New Lord Mayor for Stoke-on-Trent
Plus new woodland pods for Moddershall Oaks, blue plaques for Stoke's lost nightclubs, cash for Kidsgrove and SCFC awarded EFL Family Club of the Season
Good News 🎉
⛓️ Meet your New Lord Mayor. There’s a new mayor in town! Councillor Steve Watkins was selected as Lord Mayor during Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s annual council meeting on 22/05. During his year of office, he will raise money for his three chosen charities: Help for Heroes, the National Literacy Trust (Stoke-on-Trent) and Saltbox Carelink, which works to combat loneliness in older people. Steve has solid Stokie credentials: before being elected as a councillor, he worked at Royal Doulton for 25 years. Councillor Joan Bell, who represents the Sandford Hill ward, has been appointed his deputy.
🪩💃 THE KNOT’S PEOPLE OF THE WEEK – Phil Johnson and Bob Leigh 🪩💃
Did you know that the UK’s first reputed discotheque was The Place, which opened in Hanley back in 1963? Two music fans, Phil Johnson and Bob Leigh, have created blue plaques to honour the spot where greats including Rod Stewart and David Bowie once played. The music lovers have also created plaques for renowned soul club The Top Rank, and The Heavy Steam Machine, once the biggest disco in Europe, which pays tribute to DJ Colin Curtis. There’s also one for The Void, honouring DJs Pete Bromley and Kelvin Andrews, and The Antelope, for DJ Philip J Oliver.
🏺Denby Opens At Trentham Shopping Village. Snap up some bargains from this fab Derby-based ceramics brand! The Denby discount store will include cookshop, cast iron, glassware, cutlery, giftware, plus placemats, coasters and Home decor, with at least 30% off the recommended retail price. It will also include Denby’s new Made in England Kiln and Kiln Blue Collections, and its contemporary classic home decor ranges such as Halo and Imperial Blue.
🎸 Woodland Pods for Moddershall Oaks. Moddershall has mostly been the domain of keen spa-goers looking to access some of the best massages, facials and other treatments in the county (it also has a great restaurant). Last week, it launched its gorgeous Woodland Pods (there’s 14 of them) with beautiful furnishings and lush wallpaper plus high-spec amenities including an ensuite Bubble Spa shower and a mini bar. The three family pods can sleep up to four, while doubles feature king beds. There’s even a honeymoon suite and preparation suite designed for brides and grooms-to-be. Check out our full story here.
💰 Investment Plans for Kidsgrove. More good news – a new phase of investment is being proposed for the centre of Kidsgrove. Proposals include creating small enterprise units, a learning centre for the community, improvements to the canal pathways, and upgrading surroundings in the town centre. The next phase could include three enterprise units for small business at The Meadows; creating a community learning centre at the Kings Academy; and expanding work linking the Trent & Mersey Canal to the town centre.
⚽️ SCFC Named EFL Family Club of the Season. Thanks to the “outstanding” matchday experience at the bet365 Stadium, SCFC beat 71 other teams to the title of EFL’s Family Club of the Season for 2024-2025. The report singled out the welcoming and proactive nature of club staff, kids’ activities in the club’s family areas and how young fans at their first game get pitch side access, a signed letter and notepad. It also loved how the club’s mascots, Pottermus and Pottermiss, engaged with young fans, plus the range of food and drink on site.
Really Good News 🎉 Your favourite news from the last week
👩👩👧👦 Invite Your Friends to Read The Knot: James introduced our referral programme, with prizes for those who spread the word about The Knot’s positive news.
🎸 Own a Stake in The Sugarmill! You can become a shareholder for as little as £50 thanks to Music Venue Properties’ 'Own Our Own Venues' project.
👩💼 Free Leadership Courses for Heritage Leaders: There’s executive-style training for heritage leaders via the University of Staffordshire’s CREATE PLACE programme.
The Knot Pod 🎤 ⬇️ Catch James chatting with some of our amazing innovators
🥨 The Red Haired Stokie: Our ace local blogger, photographer & Knot contributor
🗣️ Kirsty Hulse: Get inspired, it’s the founder of leading event Confidence Live
🏃♂️ George Bettany: Jog to this chat with the founder of MARA Run Club
📽️ Daniel Moore: So much creativity going on in Stone at top agency Dissident
🎶: Ash and Ryan: Listen to two of Stoke’s biggest names in music and fashion
🕯️Beth Warren: Founder of sustainable candle brand The Wandering Bee
🥨 Good Vibes Only: A word from Helen, writer at The Knot
If you haven’t noticed yet, we’ve been busy on our socials bringing you all the news from around the region, including James’s excellent walk-around video of Goods Yard, the Moving Mug coffee bus in Stone and the new breakfast option at Lunar over at the Wedgwood Estate. We also took a first look at the oh-so-cute Woodland Pods at Moddershall Oaks, which officially opened last Thursday.
It’s all part of our plan to bring you even more regular updates on our fine city, where so much is going on. Beyond the city limits, all across the county we have some amazing towns (we’re looking at you, Leek and Lichfield) and we’re keen to bring you more on their happenings. We’ve been working with the very talented Sophia Moseley this week to bring you the first edition of the The Knot Lichfield. Check it out here to find out what’s going on, including the upcoming Lichfield Festival on 08/07.
If there’s something you’d like us to know about, whether it’s the opening of a new boutique from a fledgling business, or an exciting charity initiative, then get in touch – we’d love to include you!
Helen x
Weekly Weather (Stoke-on-Trent): It’s bank holiday so rain is inevitable 🤣
Mon 🌧️ 15° (10°) Tue 🌧️ 15° (11°) Wed 🌥️ 16° (10°) Thu 🌧️ 18° (6°) Fri 🌧️ 17° (11°)
Sat 🌤️ 22° (9°) Sun 🌤️ 21° (9°).
Sunrise 26/05 ☀️04:56 Sunset 26/05 🌅 21:16
