Welcome to
ABOUT
Side-by-Side is a new arts festival for the borough of Rochdale that is about bringing together, working together, and being together. It is not a Do-It-Yourself festival, but a
This festival is made by the people of Rochdale Borough, for everyone. You’ll find exciting activities like making art, playing games, sharing stories, and much more — all created by our amazing local communities.
Come and explore the pop-up space near Touchstones on Rochdale Town Hall Square and discover what happens when we all work Side-by-Side. There are plenty of ways to get involved, so let’s create something special together!
A special thanks to Rochdale Town Hall for kindly hosting us for Sideby-Side whilst Touchstones is closed for redevelopment.
Do-It-Together one – created to widen participation, foster inclusion, and address social isolation. It is a chance to experience and celebrate artworks, performances, events, workshops, and activities created by people from across the borough. But more than that, it is an invitation to get involved – not just now, but in shaping the festivals to come. So whether as a visitor, spectator, participant, or future collaborator, we look forward to welcoming you in, and sitting or standing side-by-side with you.
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Side-by-Side has become the fabric of our work at Touchstones – it’s much more than just an arts festival, but one of creativity, cooperation and lasting friendships. We have been overwhelmed with the generosity of partners, community groups, and schools, who have helped make it a reality!
Whilst Touchstones is closed for improvements, we’ve been working together with people from across the borough and beyond to create something really special and this will keep coming in the years ahead! We are so excited to bring the programme to the heart of Rochdale Town Centre. We can’t wait for you to join in with everything we have planned!
Bryan Beresford, Community & Inclusion Manager at Touchstones Rochdale
Harry Meadley, Creative Lead
Thanks to: Art Fund: Reimagine Grant, Arts Council England, The Big Give’s #ArtsForImpact, Creative Lives through Know Your Neighbourhood Partnership Grant, DCMS, Rochdale Boroughwide Council, and Rochdale Town Hall for helping make this happen!
Side-by-Side is part of a spectacular line up of festivals, live performances, exhibitions and art during Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture 2025–26. The title, awarded by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority celebrates the town’s rich history, creativity, talent and diverse arts scene.
FUNDERS & PARTNERS
CREATIVE VOICES
Creative Voices have been working with Touchstones for over a year, and for the past nine months have been helping to plan Side-by-Side.
They are a wonderful group of local people who have shared their ideas and helped us make some important decisions. They have given advice on how to make the festival accessible to everyone, helped choose what activities to include, and even helped us with the festival’s look and feel. Each member joined through an open call in early 2024. They have also created their own sound work for the festival called Am I A Good Ancestor? which includes recordings from local people sharing their stories. This special piece is part of the festival programme, and we cannot wait for you to experience it.
CREATIVE PARTNERS
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
Adam Scott
Adam Scott is a Manchester-based creative blending break dance, theatre, and youth leadership. He co-founded Break Dance Manchester and launched Dance Studio Manchester through Elevate Young Minds. His work empowers over 3,000 young people through culture, education, and performance, including his original piece Sunday Dinner, fusing hip hop and theatre. “Working alongside members of the Creative Voices panel has been a great honour, representing the voices of creative practitioners and young people from across Rochdale.”
Isha Hafeez
“I’m a recent musical theatre graduate and joined the Creative Voices panel to explore my creativity and grow my confidence. I love diving into new ideas at each meeting. I hope this festival brings people together giving them a chance to connect, collaborate, and enjoy a new experience.”
Sabia Ash
“The Side by Side festival in Rochdale is a joyful celebration of local pride, creativity, and community. Rooted in our town’s rich heritage, it brings together residents, artists, and leaders to showcase what makes Rochdale unique. At its heart is Touchstones Museum — a hub of art, stories, and history. Powered by the Creative Voices panel, this year’s festival marks Rochdale’s status as Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture. Let’s come together—side by side—to celebrate our town.”
Jenna Ashworth
‘I’m Jen! I’m a young actress and photographer born and raised in Rochdale. Having grown up in this town, I am very passionate about the work being done to revive the arts here and I’m grateful to have a part in it with helping to develop incredible projects like Side-by-Side!’
Joanne Barker-Marsh
has had successful careers in AudioVisual production and now in the Voluntary & Community Sector. She is mum to Harry and a strong advocate for children with special education needs and disabilities and families living in poverty. “The Creative Voices call out was the most exciting thing I had seen in my community, where I knew I could work with others to help make culture and enrichment accessible and relevant”.
