March Market 2026
Saturday 28th March was our second market of the year and with an Easter theme to match the season the turn out was very good.
The better weather helped things along and with plenty of stalls inside and out a good day was on offer to visitors.
This months charity tea room was run by Daisy's Dream, who brought along some delicious sweet treats and cakes.
The charity provides vital support for children and young people facing bereavement—helping them prepare for a loss or navigate life after the death of someone important to them.
They had a very good day and took £719.14 for their cause.
You can find out more about what they do by visiting their website at https://www.daisysdream.org.uk/
The free event for the March Market was a children's Easter egg hunt, where participants had to find all the letters hidden around the market and collect stickers on their hunt sheet to win themselves an Easter egg. This was the busiest Easter egg hunt yet with more than 70 children taking part and although it was a free event, many visitors kindly made donations and an extra £43 was collected which will go into the charity pot for the year.
Our brunch bar was open for business as usual and served around 90 hot bacon and sausage baps, keeping the volunteers very busy and taking £360 which was up £55 on the previous month.
From feedback received, visitors and stall holders enjoyed the day it was a lovely start to the Easter holidays.
The next market is on Saturday May 30th and we hope everyone will join us again.
January Market 2026
With the festive season behind us, it was time to look to the market year ahead and the first one of the year didn't disappoint!
After some very wet weather lately we were blessed with a dry morning and the market had a good footfall with stall holders on the whole having a good trading day.
We were very pleased to have local baker Aston's Bakehouse join us, who bake fresh, organic bread and pastries. The stall looked amazing and long queues were seen there most of the day. Feedback assures us the products tasted as good as they looked and we look forward to welcoming Aston's back to join us again.
You can find their website at www.astonsbakehouse.co.uk where you can find out more about the bakery.
This months charity tea room was run by Newbury Sugar Craft Group, who brought along a tremendous selection of cakes to go with the hot drinks being served. They had a good day and took £494.59 for their charity. They also ran a raffle which was popular and had a good selection of prizes up for grabs.
They are a not for profit organisation who teach both children and adults cake decorating skills. if you'd like more information about them you can find them at www.newburysugarcraftgroup.co.uk.
To brighten up what has been a bit of a dreary January, the children's event was balloon modelling and Pageant Party from Newbury came along to run the event. There was no charge for this but visitors kindly made donations while waiting for their children's balloons to be shaped and an extra £39.50 was given which all goes towards the charities the market supports.
Pageant Party is an amazing shop next to Newbury main station and they do all things party. Including decorations, accessories, fancy dress, fireworks and of course balloons.
You can find them online at www.pageantparty.co.uk or simply pop in and have a look around.
The brunch bar is always popular and was once again totally sold out. The new even more delicious baps, in either wholemeal or white, helped things along. Takings were very good at £305.
Overall, it was a very successful event and we now look forward to the next market on Saturday March 28th.
November Market – 2025
The final market of the year was our Christmas market held on Saturday 29th November and despite our good luck with the weather running out, it was a great day and a very busy market.
This month’s charity tea room was run by our new Charity of the Year for 2026, Eight Bells for Mental Health. A selection of cakes and hot drinks were on offer and they had a busy day taking £654 for their charity.
The charity run mental health support drop-in sessions that offer a safe, supportive and welcoming environment.
Find out more about what they do by visiting their website at: https://eightbellsnewbury.co.uk/
Now it wouldn’t be a Christmas market without Father Christmas and the grotto was very busy with lots of children paying a visit and receiving a free gift.
We are pleased to welcome our new sponsor for 2026, Stowhill Estates, to the market and Rebecca Cooke, who runs the company spent the morning with us on her stall. She will be attending markets throughout the year and you can get more information about the service they provide either by chatting to Rebecca at one of next year’s markets or by visiting the website at: https://www.stowhillestates.com/
This Christmas for the first time, we held a best dressed stall competition, which was won by Liz Morris with her beautifully presented and festive stall. Well done Liz!
Our hot food option, The Brunch Bar, was as busy as ever and sold out of just about everything. The Brunch Bar sells hot sausage and bacon baps with onion and cheese options and a choice of sauces to go with your food and is always popular. Takings were up again on last month and we took £405 serving visitors with welcome hot food.
As the market year draws to a close, it was time to present our charity of the year for 2025, Newbury Cancer Care, with a donation of £5000.
The charity have attended the markets all year and held a tombola on the day as well.
You can find out more about the excellent work they do by visiting their website at: https://www.newburycancercare.org.uk/
So that’s it for this year. Thank you to everyone who helped out, visited a market or held a stall. It all goes towards the charities we help and we couldn’t do it without your ongoing support.
The WHVM team will now take a Seasonal break but will be back at the end of January for the first market of the new year.
We look forward to seeing you then.
A very Merry Christmas to you all.
September Market – 2025
Our September market was held on Saturday the 27th and from feedback received, a good day was had by many.
The rain just about stayed away and the market had a nice busy atmosphere from beginning to end.
It was a fully booked event with plenty of fresh foods, gifts, crafts and treats on offer.
This month’s charity tea room was run by Newbury Speakability who also held a tombola for visitors to try their luck at.
Hot drinks and a selection of cakes were on offer and they took an impressive £616 for their charity during the day.
You can find out more about the good work that Newbury Speakability do by following the link to their website here: https://www.stroke.org.uk/
Our brunch bar was particularly busy serving hot sausage and bacon rolls to hungry visitors and took £365.25 which was up more than £100 on last month’s takings.
With the summer now well behind us we look ahead to our final market of the year which is our Christmas market held on Saturday the 29th November. Santa's Grotto will be open for the children to visit. It will be free of charge as usual with a gift for each child, plus a fully booked Christmas market.
We look forward to welcoming you all again then.