A Greater Manchester indoor inflatable park has reopened after a revamp revealing the addition of a huge new ball pit filled with nearly half a million balls.

Inflata Nation has reopened its doors in Trafford Park after undergoing a renovation, revealing some exciting new features for visitors to enjoy.

If you’re wondering what you can do to keep the kids entertained, why not take them to this newly upgraded indoor park?

An incredible blue ball pit filled with 418,000 balls looks like an ocean as it floods the open space. Other new features include the epic double tipping slide, a ballcano, ball pit blasters and obstacle courses.

The park has also upgraded its mini arena, which is exclusively for children under four.

Packed with ball pits and engaging soft play activities, this area offers sensory stimulation and opportunities for cognitive development, tailored specifically for the little ones, the park says.

Since opening back in 2017, the site has attracted thousands of visitors looking for fun-packed family days out. 

Visitors have jumped into its ball pits, bounced on its inflatables and dived down its slides, where they’ve enjoyed plenty of fun and laughter that has brought them back time and time again.

Tickets for Inflata Nation Manchester cost £13.99 for visitors aged four and above and £6.99 for under fours. You can add an extra hour for £8.50 and £3.50 respectively. The park is also offering 15% discount of all visits when booked in advance online until April 17th.

To get the discount simply head to the booking panel on the website, choose the location, complete your details and enter the correct discount code at checkout. For Manchester use the code: EASTERMANC. For discount on bookings and more information, click HERE.

Inflata Nation Manchester is located on Textilose Road, Trafford Park, Manchester, M17 1WA. 

A sustainable charity fashion pop-up is coming to Manchester’s King Street this month.

The pop-up marks the first event as part of a new concept ‘King Street Presents’ and will feature some of the best and newest names in fashion including the likes of Adanola, Barbour, Nobody’s Child, Pretty Lavish, Rixo, Saint & Sofia, Whistles and more.

Shoppers can enjoy up to 70% off items with all proceeds raised being donated to the female-founded charity, Smart Works.

Smart Works Greater Manchester can be found at 35 King Street from Thursday, April 18th to Saturday 20th, with its sustainable fashion pop-up shop, selling brand new high street, designer and pre-loved clothing and accessories.

The pop-up will raise vital funds to support Smart Works’ two Greater Manchester centres, in Manchester city centre and Stockport.

The team will also be on hand to provide advice and guidance on how to access their free services to any women looking for support in finding employment and preparing for job interviews.

During its time on King Street, Smart Works will share the postcode with its roster of high- profile tenants which include; GAIL’s artisan bakery, The White Company, El Gato Negro restaurant and vintage football shirt hotspot, Stunner, to name just a few.

Thomas Royston, director at DTZ Investors, said: “We’re delighted to be welcoming Smart Works Greater Manchester to King Street. At its core is a female founder on a purpose-led mission to make a difference to women. 

“For them to choose King Street as their platform for reaching and showcasing their offering and commitment to women across Manchester is a testament to the reputation this now renowned street has developed in recent years. 

“As part of our ongoing ESG policy we will be continuing to work with a selection of exclusive brands throughout 2024 to take up pop-up stores in currently vacant units on the street, enriching the retailer experience for visitors and giving a physical presence to out of area and online brands.”

A day festival featuring live music across five different stages is coming to a community garden centre in Manchester this summer.

Green Island Festival has revealed the second wave of its 2024 line-up which will take place across June 15th, July 27th and September 7th, at Hulme Community Garden Centre.

The grassroots festival is set to present five stages across the garden centre, NIAMOS and Warwick Street. Guests can expect to hear many musical flavours as Green Island brings global sounds to the forefront. 

Artists by way of Senegal, Brazil, Morocco, the Caribbean will be gracing the stages in addition to many local talents – bands, vocalists, DJs and takeovers by local legends. 

Main Stage

Heading to the Main Stage this June – located in NIAMOS – will be Afriquoi, the five-piece band celebrated for their unique blend of African sounds and live electronics.

It will also play host to sets from Ku’umba, a radical arts collective, binding sounds of funk, blues, afrobeat and hip-hop, 21st century jazz singer Ni Maxine, and Ubunye, the Zulu band bringing pounding rhythms of Africa.

July will see headliners Def MaMa Def take to the Main Stage – two powerful women and rising stars of Senegal’s music scene, fusing contagious rhythms of amapiano, hip-hop and afrobeat.

They will be joined by experimental hip-hop jazz band Jointhedots as well as R&B soul singer Victoria Jane and contemporary jazz artist corto.alto.