ACCESS INFORMATION
Side-by-Side Festival is open and welcoming to all. Events include bookable and drop-in activities.
ACCESS GUIDE
A full Access Guide is available via the QR code at all festival locations. Please check the accessibility of all venues before planning your visit.
Side-By-Side Festival
Rochdale Town Hall
Local Studies at Sparth
We will updating the festival access guide page in mid-July
HELP & SUPPORT
Staff and volunteers are on hand to help. For access queries ahead of your visit, contact: creativecommunities@yourtrustrochdale.co.uk
LOST CHILDREN & FIRST AID POINTS
Look for signposted points at:
• Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
• Sparth Community Centre (Local Studies Room)
TOILETS & BABY CHANGING
• Rochdale Town Hall: Accessible toilets on all floors. Baby changing on ground & second floors.
• Sparth Community Centre: Ground floor toilets and baby changing.
• Accessible Toilets are marked on the festival map.
MANCHES TER ROAD
MANCHESTER ROAD NEWGATE
THEESPLANADE
• Rochdale Town Hall: Nearby parking available please scan the QR code
• Sparth Community Centre: Small car park on-site and limited on street parking nearby.
1. Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square) what3words: opera.voting.radio
2. The Old Council Chamber what3words: left.become.relax
3. The Exchange what3words: pack.rides.shout
4. The Bright Hall (Lift access available) what3words: junior.many.trap
5. Sparth Community Centre what3words: expert.spaces.part - Sports Court: farm.speaks.rake - Grassed Area: songs.healthier. makes
6. The Esplanade (Outside Touchstones) what3words: aspect.spoon. change
RICHARD STREET
Details of how to book on the back of this guide.
PLAY & MAKE STATION BABY YOGA
REGULAR SESSIONS THROUGHOUT THE FESTIVAL
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
Our Make & Play Station will offer a range of hands-on, have-a-go, self-guided activities for families to enjoy, all inspired by our Collection.
Try out Fun Fact Artefact Jenga, Giant Roman Coin Connect 4 and more fun games with a historical twist!
THURSDAY 21 AUGUST 11AM
Rochdale Town Hall, The Bright Hall
AM I A GOOD ANCESTOR?
WEDNESDAY 20 AUGUST –
WEDNESDAY 27 AUGUST
Rochdale Town Hall, The Old Council Chamber
Am I A Good Ancestor? is a powerful new audio installation created with local communities from across Rochdale Borough.
A storytelling yoga session that will help you bond and relax with your baby!
Featuring a children’s story with fun props, join us for this interactive session led by Gilly Balfour from Z-Arts and Stretch and Sparkle. Suitable for babies and small children from 6-weeks-old and upwards.
Booking required
Developed by the Creative Voices group, and inspired by our shared local heritage, the work invites listeners to reflect on identity, place, memory and legacy through real-life stories from people who call Rochdale Borough their home.
Through a series of intimate interviews, local people responded to three simple but profound questions: How did you come to be in Rochdale? What was it like then? Are you a good ancestor? Their voices, woven together with the sounds of meaningful places and objects, build a rich collective portrait of the borough — past, present, and future.
Spanning generations and cultures, this audio piece celebrates the power
of storytelling to connect us. Join us in listening, remembering, and imagining what we will pass on.
The group worked with Danielle Porter to create the piece. She is a Manchesterbased Creative Producer who began in community radio with ALLFM, and BBC Radio Manchester. She’s created awardwinning podcasts and soundscapes for Cartwheel Arts, Mic Media and more, and has compered events from Bolton to Kuwait. She now works with SICK! Festival.
Commissioned by Touchstones Rochdale’s Creative Voices Group and supported by Art Fund, and Arts Council England.
Photography by Alan Hamer
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SCHOOLS LINKING
Celebrate the diversity of our borough’s schools with this free exhibition of work by pupils in the Schools Linking programme.
Between March and June 2025, over 1,000 pupils from primary schools across Rochdale Borough took part in creative workshops with artists Thomas Byrne and Elmi Ali. Through art and poetry, pupils explored themes such as identity, bravery and working together.
This exhibition on the fences of Broadfield Park on The Esplanade showcases the masks pupils created to help build friendships and understanding between schools, and you can also collect a zine with a collection of poems written during these workshops, available from The Esplanade or any Side-by-Side Festival venue.
Supported in Rochdale by Touchstones and Rochdale Borough Council, Schools Linking is a national programme that brings together two carefully matched classes from demographically different schools, in a thoughtfully-planned, year-long programme.
