The Stroud Social is set to bring a jam-packed weekend of live entertainment, music, and street food to the town centre on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th October.

The new event will be held along King Street, next to the Five Valleys Shopping Centre, which will be pedestrianised for the weekend. The Stroud Social aims to bring the local community back together, through a celebration of local performers and independent traders.

There will be a cookery theatre showing live cooking between 11-4pm on Saturday and 12-3pm on Sunday with local independent hospitality owners such as "Oh Crepe", "Thai2Go" and "Fat Tony's" giving tasters of their favourite dishes.

Live performances from Stroud's local colleges will be shown throughout the Five Valleys shopping centre and King Street, with communal seating provided so you can sit back and enjoy the show! There will also be live music from Stroud College band, UkeStroud, Jazz Big Band and the Stanley Strummers.

For the children, the Stroud Social will host a Kiddie's Corner with activities such as colouring, giant games and a magician, alongside street performers for the whole family to enjoy.

Before the event, make sure to enter the Stroud Social competition on the Five Valleys Facebook page to win a £50 indoor market voucher. Just head over to @FiveValleysStroud and follow the listed instructions for your chance to win.

Jess Derham, Five Valleys market and events manager, said: "The Stroud Social is gearing up to be an amazing weekend full of fabulous local food and performers. We are so excited to be a part of this amazing event aiming to bring together our local community after such a difficult 18 months. It's going to be an amazing weekend!"

Cllr Stella Parkes, chair of the Stroud Town Council Regeneration Committee, said: "It is great to see Five Valleys shopping centre organising community events to showcase both our local independent food stores and local schools.

"The role of town centres is changing and they are now not just for shopping, but also a location for a whole range of other entertainments and experiences."

Stroud Social is hosted in partnership with Five Valleys Shopping Centre, Stroud Town Council, Stroud District Council, and the Stroud and District Chamber of Trade & Commerce.