Newchapel Pump Track will also be open to the public and people are being encouraged to arrive early to make sure that they don't miss out on any of the fun. 

The Queen’s Commonwealth Games will take place in and around Birmingham from 28 July, including some events based in Staffordshire.

To see the official website for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games click here: https://www.birmingham2022.com/

For tickets to all events, please follow this link:  https://tinyurl.com/y6bbu5mt

For more information on the Queen’s Baton Relay click here: www.birmingham2022.com/qbr

To celebrate the Baton Relay’s visit to the borough some special events have been organised at Brampton Museum.

On Thursday 14 July, some adult ‘outdoor play’ will take place as part of Kath Reynolds’ series of “Reminisce: recall and relive” sessions which encourage people recall treasured memories as part of a lively and positive group discussion.

More detail on these sessions here: https://tinyurl.com/ye27ehty

And, on Monday 18 July, Deaflympian Brian Kokoruwe will be hosting a book-signing at the museum for his latest auto-biography “Deaf Not Dumb or Stupid”.

More on this here: https://tinyurl.com/4dxnumzy