Meet the Artist: Thomas Byrne
Thomas (or Tom) is an artist from Manchester who loves making fun, creative things for families and children to enjoy together. He doesn’t always work in theatres — his shows and art often happen in places like museums, libraries or even outside!
Tom has made puppets, led art workshops, and helped put on big events like The Druids of Droylsden and It’s Appenin’ In Ashton. He knows Rochdale well and has worked at Touchstones and the Rochdale Pioneer Museum.
Meet the Artist: Elmi Ali
Elmi Ali is a writer and storyteller. He writes poems, stories, and plays — and he also performs and helps others learn how to tell stories too!
Elmi has made exciting shows like Survival and Snow White Privilege, and he’s worked on projects about Somali history and stories. He loves using words in creative ways and has worked with young people and schools, including at Touchstones.
SATURDAY 16 AUGUST – SUNDAY 14 SEPTEMBER
The Esplanade, Rochdale (outside Touchstones)
Photography by Alan Hamer
OVER TO YOU…
WEDNESDAY 20 AUGUST –
SUNDAY 7 SEPTEMBER
CLOSED (MONDAY 25 AUGUST)
Rochdale Town Hall, The Old Council Chamber
Indulge in some food for thought as we present creative responses to Side-by-Side’s festival themes of MAKE, HEAL, PLAY and SHARE.
See visual art, poetry, film and more, created by local groups who have been inspired by the rich arts and heritage collections of the borough.
YOUTH AUDIO TRAIL
WEDNESDAY 20 AUGUST -
WEDNESDAY 27 AUGUST
Pick up a map and find the locations starting at Rochdale Town Hall
Take an audio-guided walk around Rochdale, created by young people who lead you to the meaningful places in their lives.
Inspired by walks around the Town Centre, visiting the local shops for snacks, and support for their local football team, this project was created across multiple workshops with sound artist Yussuf Maleem, and local young people from the ‘Set A’ group. Use the map to find our trail spots, scan the QR code on your phone, and listen to the voices of Rochdale’s youth.
SHOW & TELL TA-DA!
WEDNESDAY 20 AUGUST, 5.30PM & TUESDAY 26 AUGUST, 6PM
Rochdale Town Hall, The Exchange
Celebrate the opening and closing of the festival with two very special events showcasing the work of local artists.
A great opportunity for artists to meet, exchange ideas and enjoy some nibbles and refreshments - everyone is welcome to come and discover the talent of local artists, and enjoy the creativity on display!
WEDNESDAY 20 AUGUST, 3 – 7.30PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
Join us for a packed afternoon of activities and a welcome from the festival creators.
See some live performance, make things, play, and relax. Expect music, fun, food and connection! There will be a special performance from the Women in Touch Dance Group.
After the afternoon’s activities, join us in Rochdale Town Hall for our first SHOW & TELL from 5.30pm onwards.
Join Harry, KRen and Nemo, the patients of Ward 76 - for a fun outdoor performance of a new show in the works.
Set in a children’s hospital, the patients are on the hunt for Wi-Fi but end up discussing toilet humour and misconceptions around disabilities amongst other teenager issues.
This lively show cleverly mixes serious issues with humour and giggles, and also includes a wheelchair obstacle course. After the show, experience what it’s like to be a wheelchair user as you face barriers, blocks and hazards! It’s all about positivity, accessibility and awareness.
This part of our programme was selected via the What Would You Do? open call and was selected by our Creative Voices community panel.
THE WIZARD AND THE MECHANIC
THURSDAY 21 AUGUST, 11AM & 2.15PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
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Booking required
Credits
Sam Jamil - Writer/Actor (Harry)
Shirley Jamil – Writer
Skäi Townsend – Producer
Emily Ashworth - Actor (KRen)
Calum Lucas - Actor (Nemo)
Nickie Miles-Wildin - Director
THURSDAY 21 AUGUST, 12.15 – 1.45PM & 3.30 – 4.30PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
Get ready for a magical adventure!
In this fun show by Adventure Arts, you’ll meet a clever mechanic and a curious wizard on a wild journey. Using masks, puppets, and lots of movement, they need your help to find their way! Made with help from students at Redwood School, this show is full of surprises and made for everyone to enjoy - whether we’re outside or indoors. Join in, cheer them on, and be part of the magic! Join us after the show for a maskmaking workshop.
