Welcome to Spaxton Flower Shows

Spaxton Flower Show has just celebrated its Centenary, making it one of the longest running Flower Shows in the country. The Show has achieved this by evolving and changing to meet peoples interests, but also by reflecting the changes in the wider world. When the Shows began, nearly everyone in the Village was engaged in agriculture and lived and worked within the Parish. Everyone knew everyone else , and many of the families were related. Those days have long since gone, even though there are still many members of those long standing families living here and providing a strand of continuity in the midst of all the changes. 

Spaxton has welcomed many new families and ways of working, and our community continues to evolve but our Flower Shows are at the heart of life in our village and the wider Parish. They give a very visible way for people to support our community and see it thrive. 

Our success can be measured in many ways, not the least that in the last few years we have welcomed nearly 500 visitors to each of our Summer Shows. 

Do come and join us!

How the Shows work

We have two Shows a year. The Spring Show, which is held in March to celebrate all the plants and flowers that are emerging as winter recedes. We also showcase the crafts that people have worked on through the Winter. This is a relatively small Show and is held in the Village Hall and Pavillion and, as well as the competition, it’s a wonderful chance to chat and catch-up with people. 

The Summer Show is held in July and is much larger, with the focal point of a  Marquee, on the main Playing Field, where huge displays of flowers, vegetables, crafts and work by local schoolchildren are shown and judged. The tea and cakes are served in the main Village Hall.

On the Playing Fields themselves we have a variety of stalls, demonstrations,  sports, music, children’s entertainment, vintage vehicles and much more: all  intended to provide something of amusement and interest for everyone. 

Down through the “S” bend in the centre of the village we have Scarecrow Parade  in the week leading up to the Summer Show, which gives an opportunity for a demonstration of  wit and irreverence!

Although the Shows are organised and overseen by a Committee, there is a huge amount of support given by a wide range of people, without whom the Shows simply would not be able to take place.

Although we change for entry to both Shows and all of helpers are volunteers, Sponsors are vital to help us pay for much of what we do. Our Sponsors range from large and small local businesses who give financial support and share their skills, to local farms who give us practical help such as with hay bales (for safety barriers etc) and fields for the free parking available at both Shows. We are profoundly grateful for all of their generosity.  

We are always looking for new volunteers, and the scope for volunteering is wide, ranging across ; IT skills to help us improve our systems; physical strength to help us move tables and equipment on Show days; baking skills to help produce the cakes we sell; standing in a field and directing people to parking spaces ;  running a stall to help us offer a wider range of entertainment or sparing an hour at the end of the Shows to help us clear everything away. 

If you might be interested in supporting us in any of these ways, or in something we haven’t thought of, and would like to explore the options, please get in touch with Vicky Hemming (Chair) and she will be delighted to speak to you.