SUMMER is truly on its way in Halesowen as the annual carnival comes to the town on Saturday.

The Mayor of Dudley and celebrity weatherman and actor Des Coleman will open this year’s extravaganza which will be bigger than previous outings after expanding over two fields.

The free community event, which returns to Highfield Park for a third year, kicks off at noon with a funfair, stalls and a full afternoon of entertainment, carrying on with live music until 8pm.

Alongside the usual market stalls, this year will see the addition of a food and drink festival featuring small breweries and a variety of foods from around the world.

Councillor Stuart Henley, chairman of the organising committee, said he is looking forward to seeing a great turnout from the community.

He added: “About 3,000 people attended last year’s festival and this year we have gone bigger and better than ever before, so hopefully – if the weather stays nice – we will see even more people from the community join in.

“This year we have expanded over two fields and we have so many activities and events going on that it would be easier to say what we don’t have.

“There’s something for everyone and although there will be a charge for some of the activities we have tried to keep as much free of charge as we can.

“We’ve got a fun dog show, a teddy bears picnic, a food and drink festival and lots of entertainment from brilliant local acts.”

The carnival’s ‘Royal Family’ will be on taking part in a number of events, while other highlights include dance demonstrations and teaching from Danse Vivante, the largest inflatable in Europe and Dudley Zoo will be in attendance with some creatures to delight all ages.

Former Villa and Wolves star Tony Daley will also be challenging budding football stars to beat him in a penalty shootout.

For more information about the event, visit the Halesowen Carnival Facebook page or follow @HalesCarnival on Twitter.

The event was made possible after £8,000 of Big Lottery Funding was secured by the organising committee. Karen Dunham, vice chairman, said: “It’s a huge help and we are so pleased to have secured the funding for the Halesowen event as we believe in making it free for all to access a family day out.”