September will see singer and multi-instrumentalist David Walters take centre stage, combining influences from his Caribbean heritage with electronic beats and acoustic folk. He’ll be joined by Soul and R&B collective Lovescene and Plant Food with their hard-hitting grooves and energy.

The Bandstand

The Bandstand, a stage built and developed by the Green Island team, now a permanent feature of Hulme Garden Centre, will present a range of takeovers.

The June chapter will be curated by DIY masters and music experimentalists FAT OUT, their line-up includes Fat Clams DJ, Lavender Rodriguez, Queer Icons Karaoke, Meme Gold, Arch Femesis and R.aggs.

Manchester legend Chunky will take the reins in July, bringing a diversity of sounds from amapiano, afro-house, afro-punk, blues-soul to rap to the forefront with Artist Lebo, Chia Kali, DeeD0t, NOT4MANY, Zhay and Troopz taking to the stage.

Rug Dug returns with Ruffy’s Lab in September, bringing on board Tia Cousins, Abigail Ward, Private Joy and a special guest to be announced! Expect, a bit of soul, electronic, afrobeat, RnB, broken-beat, reggae, jazz, synth-pop and post-punk from this mega line-up.

The Marquee Stage

The Marquee Stage will exclusively host the best up-and-coming bands and vocalists. In June, Pedro Fonte & Dada Joaozinho will be bringing a flavour of bossa nova all the way from Brazil.

Alongside them will be Benita & The Groove, neo-soul artist NinaRosa, jazz band Mangorata and flamboyant jazz-punk from Ask My Bull.

July welcomes sultry vocalist Jocelyn Knight backed by the classic soul and R&B band Natural Soul, songstress Hannah Rodriguez, duo Dia Frank, alt-soul indie band Rushbonds and rock-rap band Third Kulture. 

And September will see Jamaica’s Calypso George, indie-pop artist Boo Kickz, Life Aquatic Band bringing their blended 70s pop and 2000s electro-clash sound. Plus, six-piece future soul and fusion band Mikoudi, and newly announced Gnawa bringing the spiritual sounds of Morocco to Manchester.

From 12pm – 2:30pm, the Marquee Stage will host family-friendly activities on each date.

Selector Stage

The brand-new Selector Stage – tucked away in a hidden corner of the festival to be discovered with strictly vinyl only, and an elite audiophile sound system for a proper selector experience – will be taken over by B-MUSIC-MULTI-LINGO-DISCO curated by Andy Vottel, with Stan Chow, Helene Gautier, Sean Demdike and Lee Janda.

July will bring Apricot Ballroom x Cosmic Slop, a collision of two Northern audiophile heroes by way of Sheffield and Leeds respectively. And last but not least, Lena C’s Melodic Junction enlists Cheb Mimo, Santa Leticia and Josh FB for the September festival.

The Forest Stage

The Forest Stage, a hidden gem located down the garden path will present some of the best selectors in the scene. June welcomes Una Lee, Nossa!, Supernature Disco, Dr. Jive and Murder He Wrote. 

July will see Reno Collective, Tim Knight, Yohan, Levi Love, Urbi and Contours.  And in September, there’ll be Rhod Parry, Zuri b2b Spinelli, Jade Li, Atiké and Shimrise.

For hungry and thirsty festivalgoers, a food and drink hub will be created at Warwick Street, which connects the venue and the garden centre.

The area will host local favourites including Midori with their delicious handmade gyoza, kimchi and dips, Tibetan Kitchen serving their fragrant, flavourful curries, stir fries and legendary momos, and plant-based, seasonal goods from Root to Flower.

Afterparties for each date will be hosted at YES, a two-floor takeover of the Pink Room and basement from 11pm till late.

In June, Rinse FM resident Arthi will be delivering a blistering mix of dancehall, baile, funky, dembow and everything in between. Accompanied by a set from Manchester’s very own SHEwillprovide and many more.

July will see Zed Bias commander the Pink Room and a takeover of the basement by Manchester label and party Left Right & Centre, with Korzi, mamba.exe and Nora.

Whilst September will have the ever hypnotic Me Gusta Collective oversee processions.

Cementing itself as an annual staple in Manchester’s grassroots music scene, Green Island is a community gathering with global sounds at the forefront. 

The antithesis to festival giants, Green Island offers unrivalled up close and personal performances, and its charm lies in its relaxed and inclusive atmosphere. 

This year sees the festival double in size as it adds cultural institution NIAMOS to its fabric, creating space for up to 1000 festival-goers. Accessibility still remains at the forefront, with tickets starting from £20.

Tickets for all festival dates and afterparties are on sale, HERE.