News & Events
2020 Prescot Festival Short Story Competition
Prescot Festival Offers Literary Challenge during the Lockdown
With gatherings and events being postponed nationwide at the moment, a Merseyside town has decided that one aspect of its summer arts festival can go ahead as planned—lockdown or no lockdown.
Organisers of the Prescot Festival of Music & the Arts will press on with their annual Short Story Competition, and have announced that ‘Dreams’ will be this year’s theme, opening a world of creative possibilities to prospective authors.
Now in its ninth year, the writing contest offers a £100 prize for the winner. Previous winning entries have included tales of wedded bliss gone awry, a whimsical wheelbarrow race with an elderly relative, and a haunting encounter at Lime Street Station.
The contest is open to all unpublished fiction writers in the six boroughs of Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Halton, Wirral and Liverpool. There’s a 1,000 upper word limit but no minimum wordcount.
In a change to previous years’ requirements, submissions are invited via email rather than by post. The deadline is Friday 29 May 2020. The full rules are online at www.prescotfestival.co.uk.
The Prescot Festival of Music & the Arts was founded in 2005 in the historic Lancashire town of Prescot, Merseyside. The organisers continue to keep festival audiences up-to-date and occasionally entertained through their official website, www.prescotfestival.co.uk, and their Facebook and Twitter pages.
Full rules are below:
2020 Prescot Festival Short Story Competition
Stuck at home and feeling imaginative?
Put pen to paper and write a short story of up to 1,000 words for the 2020 Prescot Festival Short Story Competition. As always, a prize of £100 will go to the winning author.
The theme for this year’s contest is DREAMS. We’ve created a word cloud to inspire you. You don’t have to follow the theme slavishly—it’s a jumping-off point for your imagination, and you can interpret it figuratively or literally. Scroll down for the full rules (and please read carefully – we are doing things a little differently this year).
Entry to the 2020 Prescot Festival Short Story Competition is FREE and open to non-professional writers of ALL AGES living in Merseyside and Halton. This year’s theme is DREAMS. The word cloud above is also full of ideas to kick-start your story.
The deadline is 29 May 2020, and there’s a £100 prize for the winner, so start writing!
2020 Prescot Festival Short Story Competition Full Rules
- To enter, you must live in one of the following six boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Halton, Wirral or Liverpool. You must not have had a piece of fictional writing professionally published, ie, in return for payment. There are no age restrictions. Only one entry per person is allowed.
- The story you submit must be inspired in some way by the following theme: DREAMS. It is your choice how to interpret the theme. The story must be your own original work of fiction (no biography, poetry or nonfiction), unpublished, in English, and with no more than 1,000 words. There is no minimum word count.
- Type your story in size 12 font. You may include page numbers and the title of the story in the headers and/or footers, but you must NOT include your name or any identifying details, such as an address or email address, in the document itself, as it will be judged anonymously.
- Submit it via email to prescotfeststory@outlook.com. Include your name and contact details in the body of the message and the short story as an attachment in Word (.doc/.docx), ODT, RTF or PDF format only
- The closing date for the competition is Friday 29 May 2020. All entries must be received by then.
- A panel of judges will read the stories, whose writers remain anonymous, and decide a winner. The judges’ decision is final.
- The winner will receive a prize of £100, and their name will be posted to the festival website on or shortly after 1 July 2020.
- You retain full copyright of your story, but by submitting it, you give the Prescot Festival permission to republish it online and/or in print, naming you as author.
24/7 Mental Health Crisis Line for Knowsley residents
The NHS Northwest Boroughs Healthcare has launched a 24/7 Mental Health Crisis Line for Knowsley residents.
01925 275 309
Click the link for further information.
Prescot Rainbow Trail Competition
Prescot Town Council – Self Isolation Support Scheme
Prescot Town Council have been proactive in delivering a temporary support scheme for those following government guidance to self isolate and are in need of basic provisions as a result of doing so. We have now agreed to support Whiston also with our scheme.
If you have lost your income temporarily (zero hrs or agency jobs) as a result of Government Directive Self Isolating and you live in the township of Prescot or Whiston (so if you pay your precept to either Town Council) you can apply for a ‘Basic Box’ of foodstuffs to support you during the 2 week isolation period, to be delivered by our volunteers to your home. Please ring the Knowsley Support Line on 0800 073 0043 to request help and they will pass your request on to the Town Council.
However a more permanent solution is being developed by Knowsley MBC which Prescot Town Council are expecting to merge with.
In the meantime, anyone needing support can call freephone 0800 073 0043 from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday and 10am to 2pm at weekends.
? If you live in Knowsley and cannot afford food please call: 0151 538 8243 or you can email foodbankteam@big-help.info
Foodbanks and Foodclubs are open as usual….
