Mayor of Bognor Regis' Weekly Briefing: Health and Wellbeing Market is a great success!

Despite some wet and windy weather drawing in during late afternoon, the market was very well-supported. The live ice carvings by Sand in Your Eye, were amazing to behold and certainly drew interest from members of the public, as did the fantastic smoothie bike, with Ian ‘Crouchy’ Crouch even taking to the saddle to create his own healthy drink! On behalf of the Town Council, a big thank you to all those who were involved in the day. I hope those of you who paid a visit enjoyed and benefitted from the plenty of advice on offer.

There’s plenty more to look forward to as half term approaches. The Town Council’s Events team is busy preparing its first official event of 2026: a series of free phenomenal Laser Shows at Hotham Park on Wednesday 18th February. Set against the beautiful surroundings of the park, the spectacular laser displays will be choreographed to music using state-of-the-art equipment provided by Showmen Events Group. Shows begin at 5.00pm and will run every 30 minutes until 8.00pm. The event is completely free to attend — just turn up and enjoy — making it a perfect evening out for families, friends and anyone who loves music, lights and a touch of outdoor magic.

The full Bognor Regis Town Council events programme for 2026 will be available shortly on our website and Events Facebook page, so be sure to keep an eye on both and pencil the dates into your diaries as soon as they are released. All event dates will also appear in our annual newsletter, which will be delivered to households in March. As in previous years, the programme will also include events organised by external organisations that receive financial support from the Town Council. It promises to be another busy year of fun, with free entertainment for all.

Calling all local schools and nurseries — the Bognor Regis in Bloom Working Group will soon be in touch with details of this year’s popular vegetable-growing competition and how your establishment can take part. Now running for many years, the competition remains as popular as ever, giving children and teachers the chance to spend enjoyable time outside the classroom, working together to grow their best vegetable plants and compete to be crowned ‘champions’ by the Working Group.

The initiative encourages young people to learn more about what they eat and where their food comes from, whilst also offering the opportunity to get outdoors and ‘get their hands dirty’. Beyond the growing itself, the competition also supports writing and reflection, with children asked to photograph and document the plants’ progress.

I had the absolute pleasure last year of visiting ABC Hook Lane Nursery, who were awarded first place, and seeing first-hand the hard work behind their prize-winning plants. The pride and joy on the children’s faces as they showed me the fruits of their labour was wonderful to see and, I’m sure, made all the effort worthwhile for their teachers.

Whether your school or nursery is a regular entrant or interested in taking part for the first time in 2026, keep an eye out for further information and entry forms, from our Allotments & In Bloom Committee Clerk, over the coming weeks.