Jessica Mckeown

The Met Office forecasts a mostly dry and increasingly warm weekend in Mid Cheshire. Friday will be the coolest and wettest day, with showers most likely from the afternoon into early evening and a high of 18C. Saturday should be the driest day, reaching 19C, while Sunday is expected to be the warmest at 20C, with bright spells and only a small chance of rain. Outdoor plans and travel should generally be unaffected, although Friday showers may briefly make roads damp. Nights will remain cool at around 8C, with low pollen levels and generally good visibility.

Tarporley High School and Sixth Form College celebrated strong 2026 GCSE results, with several students achieving top grades. Eva Porter-Jones and Harry Tillett earned nine grade 9s each, while other students recorded similarly outstanding results or exceeded their target grades across multiple subjects. Head teacher Jonathan Deakin praised students, families and staff, and said the sixth form would welcome many of the students, with limited places still available to new applicants.

Caddi Earl, a Tarporley-based coach, founded Believe & Achieve Coaching Academy after recovering from depression, burnout and breast cancer. Drawing on her former career in supply chain consultancy and her personal experience of severe stress, she provides mindset coaching and team sessions to senior leaders and business owners. Her work focuses on achieving professional success without sacrificing health, relationships or work-life balance, with plans to expand into leadership workshops. She has also written Plan a Sh!t Day, a practical guide to managing time and energy.

Birches Crematorium and local funeral directors held a charity bike ride to raise funds for St Luke’s Cheshire Hospice. Participants used two static bikes to cover the equivalent of the 97-mile Cheshire Ring Canal between 11am and 4pm on July 28, while supporters gathered for refreshments in the crematorium gardens. The event, organized by team leader Laura Hough, was the crematorium’s first charity bike ride, and donations remain open through a JustGiving page.

Mia Rogerson, a 25-year-old mother from Middlewich, quit smoking during her first pregnancy after receiving support from her local NHS stop-smoking service, including guidance on risks to the baby and a nicotine inhalator. Now 26 weeks pregnant with her second child, she says quitting improved her health, saved money and will give her children a better start. Smoking at delivery across Cheshire and Merseyside fell to 4.8% in 2025/26, while more than 8,500 people quit through regional services. NHS officials attributed the improvement to specialist treating-tobacco-dependency services available through every maternity service and urged pregnant women struggling to quit to seek help from their midwifery team.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service is hosting a free open day at its headquarters and Winsford Fire Station. The event includes a quiet hour for visitors with special educational needs, live demonstrations involving fires, hazardous materials and road collisions, training-suite tours, vehicle displays, specialist-team activities, and road and water safety games. The event runs from 10am to 3pm, with no on-site parking but easy access from Winsford town centre.

The Mid Cheshire Charity Scooter Rally and Beer Festival is set to return to Northwich Rugby Club for a weekend of live music, scooter and car displays, food, markets, camping and family activities. Organized by the Rotary Club of Northwich, the event will raise funds for Autism Practical Support Northwich. Saturday daytime entry is free, while evening and weekend tickets are available, with visitors advised to book ahead and plan safe journeys home.

The Penny Black, a JD Wetherspoon pub on Witton Street in Northwich, will host a 10-day craft cider festival from July 31 to August 9. The event will offer traditional ciders, perries and flavoured ciders from across the UK for £2.99 a pint, with a three-third-pint tasting option, tasting notes and ordering available through the bar or Wetherspoon app.

A six-bedroom 1930s house on The Drive in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, is on the market for more than £1 million through Storeys of Cheshire. The property has been substantially extended and remodelled, retaining original features while adding an open-plan kitchen and living area, underfloor heating, bespoke utility facilities, six bedrooms and landscaped gardens with a summer house and water feature. It is close to Holmes Chapel railway station, local schools, the M6 and amenities in Knutsford.

The Northwich & Winsford Guardian publishes death notices for Irene Birdsey of Davenham, who died peacefully in hospital aged 74, and David Michael Stockton, who died aged 57 at Royal Stoke University Hospital. The notices provide funeral dates and locations, family tributes, requests regarding flowers or clothing, donation information, and funeral-director contact details.

St Luke’s Hospice in Winsford has launched its largest online summer auction, featuring more than 40 donated prizes and running from July 31 to August 14. Proceeds will support free care for adults with cancer and other life-limiting illnesses across mid and south Cheshire, as well as support for families and carers. Prizes include a Winsford Salt Mines trip, sports-club VIP packages, a Eurocamp holiday, a private flight experience and a stay at Cranage Hall. Last year’s auction raised more than £4,500, while the hospice currently needs £16,808 a day to maintain its services.

Winsford entrepreneur Dave Purcell has launched Lost Then Found, a business producing £12 NFC-enabled dog tags with no monthly fees. When scanned by a compatible smartphone, a tag links to the dog’s online profile and can notify the owner by text and email, potentially including the finder’s location. The profiles can contain medical, behavioural and veterinary information without publicly displaying the owner’s contact details. The tags are 3D printed in Winsford and are currently available online, with plans to approach local veterinary practices and independent pet retailers.

Mid Cheshire is expected to have mixed weather over the weekend. Friday will be the warmest and most favorable day, with sunny intervals, temperatures up to 22°C and mostly dry conditions. Saturday will reach around 24°C but become increasingly cloudy and wet, especially from late afternoon into the evening. Sunday will be cooler, breezier and unsettled, with light rain and high rainfall probabilities for much of the day. Pollen levels are forecast to fall from moderate on Friday and Saturday to low on Sunday.

A Winsford entrepreneur, Alex Lau, founded SmartPaw Home Ltd after losing one cat and later caring for another with kidney failure. Drawing on two decades of network engineering experience, he developed integrated smart‑home systems that monitor pets’ health and behaviours while isolating devices on secure networks to protect household data. The business aims to give pet owners in Cheshire the tools to detect health issues earlier and enhance security and privacy in their homes.

Mid Cheshire NHS Trust has launched a 10-year strategy focused on improving community-based care, expanding access to services and reducing health inequalities, with a new Leighton Hospital forming the core of the plan under the Government’s New Hospital Programme. Trust chair Megan Nurse highlights the opportunity to create modern, sustainable healthcare facilities while increasing support closer to home. The strategy is shaped by staff and community input and aims to build a more connected, prevention-driven health system.

Mobb Stock, a family-friendly festival hosted by Mobberley Ice Cream Farm, returns to Mobberley on July 26 with activities including live music, crafts, face painting, slime making, a bouncy castle, and food and drink. The event aims to bring the community together and offers each child a goodie bag. Tickets cost £25 for one child and accompanying adult, with additional adults charged £5, and advance booking is recommended.

A warm and mostly dry mid‑July weekend is expected in Mid Cheshire, with temperatures peaking around 26C on Friday before easing slightly through Sunday. Light winds, long sunny spells, and minimal rain chances will provide good conditions for outdoor activities, though pollen levels will be high.