The sweet sound of young voices

Pupils from more than 20 primary schools from as far afield as Longridge and Chorley converged on the Guild Hall for the annual Preston School Music Festival

The show has been a regular feature on the school calendar for more than 70 years and producer Brian Berry has been involved for most of them.

The former teacher-turned children’s entertainer puts the programme together and gets the schools together.

They all work on t heir individual parts in their own schools and only come together in the last few days before the show.

The show was threatened when long-standing musical director Kath Longton was taken ill suddenly earlier in the year.

Brian said: “ A teacher at Holme Slack, Primary in Preston, Courtney Shepherd, said she would do it and the school have given their full support.”

Courtney saved the day and the theme for the show was Fun Time.

Over three nights pupils entertained the audience with a spectacular show.

There were choirs from 16 different schools and three separate recorder groups along with dancers and performers.

The fun-packed show started with the National Anthem and had seven acts, each

filled with dancing and musical favourites from across the decades.

They ranged from renditions of The Laughing Policeman and Down By The Riverside to Chitty, Chitty Bang Bang and Taylor Swift’s Shake it Off.

Schools taking part were: Alston Lane, Longridge; Blessed Sacrament , Preston; Euxton CE Primary School; Ribbleton Avenue Junior School, Preston; Great Eccleston ; Ashton St Andrew’s CE; Grimsargh St Michael’s; Fulwood Queens Drive; Holme Slack,St Gregory’s, The Roebuck, St Maria Goretti, Lea St Bernard’s RC, St Joseph’s Catholic Primary and St Stephen’s CE all in Preston;Holy Family, Ingol; Lea CP, Our Lady and St Edward’s and St Clare’s Catholic Primary School from Fulwood.