One community stall, countless conversations and one very important mission: persuading Sherbatella to visit Carlisle Markets!
Friday 24th July marked the first week of our Woodland Wonders summer programme at Carlisle Open Air Market—and what a wonderful beginning it was.
Following a kind invitation from Fairy Sawdust and Cumberland Council’s Friday Market team, Dance Ahead CIC teamed up with community champion Michelle Russell and The Activity Bus to bring the stall to life in the heart of Carlisle city centre, just outside the Tourist Information Centre.
Woodland Wonders is a new community project inspired by imagination, nature and kindness. Through storytelling, creativity and shared action, it encourages little humans and their grown-ups to discover how small acts of care can help create a kinder, greener Carlisle.
Throughout the day, we enjoyed thoughtful conversations with families, visitors and fellow stallholders, gathering ideas and inspiration for the project’s ongoing development.
Welcoming Visitors into Sherbatella’s World
Visitors discovered the story of Sherbatella, our Birthday Wish Fairy with a major sweet tooth. Sherbatella was created as part of a play ‘FariySnuff’ written 21 years ago, that we are seeking investment in to remount the work as ‘FairyNuff’ in 2027 with some of the original creators from 2005!
Sherbatella is searching for Woodland Wonderers who can help protect nature and keep the fairy world tidy as it prepares for its annual festival. Families were invited to learn more about her world through colouring, storytelling, interactive prompts and creative conversations.
Scores of people took away Sherbatella’s Woodland Challenge, which invites children and families to complete five simple acts of kindness for nature over the summer:
- Pick up some litter
- Help a bee or butterfly
- Plant something
- Make nature art
- Tell someone why nature matters
Every small act of kindness helps the world to flourish.
Meet Kendall, Our Honorary Woodland Wonderer
One of the greatest joys of the day was meeting Kendall, aged eight – nearly nine – daughter of Jill Mulholland from the Cotehill Station Flowers stall.
Jill generously trusted us to welcome Kendall into the project for much of the day, and we could not have been happier to have her alongside us. Confident, thoughtful and wonderfully community-minded, Kendall quickly became an honorary member of the Woodland Wonders team.
She enthusiastically shared Sherbatella’s story with new friends who visited the stall, encouraged families to take on the Woodland Challenge and helped us with perhaps the most important task of the summer: finding ways to persuade Sherbatella to visit the human world.
Kendall’s warmth and enthusiasm were infectious. Jill has clearly nurtured a remarkable young person who already understands how creativity, kindness and community spirit can bring people together.
Can We Persuade Sherbatella to Visit Carlisle?
Sherbatella has not yet agreed to appear at the market. Before she ventures into the human world, she needs some convincing that Carlisle is filled with enough kindness, imagination and care for nature.
Kendall and Zoë began visiting market traders, asking them to write a message explaining why Sherbatella should come and see their stalls.
The response was wonderful.
Stallholders wrote invitations describing Carlisle’s friendly people, beautiful flowers, local produce, wildlife and welcoming community. These handwritten messages were added to our growing display of colourful leaves, helping to create a collective invitation from the market to the fairy world.
We did not manage to reach every trader during our first Friday, so Kendall and Zoë will continue the mission next week. We hope that, with enough encouragement, Sherbatella may be persuaded to sprinkle a little fairy magic across Carlisle before the summer is over.
Creativity, Conversation and Community Connection
As the day unfolded, the stall became a space where people could pause, create and connect.
Children coloured pictures, shared ideas and wrote about ways they could help nature. Adults stopped to discuss environmental responsibility, creative wellbeing and how projects like Woodland Wonders might grow across Carlisle.
Some visitors stayed for a few minutes; others spent much longer talking, drawing and contributing to the developing story. Each interaction helped us learn more about what captures people’s imagination and how the project might evolve over the coming weeks.
The day also created some beautiful, unplanned moments of generosity.
At the end of the market, Jill from Cotehill Station Flowers gifted Michelle and Zoë a gorgeous bouquet. The lovely lady from the Truly Scrumptious of Whitehaven cake stall also gave Kendall a cake as thanks for everything she had contributed during the day.
These simple gestures captured what genuine community connection can look like: trust, kindness, sharing and appreciation moving naturally between people.
Woodland Wonders encourages kindness towards the natural world, but Friday reminded us that acts of kindness towards one another are equally important.
Supporting World Funfair Month in Carlisle
Alongside introducing Woodland Wonders, the stall helped raise awareness of the World Funfair Month activities coming to Carlisle during September.
This follows last year’s joyful event, when Dance Ahead’s gold walkabout characters roamed the streets of Carlisle, bringing playful encounters, fun and a little candyfloss-inspired magic into the city centre.
We were delighted to reconnect with the wider funfair initiative and begin sharing information about what families and businesses can look forward to building later this year.
Woodland Wonders Will Keep Growing
Our first week was only the beginning.
Across the coming Fridays, the stall will continue to develop, offering a changing mixture of:
- Colouring and nature-inspired creativity
- Storytelling and imaginative prompts
- Interactive tasks and community challenges
- Sherbatella’s Woodland Challenge
- Small giveaways and activities to take home
- Conversations about nature, kindness and shared responsibility
- Opportunities to shape the future of Woodland Wonders
- Opportunities to pledge your support for community initiatives such as Woodland Wonders, World Funfair Month & The Human Playground
The stall operates mainly on a free, drop-in basis, so families can stay for as little or as long as suits them.
We will also announce specific times and dates for special appearances, quests, mini dances and featured activities through our social media channels.
Next Week: A Secret Birthday Quest
Next Friday, our focus will turn towards The Activity Bus’s secret city-wide birthday quest.
People will be invited to join in with the secret birthday mission, explore Carlisle and become part of another playful adventure taking place through the Friday Market.
Kendall and Zoë will also continue gathering messages from market traders in the hope of finally persuading Sherbatella to visit.
Who knows what might happen next?
Come and Join Us
You can find Woodland Wonders and The Activity Bus at Carlisle Open Air Market every Friday throughout the summer holidays between 10am-4pm.
Come and colour, create, tell a story, complete a challenge, share your ideas or simply stop for a chat.
Keep an eye on Dance Ahead CIC’s social media pages for details of special activities and appearances.
If you are interested in learning more about Woodland Wonders, hosting an activity or exploring a future partnership, please get in touch:
You can also explore the project here
Come and play, connect and imagine a kinder world.