Francis Fest and Family Day hits all the right notes

The September weekend of fun returns to the delight of families.

Woman on stilts wearing orange trousers and butterfly wings holding her arms outstretched with a woman stood by a young girl in a wheelchair in a sunny garden

Festival experience

The grounds of Francis House were filled with music, games and laughter as families flocked to enjoy a weekend of live entertainment and fun.

Francis Fest 2026 brought the teenagers and young adults of Francis House the experience of a music festival combining live music, games, hotdogs and mocktails in a festival of colour.

This was followed by a Family Day with excited families and children enjoying a circus themed day with live performance, stilt walkers, princesses and superheroes and lashings of ice cream!

Rachel Ellis, of the homecare team at Francis House said: “It was wonderful to see the plans for Francis Fest and our Family Fun Day come together after so much preparation. We wanted to create a weekend that gave our children, young adults and their families the opportunity to simply enjoy themselves, spend time together and make special memories.

Man wearing a pink top hat wearing a magician outfit and holding balloons next to a young boy wearing green headphones eating an ice cream
Woman with blonde hair swearing a pink top and pale blue jeans stood singing on a stage with colourful balloons and bunting
Small crowd of adults stood with young people in wheelchairs in a garden with trees and tents
Woman on stilts wearing orange trousers and butterfly wings holding her arms outstretched with a woman stood with her arms outstretched stood behind a boy in a wheelchair in a sunny garden
Woman wearing a superhero outfit sat with boy in a wheelchair and a man smiling at the camera
Group of men and women wearing white t-shirts with a rainbow logo and a mouse mascot stood by a stage with colourful bunting
 
Man wearing a pink top hat wearing a magician outfit and holding balloons next to a young boy wearing green headphones eating an ice cream
Woman with blonde hair swearing a pink top and pale blue jeans stood singing on a stage with colourful balloons and bunting
Small crowd of adults stood with young people in wheelchairs in a garden with trees and tents
Woman on stilts wearing orange trousers and butterfly wings holding her arms outstretched with a woman stood with her arms outstretched stood behind a boy in a wheelchair in a sunny garden
Woman wearing a superhero outfit sat with boy in a wheelchair and a man smiling at the camera
Group of men and women wearing white t-shirts with a rainbow logo and a mouse mascot stood by a stage with colourful bunting

“Francis Fest gave our young adults their own festival experience with a really relaxed atmosphere, while the Family Fun Day was all about bringing families together for an afternoon of entertainment and lots of fun.

“Seeing everyone smiling, joining in and enjoying the weekend made all the planning worthwhile. We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who gave their time, performed, donated or helped us make the two days possible.

The response from families has been so positive, and we’re already excited about how we can make next year’s celebrations even bigger and better,” said Rachel.

Family feedback

We had a fantastic time thank you all so much xx

We loved it, thank you so much for all your hard work and generosity

The best day!! Thank you so much x

Francis House Children’s Hospice supports more than 435 families from across Greater Manchester. The hospice provides holistic care in a home from home environment to children and young adults who have a life-shortening or life-threatening condition.

More posts

View all posts