Suitable for 5-10 years and the whole family.
NO SUCH THING
THURSDAY 21 AUGUST, 6 – 8PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
No Such Thing hosts conversations between two people who might not otherwise meet: an encounter between strangers, shaped, experienced, and remembered by those two people alone.
Hosted by our Community Curators from The Dining Room project, who will be sending out invitations for a free meal in exchange for a conversation. If you receive an invite we will see you there!
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Booking required
Photograph by Kate Daley
SPACES FOR NATURE
We are redesigning the gardens outside Touchstones, and we want your ideas!
Use your creativity and LEGO® bricks to imagine a greener, wilder future for everyone right in the heart of Rochdale.
Join us for a fun and thoughtful day all about helping nature! Lots of animals and plants are in danger, but together we can make a difference.
You can take part in hands-on activities, learn about wildlife, and explore big ideas like rewilding - making more space for nature to grow wild and free – whilst learning about Touchstones’ exciting new growing space.
This activity by Touchstones Rochdale has been made possible through the partnership between the Natural History Museum and the LEGO Group as part of their Build the Change programme, funded by the LEGO Foundation.
FRIDAY 22 AUGUST, 10.30 – 11.15AM & 11.15AM - 12PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
PIZZA PARTY
FRIDAY 22 AUGUST, 1.30 – 3PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
Enjoy tasty pizzas with a touch of home, designed by young people from the ‘Set A’ Group in Rochdale. Come and have a taste, with a free pizza giveaway at lunchtime!
We’ll really be setting the picnic vibe with replica handmade cups created by local young people with support from professional artists. There will be picnic blankets too!
About Set A
The ‘Set A’ group is a creative, supportive space for young people, developed through the Side-bySide project in partnership with Rochdale Council and Touchstones since May 2024. Through creative-based sessions - including collage, music, and performance - the group builds confidence, teamwork, and self-expression, helping participants form friendships, discover new skills, and connect with wider cultural opportunities. The group is facilitated by ‘Creative Activator’ and freelance artist Chris Brown.
MAKE, LAUGH, FEEL GOOD!
ROCHDALE’S YOUTH TAKEOVER!
FRIDAY 22 AUGUST, 2 – 5PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
Come along to a fun afternoon full of creative activities chosen by young people from Rochdale borough!
Dance, get hands-on with crafty activities, or simply chill in the meditation space. There’s a range of fun things to try out and get involved in all afternoon.
There’ll be music, art, games, and more — all based on ideas from local youth groups. In the weeks before the festival, we have worked with Rochdale Youth Service to get ready, and some of the best ideas will be part of the big day. If you’re young and full of ideas, this is your space to shine!
BACK TO THE 80s!
A Day at Sparth Community Centre
SATURDAY 23 AUGUST, 11AM – 4PM Sparth Community Centre, Norman Road
Step back in time for a day of fun at Sparth Community Centre (now the Local Studies Centre)!
Join us for old-school games, sports, sweets, and music inspired by the 1980s. Bring your photos and happy memories of Sparth to share - or come make some brand-new ones!
Everyone’s welcome — from little ones to longtime locals. Don’t miss the retro tuck shop, craft fun, and more.
Caution: You might have too much fun!
SUNDAY 24 AUGUST
SLOT 1: 11AM – 12PM, SLOT 2: 12 – 1PM, SLOT 3: 1.30 – 2.30PM, SLOT 4: 2.30 – 3.30PM
Drop in and get creative at this fun and relaxing day of workshops!
Try out a range of different arts and crafts — like mindful drawing, beading, and more. Our art group from Middleton, the Aloe Veras have put together this relaxing event for you all to enjoy based on some of their favourite activities. You can take your time and get absorbed in the making or try out a taster of each workshop.
Our friends from Awakening Minds will be there too, serving pink tea and sharing the joy with special laughter therapy at the early and late sessions. Come along, get making, and feel good inside and out!
About the Aloe Veras Group
The Aloe Veras is an informal art and craft group who meet regularly with artist Erica Matthews in Middleton to learn and find joy through creativity. The group have played with new materials and techniques using contemporary art works from Tate and National Gallery Scotland’s ARTIST ROOMS collection and museum objects from Touchstones as inspiration. For the past two years the Aloe Veras have collaborated with staff from Touchstones and ARTIST ROOMS to curate an exhibition featuring works from both collections that will be displayed in the galleries when we reopen.
