The Rock is super proud to be able to support this year’s pantomime The Pied Piper of Hamelin at The Met, helping make the magic more accessible to local families and schoolchildren.
Here’s to a season full of sparkle, silliness, and standing ovations! 
FAMILIES from Bury and beyond will be able to visit a magical Santa’s Grotto at The Rock Shopping this festive season – for FREE!
The shopping and leisure destination’s Santa’s Grotto will open on Saturday 29th November and will then be open on various days on the run up to Christmas.
The return of the grotto to The Rock in 2024 was so successful, with almost 2,000 children visiting. Each child will receive a chocolate lolly, and visitors can take photos on their own devices, which Santa’s Elves can help with.
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director of The Rock, said: “”At The Rock, we believe every child should have the chance to meet Santa, which is why our grotto will once again be free to enter. However, if you’d like to support a good cause, donations can be made at the grotto to our current partner charity Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary.”
The grotto will be located in St John’s Square, alongside the centre’s Christmas food fair. The famous Rock Express land train will also return this Christmas. Visitors can enjoy a festive journey in the town from Saturday 13th December.
Santa’s grotto will be fully accessible and will be manned by two elves. For full opening hours and further information click here.
The Rock Shopping Centre is ending its milestone 15th year with a new tradition: its first-ever Christmas Parade and Lights Switch-On.
Taking place on Saturday 8th November at 3:45pm. This festive celebration promises to light up the heart of Bury like never before, and you’re invited to take part.
With dazzling brand-new Christmas decorations and a community spirit to match, The Rock is calling on local schools, clubs, community groups, and creative individuals to help launch this magical event.
Whether you’re a dance troupe, a choir, a scout group, or just a bunch of festive enthusiasts, this is your chance to shine.
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director at The Rock, said: “This is a truly special moment for us. After 15 fantastic years, we’re thrilled to be launching our first-ever Christmas Parade and Lights Switch-On. It’s a chance for the whole community to come together, celebrate, and light up Bury in a way we’ve never done before. We’re pulling out all the stops to make this an unforgettable event, and we’d love as many people as possible to be part of it.”
Participants will be eligible for Parade Awards in categories such as:
Winners receive:
All groups will receive certificates of participation, making this a fun and meaningful way to celebrate the season and be part of something special.
Event Details:
How to Register:
To take part, simply email [email protected] with:
FAMILIES visiting The Rock Shopping Centre can enjoy all the fun of the fair for free this summer.
The shopping and leisure destination has unveiled a free fun fair installation to keep visitors entertained during the school holidays.
The fair which includes bowls, mini-golf, hoopla, a birthday-themed coconut shy and a bean bag throwing game is open daily, weather permitting.
On Wednesdays during August the funfair comes to life with carnival themed characters who’ll also be bringing along a special number 15 Buzz-Wire and hook a duck.
Visitors can pick up a score card from the event team and there’s treats on offer for top-scorers.
Located in the space in front of The Range, the funfair will be in situ until the end of August.
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director of The Rock, said: “This year is The Rock’s 15th birthday and we wanted to celebrate this summer with all the fun of the fair. This activation has been packed out since it opened at the start of August and the event days have been a huge success so far with hundreds of families getting involved. We’ve got two more live events on Wednesday 20th and Wednesday 27th August and the fair will be here until the end of the month. If you haven’t been along already, we’d love to see you!”
The waterballs, bungees and rides are back at The Rock for the summer, these paid attractions are separate to the funfair installation. The Rock’s free beach is also open daily, weather permitting.
The Rock Shopping Centre is thrilled to announce the winner of our £1500 Birthday Spending Spree prize — congratulations to Samira Safapour from Bury.
The Birthday Spending Spree giveaway was launched to celebrate The Rock’s 15th anniversary and show appreciation to our fantastic community of shoppers.
From all of us at The Rock: thank you to everyone who entered, and stay tuned for more exciting events and prizes coming your way!
Here is Samira’s entry:
FIFTEEN local creatives were at the centre of The Rock’s 15th birthday celebrations.
To mark the shopping and leisure destination’s birthday, The Rock held a competition earlier in the year where local people were invited to enter their ‘Design a Birthday Card’ competition.
More than 300 entries were received, and 15 winners were selected. Their designs are now on display at The Rock as part of the birthday celebrations.
The winners were invited to a celebration event on Saturday 12th July, where the cards were unveiled and they were each presented with a £30 gift card for a store of their choice at The Rock.
The celebrations were hosted by Roch Valley Radio and included performances from Forza Dance Studio and North West Musical Theatre Choirs.
The Rock’s new partner charity, Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary, attended for their first fundraising event as part of their year as ‘charity of choice’. They ran a tombola which raised £452.
To add to the fun, three costume characters dressed as cupcakes, roamed the centre handing out cupcakes to visitors and The Rock’s mascot Rocky joined the crowds for photos.
Arnold Wilcox- Wood, Centre Director of The Rock, said: “We’ve had a wonderful weekend celebrating our 15th birthday – which officially falls on Wednesday (16th July). The competition entries were fantastic, and we’re so pleased to be able to celebrate so much local talent. The cards will be on display for the next few weeks, please do come to have a look at them.
