Sold-out Santa Dash is ready to go

The Santa Dash takes place tomorrow

Saddleworth Round Table’s annual Santa Dash is geared up and set to entertain Uppermill tomorrow afternoon with up to 1250  enthusiastic Santas ready to take their place on the starting line.

The yearly event, organised to coincide with the Uppermill Christmas Lights Switch on, takes place Uppermill Park and though numbers have been limited for Covid reasons, event organisers have made changes to safely accommodate as many runners as possible.  

Event lead Andy Cuff said: “Our original allocation of 1000 tickets sold out almost immediately. Not wanting to disappoint any families we made some small changes to the event which meant we could get an extra 250 Santas out on the street - we can’t wait to see you all running again.”

Uppermill Park will host a colourful choice to Christmas Market Stalls, mulled wine and festive food from local retailers and charities.  

Jack Massey, of Club 573 Bird Rescue, said: “It’s a pleasure to be able to showcase our hard work at such a fantastic event… we can’t wait to meet the people of Saddleworth this weekend.”

In addition to supporting charities, the event aims to encourage people spending money in their local area supporting the businesses.  

Andy Rothwell, head of business outreach at Saddleworth Round Table added “We would like to thank all sponsors, but particularly OMC whose generous donation made all this possible.  2020 and 2021 have seen many events cancelled, and without such generosity we could never have created such a spectacle.”

John Arthurs, SRT Handyman also added advice to anyone wishing to traverse Uppermill or attend the event on Saturday: “The necessary road closures will mean substantial delays through the village between 1-6pm.  If you’re travelling around the route please keep a look out for Santas and drive carefully.  

“If you are attending the event, please take a lateral flow test on Saturday morning to keep yourself and others safe.”

And Round Table reserved special thanks to Oldham Council’s Jack Child for “going above and beyond” in assisting with administration

Spectators and supporters can line Uppermill’s High Street from the park to the museum ready for the start at 2:30pmstart.

The traditional Santa parade and lights switch on with singing and carols begins at 4pm from Uppermill park, with fireworks and live music as a finale.

Do you have a story for us? Want to tell us about something going on in and around Oldham? Let us know by emailing news@oldham-chronicle.co.uk , calling our Oldham-based newsroom on 0161 633 2121 , tweeting us @oldhamchronicle or messaging us through our Facebook page. All contact will be treated in confidence.