Organisers have hailed the success of a popular festival, which continues to grow each year.
Thousands of people turned out over the weekend to enjoy the entertainment and find out more about organisations and community groups as the Lowestoft Summer Festival attracted the crowds.
Free activities, music and fun took centre stage on Royal Green in Lowestoft, with beach football, sandcastle competitions and a puppet theatre entertaining youngsters on the sands south of Claremont Pier.
An international food fair brought hot and cold foods from around the world to Waterloo Road in Kirkley while an interactive science exhibition was provided by the Cambridge Science Centre at St Mary's Primary School.
With more than 30 stalls featuring charities and local organisations set up on Royal Green, the entertainment ran from 9am to 8pm on Saturday and 11am to 6pm today.
With a children's funfair, live music, choirs and dancers performing on two stages over both days, a pop-up cinema featuring old East Anglian archive film clips proved popular on Saturday.
Equally popular was the Lowestoft's Got Talent contest on the opening afternoon, which drew large crowds as nine performers – including singers and dancers – showcased their talents on stage. The eventual winner was dancer George Butler.
A brief downpour of rain on Saturday morning and this afternoon failed to deter the performers and crowds, with about 240 keen runners – including Waveney MP Peter Aldous – setting off on the weekly 5km Parkrun along the seafront at 9am on Saturday.
With craft stalls, marquees, a Mental Wellbeing Roadshow, market, rugby and hockey demonstrations, book readings, poetry, theatre make-up and much more, there was something for all the family.
On Saturday evening, a record-breaking attempt to beat the number of sandcastles built in an hour just fell short as 917 sandcastles were created.
A sponsored charity walk on Sunday was hailed a success as more than 90 walkers highlighted mental health issues. Led by mental health activist Sarah Barrett and the Fight the Stigma group the Warrior Walk raised funds and awareness.
The festival also featured the launch of the Find Freddie the Fish and Friends town trail, which will run between July 30 and September 3 in Lowestoft.
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The Lowestoft Summer Festival is a partnership of Lowestoft Vision, Lowestoft Rising, Lowestoft Lions, Lowestoft's Rotary Clubs, the Kirkley Business Association, Sentinel Leisure Trust, the Kirkley People's Forum and London Road Baptist Church with support from the Access Community Trust.
Festival chairman Mark Lanham said: 'It has been another really successful event. This festival is all about bringing advice to the community as well as entertainment and it has grown and developed over the three years. We could not put on the festival without the support of a hard working team, and we hope we can continue to move forward and engage with more community groups and the public next year.'
Danny Steel, of Lowestoft Vision, added: 'We had our own village created on Royal Green, with more than 30 stalls featuring charities and local organisations.'
Waveney MP Peter Aldous attended the festival on both days, taking part in the Parkrun and joining the Warrior Walk. He said: 'It was the first time I have taken part in the Parkrun and it was very enjoyable as I saw Lowestoft at its finest while having some good exercise.
'There was a great turnout and there are so many people here who have come together to put on this festival. This special event showcases everything that is good about Lowestoft.'
Phil Aves, change manager at Lowestoft Rising, said: 'We are really pleased with how the festival has gone. A lot of work goes into it from a lot of people and it is important for the town to have an event like this. The festival grows every year as we try different things and hopefully we can sort a proper seafront parade next year.'
For more information visit www.lowestoftrising.co.uk/summer-festival
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