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
FRACTURED BUT FEARLESS
A powerful interactive theatre performance exploring the barriers women face when seeking justice after domestic abuse.
Through real survivor stories and audience participation, this play challenges the legal system’s shortcomings and calls for systemic change - to empower survivors, educate communities, and inspire action.
Created by women with lived experience and their allies at Soul Sisters: Empowering People. In partnership with Odd Arts.
About Soul Sisters Empowering People
Soul Sisters is a charity founded to empower people and their children who have been affected by domestic abuse to live independent lives, free from fear and violence. They want to raise awareness by sharing survivors’ stories on their platforms anonymously.
About Odd Arts
Odd Arts uses theatre to challenge inequalities and increase opportunities for people facing the greatest level of discrimination and disadvantage. They work in three ways: therapeutic theatre workshops to reduce risk; interactive theatre tours to empower & educate; creative & community led social action projects to overcome inequalities.
SUNDAY 24 AUGUST, 2PM
Rochdale Town Hall, The Bright Hall
DOG DAY
TUESDAY 26 AUGUST, 10 – 11.30AM Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
COME & CHAT
TUESDAY 26 AUGUST 4 – 6PM & WEDNESDAY 27 AUGUST 12 – 2PM Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
To celebrate International Dog Day we’re iniviting you and your furry friends to come along for a social!
Meet other dog lovers, take a selfie and make lovely paw-some memories! There will be dog treats, water bowls and toys.
Side-by-Side will become an annual event in Rochdale and we want to hear your ideas!
With our commitment to collaborating with communities we’d love to chat to you about what you’d like to see happen in future years! Come and chat with the Touchstones Team and Creative Lead Harry Meadley to discuss your ideas openly and freely for consideration for next years festival.
FOUR ROCHDALIANS
Produced and written by the Side-by-Side Drama group
Loosely inspired by Monty Python’s iconic Four Yorkshiremen sketch, Four Rochdalians brings together four characters from Rochdale’s past and present — a plague-stricken villager from the 1300s, a hard-working mill hand from the 1850s, a resilient housewife from the post-WW2 era, and a tech-savvy teenager from today.
Each insists their life was the hardest, sparking a humorous battle of one-upmanship across the centuries. Their stories unfold through lively dialogue and vivid flashback scenes, brought to life by a supporting cast. Expect laughter, a dash of local history, and a playful reminder that every generation has its own struggles.
About the Side-by-Side Drama Group
The Side-by-Side Drama Group, formed through the Side-by-Side project in April 2024, is a community-led creative group based at Higher Blackley Community Centre in partnership with Bolton at Home Regional Team and Touchstones. Made up of tenants and the wider surrounding area of South Middleton the group supports local residents through regular creative-based sessions. Building confidence, friendships, and pride, the group has co-produced performances, written original music, and created a welcoming space for collective wellbeing and local action. The group is facilitated by ‘Creative Activators’ Jacqui Carrol and Terry Egan who also run REELMCR.
About the Writer
Kat Burke was born in Blackley, Manchester in 1974, and has been involved in various creative endeavours from a young age - from playing musical instruments, conducting ensembles, teaching and composing music, to writing poems and plays and in recent years acting. Although her life changed dramatically in September 2021 due to a disabling illness, she has recently joined the prestigious Hallé Choir and continues to enjoy being a creative soul.
TUESDAY 26 AUGUST, 1 & 3PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
Jerzy Sosnica, Fording the Roche, 1963. Image credit: Rochdale Arts and Heritage Service
WEDNESDAY 27 AUGUST, 3 – 6PM
Temporary Touchstones (Rochdale Town Hall Square)
As Side-by-Side draws to a close, join us for a celebration of everything we’ve experienced over the past week, with music, an open mic session, and food.
To register interest for the open mic sessions please email creativecommunities@yourtrustrochdale.co.uk
Share your pictures and thoughts with us through our social media channels. Don’t forget to tag us and use the hashtag #SBSRochdale
@TouchstonesRochdale
HOW TO BOOK
There are many events at Side-by-Side where you don’t need to book in advance and can just drop in on the day. For events that require advance booking, this is to ensure you are guaranteed a place and won’t miss out.
All our bookable events are Pay What You Can. Free tickets are there for those who need them,
@Touchstones_Rochdale
or you can choose to pay £2.50, £5 or £7.50 per ticket. Any income generated from these tickets will go towards further community-led work with Touchstones.
You can book through the QR code, or visit touchstonesrochdale.co.uk
Photography by Alan Hamer