? Monday ? Huyton & Kirkby⏰ 12 noon to 2.pm: St George’s Church. 46 Primrose Dr, Huyton, L36 8DW
⏰ 12 noon to 2pm: St Andrews Church, Highfield, Tower Hill, Kirkby L33 1ZF
? Tuesday ? Kirkby
⏰ 12 noon to 2pm: Pride Centre, 2 Simonswood Lane, Kirkby, L33 5YP
? Wednesday
? Stockbridge Village & Prescot
⏰ 12 to 2pm: The Community Hub, The Croft, Stockbridge Village, L28 1NR
⏰ 12 noon to 2pm: Salvation Army, Prescot, Warrington Road, L35 5UA
?Thursday
? Huyton
⏰ 12 noon to 2pm: St Dominic’s Church, Southdean Road, Huyton, L14 8UL
?Friday
? Kirkby & Huyton
⏰ 12 noon to 2pm: St Andrews Church, Highfield, Tower Hill, Kirkby L33 1ZF
?Saturday
? Halewood
⏰ 11.00am to 2.00pm: St Mary’s Church, Leathers Lane, Halewood, L26 9TS
Coronavirus information and hotline for Knowsley Residents
For all Knowsley residents here is a link to all the latest information you need to know from Knowsley Council about the Coronavirus (Covid-19).
Anyone needing support can call freephone on 0800 073 0043 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday & 10am to 2pm at weekends.
https://www.knowsleynews.co.uk/coronavirus-what-you-need-to-know/
Coronavirus Update – Prescot Town Council
In accordance with Government Guide to avoid unnecessary gatherings and support effective social distancing Prescot Town Hall will be closed for all public accessible activities with effect from 5:30pm tonight (20th March 2020). This closure will remain in place until government guidance advises otherwise or the building is re-purposed to support the community in other ways.
Staff will continue to work from the building during normal office hours but will observe social distancing protocols if you need to contact the Town Council please do so by phone or email.
The Town Council are also in process of developing a basic food support package for social isolated individuals and families who are financially disadvantaged as a result of their isolation and cannot order food on line. At present we have no stocks of food so if you can donate please contact us and let us know if you can help with donations.
Finally social distancing does not mean you must stay in doors, you can get a breath of fresh air or let the kids blow off some steam at Brown’s Field (KGV Prescot) and Eaton Street Park. Just ensure you follow good practice, keep your distance from others and use hand sanitiser when coming into contact with surfaces others may have touched.
Prescot Town Hall Temporary Closure to the Public
Following Government guidelines on Coronavirus (COVID 19) around avoidance of large gatherings and social distancing it is with deep regret that we must inform you that Prescot Town Hall will be closed to the Public with effect from Friday 20th March 2020 until further notice.
Prescot Carnival 2020 Cancellation
Following Government guidelines on Coronavirus (COVID 19) around avoidance of large gatherings and social distancing it is with deep regret that we must inform you of Prescot Town Council’s decision to cancel this year’s Prescot Carnival which was due to take place on Sunday 28th June 2020.
Given the current Government advice there are no plans to re-schedule this year’s event.
PRESCOT LOVES TO TALK – This event has been postponed until further notice
-Prescot Loves To Talk will be holding its second annual event on the 19th March between 10 am and 11:15 am.
A packed programme will see four Prescot Primary Schools and Kids in Bloom Nursery engage with local residents and shoppers to ‘get them talking’
The full programme for the 19th can be seen below.
Eccleston Street Event 19th March 2020
The Town Council are proud to be involved with and provide support for this wonderful project that seeks to engage with all the people of the Town.
Positive thoughts on lockdown from a positive thinking teacher
When normality returns
What if children have more empathy,
If they can enjoy family conversation,
If they are more creative and can entertain themselves.
If they love to read, enjoy expression through poems and diaries and have learned the value of money and careful spending.
If they can talk about a film and explain why they have enjoyed it,
If they can appreciate simple things: playing made-up games in their garden or sitting by a window to reflect
If they can notice the changes and joys of nature: flowers growing from seed, mother birds cheeping to their chicks, trees clothing themselves in new leaves, the feel of a gentle breeze, and the myriad of colours all around us.
If this generation is the one that learns to cook, tidy their room and sew.
If they learn the value of eating together as a family and finding the good to share in the small delights of every day,
If they are the ones to place great value on all our public servants and the essential support workers like truck drivers, grocers, cashiers, custodians, logistics, and health care workers, just to name a few of the millions currently taking care of us.
What wonderful family members and friends these children will make.
What a powerful contribution to society they will offer.
If among these children, a great leader emerges who had the benefit of a slower pace and a simpler way of living – to truly learn what really matters in life
– OH HOW OUR COUNTRY COULD BE A HAPPY PLACE FOR ALL.