“On another note, we’d like to thank all our customers, retailers, team members and residents for a wonderful 15 years of The Rock. We’re so proud of the part we’ve played in Bury’s story and we’re equally proud of the part everyone has played in ours.”
For more information and the full timetable visit: www.therockbury.com
The Rock Shopping Centre is proud to announce Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary as its new charity partner for the coming year, following a public vote that saw strong support from the local community.
Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary provides care, shelter, and second chances for hundreds of animals, from dogs and cats to farm animals and wildlife. The charity’s tireless work has made it a beloved fixture in the area offering education, rehoming, and sanctuary services for over 60 years.
Over 1,000 votes were cast through The Rock’s website, with Bleakholt receiving the most public support.
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director at The Rock, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary as our new charity of choice. The support they received in the vote shows just how much they mean to the community. We look forward to working closely with the team to raise awareness, funds, and help even more animals in need.”
Karen Weed, Sanctuary Manager at Bleakholt, added: “We are absolutely thrilled to be chosen as The Rock’s charity partner. This opportunity will help us reach new audiences, generate vital funding, and share more of the amazing work happening every day at the sanctuary. Most importantly, it will help us continue to care for the animals who need us most.
“Our big fundraiser in 2025 is Project Purrfect – extending and renovating our cattery. There is a cat crisis in the North West and ‘Project Purrfect’ will allow us to help more abandoned, neglected and sick cats in the area. This is why is means such a lot to be The Rock’s 2025 Charity of Choice. Thank you to everyone who voted for us.”
The partnership officially begins on 1st July 2025, kicking off a calendar of awareness events, fundraising activities, and joint campaigns designed to celebrate the work of Bleakholt and connect The Rock’s visitors with this important cause.
The Rock also marks the conclusion of its partnership with Secret Garden at Hoyles Park, whose year as the centre’s chosen charity saw significant awareness raised and funds generated for local outdoor education and sensory experiences.
Arnold added: “We’ve been incredibly proud to support Secret Garden this past year. We wish them continued success going forward.”
VISITORS to The Rock could be in with a chance of winning a huge spending spree this summer.
As part of its 15th birthday celebrations The Rock Shopping Centre has launched a competition to win a £1,500 shopping spree.
The centre, which officially opened on 16th July 2010, has unveiled an impressive photo prop structure in the shape of a 15. Shoppers who visit the centre and share a photo with the installation will be entered into a draw to win the prize pot.
The competition was launched on Saturday with a special event at The Rock featuring butterfly stilt walkers and roaming dragon performers.
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director of The Rock, said: “This is one of the biggest giveaways we’ve done for a long time and we can’t wait to see all the photo entries. We’re really proud of the part we play in Bury’s story and we’ve got many things planned this summer – this is just the start of the birthday fun. Good luck to everyone entering the competition.”
Entries can be shared on social media using #15YearsOfTheRock or emailed to [email protected]
The competition runs until 11th July and the winner will be notified close to the official 15 year anniversary of the centre opening.
The winner will be invited to The Rock to claim their spending spree with the centre’s retailers.
The Rock has also been dressed with an array of colourful bunting, posters, banners and flowers to kick start the birthday season.
A SCHOOL uniform shop has officially opened its doors at The Rock Shopping Centre.
Smart Start Schoolwear, part of the Debonair Schoolweargroup, is the latest tenant to join the centre.
The retailer, which has school uniform stores across the North West, including in Wythenshawe and Oldham has opened in a unit in St John’s Gardens at The Rock, opposite M&S.
Sarah of Smart start schoolwear said: “We’re really excited to have opened in Bury and are thrilled to be a part of The Rock. Our new store offers quality and value from the get-go. We meet the needs of parents and schools alike and are dedicated to maintaining high standards.
“Our shop is well-lit, clean, child-friendly and offers a modern shopping environment with plenty of changing rooms and knowledgeable staff to offer a refreshing experience. We look forward to meeting our new customers very soon.”
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director at The Rock, added: “We are thrilled to welcome Smart Start Schoolwear to The Rock and wish the team every success.”
Budding creatives are being encouraged to enter a design competition to help celebrate a Bury shopping destination’s milestone birthday.
This summer The Rock Shopping Centre is 15 and has launched a ‘Design a Birthday Card’ competition to mark the special occasion.
The competition runs from now until 31st May and 10 winning entries will go on display in The Rock’s Wall of Birthday Wishes installation in St John’s Square at The Rock from 7th July – 25th July
Each winning designer will be awarded with a £30 gift voucher to spend at The Rock and invited to see their design on display at The Rock’s birthday event.
Arnold Wilcox-Wood, Centre Director of The Rock, said: “This year is a milestone for The Rock and we wanted to include the community at the heart of our celebrations. The Wall of Birthday Wishes aims to celebrate creatives in Bury and we can’t wait to see the submissions. I’m sure we’ll have a tough job selecting the final 10 winners and we encourage everyone to get involved.”
Entry forms can be downloaded from The Rock’s website or collected from retailers including The Entertainer, Bob and Berts, Smiggle and Starbucks.
Submissions can be emailed to [email protected] or posted in The Rock’s competition post box which will be in St John’s Square (near The Range) every day until the competition closes on 31st May 2025.
The competition is open to all.
For more information and to download an entry form visit: www.therockbury.com