All the fun of the fete

For the last four decades, people have been flocking to Westoe Village Fete, in South Shields, to grab a bargain.

And Saturday was no exception, as 1,000 members of the local community supported dozens of charities and organisations who had set up stalls along the village’s green.

There were tombolas, raffles and plenty of sweet treats for visitors to enjoy.

Music was also provided the The Living Waters Youth Band and the Harton Harmonisers, while crowds gathered to watch a line-dancing display.

All monies raised will be donated to St Clare’s Hospice in Jarrow and other charities. Last year in the region of £4,000 was raised.

Alison Mason, secretary of Westoe Village Residents’ Association, was delighted with the bumper turn-out on the sun-soaked day.

Mrs Mason said: “The day went really well.

“We are not sure how much money we have raised yet for charity but we are even with last year’s total.

“We had the line-dancers here raising money for St Clare’s Hospice and all the funds will go to local charities.

“The weather was nice, which helps, and we had over 1,000 people at the fete during the day.

“We had line dancers, the Living Waters Youth Band and a couple of young singers, David and Sasha France, performed.

“It was very busy and was definitely one of our better years.”

Sarah Cookson, who is founder of the Charlie Cookson foundation, a charity which helps youngsters with life-limiting conditions, also had a stall at the fete with her helpers.

Sarah, who set up the charity with her husband Chris, in memory of their son Charlie, who passed away in 2013 aged two, said: “What a great day we all had at the Westoe Fete, it was lovely to see everyone come down to support all of the fantastic causes.

“Thank you to everyone who visited our stall, your support means so much to us. Our big blue friendly Cookie Monster enjoyed dancing with the crowds.”