Stoke-on-Trent city centre is set to get spooktacular once again this Halloween as a day of family-friendly entertainment, live performances, street theatre and artisanal shopping returns on Saturday 31st October. Circus in a Box and B-Arts deliver a packed programme of performance and playful roaming entertainment, along with carnival style games, workshops and crafting opportunities around the Blue Clock and The Cultural Quarter. The Potteries Artisan Market will take its usual spot outside The Potteries Centre with a series of stalls specialising in bakes and artisanal makes.
Newly introduced for October half-term is the Potteries Poltergeists window trail; a way for young explorers to learn the city's heritage for the chance to win city centre prizes. Created around Stoke-on-Trent's unique industrial and cultural history, the trail will transform shop windows across the Cultural Quarter into a series of spooky scenes. The trail is to be illustrated by Chloe Breeze, local artist and recipient of 'Young Business Person of the Year' at the 2023 University of Staffordshire business awards. Participants of the trail can complete the trail for the chance to win one of five prizes up to the value of £100.
POTTERIES POLTERGEISTS COMPETITION T&Cs
26 - 31 OCTOBER 2026
Potteries Poltergeists Window Trail
Competition Terms & Conditions
Promoter: Stoke-on-Trent City Centre Business Improvement District (BID)
Promotion: Potteries Poltergeists Window Trail
Trail dates: Monday 26 October 2026 to Saturday 31 October 2026 inclusive
Closing date for entries: Saturday 31 October 2026 at 5:30pm GMT
1. About the competition
1.1. The Potteries Poltergeists Window Trail ("the Trail") is a free children's activity taking place in Stoke-on-Trent city centre during October half term 2026.
1.2. Participants who successfully complete the Trail and submit a valid entry will be entered into a prize draw for the chance to win one of five prizes to spend with participating businesses in Stoke-on-Trent city centre.
1.3. There are five prizes to be won, ranging in value from £10 - £100.
1.4. Completing the Trail does not guarantee a prize. Winners will be selected at random from all eligible and valid entries received by the closing date.
2. Eligibility
2.1. The Trail is intended for children. Participants under the age of 16 must have the permission of a parent or legal guardian to take part and to submit an entry.
2.2. A parent or legal guardian must submit the child's entry where the participant is under 16 and will be responsible for providing any contact details required for the administration of the prize draw.
2.3. Entrants must be participating in the Trail in Stoke-on-Trent city centre during the advertised Trail dates.
2.4. Employees of Stoke-on-Trent City Centre BID, its appointed agencies and contractors directly involved in administering the promotion, and their immediate families or household members, are not eligible to enter.
2.5. The Promoter reserves the right to verify the eligibility of any entrant and to request reasonable evidence of parental/guardian permission where necessary.
3. How to enter
3.1. To enter the prize draw, participants must:
complete the Potteries Poltergeists Window Trail by locating the required characters/clues;
complete the official Trail entry form correctly; and
submit the completed entry by the stated closing date and using the advertised entry method.
3.2. Only entries that are complete, legible and received by the closing date will be eligible.
3.3. No purchase is necessary to enter.
3.4. Only one entry per child is permitted.
3.5. Multiple entries submitted for the same child will be treated as one entry. The Promoter reserves the right to disqualify entries where it reasonably believes that multiple entries have been submitted in an attempt to gain an unfair advantage.
3.6. The Promoter accepts no responsibility for entries that are lost, delayed, damaged, incomplete, illegible or otherwise unable to be processed.
4. The prize
4.1. There are five prizes available:
5 x £100 to spend with participating Stoke-on-Trent city centre businesses.
4.2. The prize will be provided in the form of voucher of winner’s choosing to be funded by the Promoter, providing the business selected offers vouchers/gift card formats, at the Promoter’s discretion.
4.3. The prize cannot be exchanged for cash, transferred to another person or substituted by the winner.
4.4. The prize is subject to the terms and conditions of the relevant gift card/voucher scheme, including any expiry dates or restrictions applicable to participating businesses.
4.5. The Promoter reserves the right, where reasonably necessary, to substitute a prize with a prize of equal or greater value.
4.6. The prize must be used in accordance with the terms of the relevant gift card or voucher and participating businesses may be subject to their own terms of acceptance.
5. Winner selection
5.1. Five winners will be selected at random from all eligible entries received by the closing date.
5.2. The draw will take place after the closing date and within a reasonable period following the end of the promotion.
5.3. The random selection will be conducted using a verifiably random process or under the supervision of an independent person, as appropriate.
5.4. The Promoter will retain appropriate evidence of the winner selection process.
6. Contacting the winners
6.1. Winners will be contacted using the contact details supplied by the parent or legal guardian on the entry form.
6.2. Reasonable attempts will be made to contact each winner.
6.3. If a winner does not respond within 14 days of the Promoter's first attempt to contact them, the Promoter reserves the right to select an alternative winner from the remaining eligible entries.
6.4. The Promoter is not responsible for a winner failing to receive notification because incorrect or incomplete contact details were supplied.
6.5. The Promoter may require reasonable evidence of identity, age and/or parental or guardian status before awarding a prize.
7. Winner publicity
7.1. The first name and/or age of a winning child may be used by the Promoter to announce the winners of the Trail, subject to appropriate parental/guardian permission.
7.2. No child's photograph, full name, address or other identifying information will be published without appropriate consent.
7.3. Any request from a parent or guardian for the winner to remain anonymous will be considered by the Promoter in accordance with applicable data protection requirements and the CAP Code.
8. Children's safety
8.1. The Trail is a family activity and children must be accompanied and supervised by a responsible adult at all times.
8.2. Children should not enter premises, private property or restricted areas to locate a Trail character or clue.
8.3. Participants must remain aware of traffic, pedestrians, road crossings and other hazards while completing the Trail.
8.4. The Promoter is not responsible for any injury, loss or damage arising from participation in the Trail except where such liability cannot lawfully be excluded.
9. Personal information
9.1. The Promoter will collect and use personal information supplied through the competition only for purposes reasonably necessary to administer the Trail, conduct the prize draw, contact winners and fulfil the prizes, and for any other purposes clearly explained at the point of collection.
9.2. Where the entrant is a child, the Promoter will seek to minimise the personal information collected from the child and will generally use the parent or legal guardian's contact details for prize administration.
9.3. Personal information will be handled in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation and the Promoter's privacy notice.
9.4. Competition entry does not automatically subscribe an entrant or their parent/guardian to marketing communications. Where marketing consent is requested, this will be presented separately and will not be a condition of entering the prize draw.
9.5. Personal information will not be retained for longer than is reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, subject to any legal or regulatory requirements.
10. General
10.1. The Promoter reserves the right to refuse or disqualify any entry that it reasonably believes does not comply with these Terms and Conditions or has been submitted fraudulently or unfairly.
10.2. The Promoter reserves the right to amend, suspend or withdraw the promotion only where circumstances outside its reasonable control make this necessary. Where possible, reasonable notice will be given and participants will not be unfairly disadvantaged.
10.3. The Promoter will administer the promotion fairly and in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.
10.4. The Promoter's decision regarding eligibility and administration of the promotion is final, subject to participants' statutory rights.
10.5. Nothing in these Terms and Conditions is intended to exclude or restrict any liability that cannot legally be excluded or restricted.
10.6. These Terms and Conditions are governed by the laws of England and Wales and are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
11. Promoter details
Stoke-on-Trent City Centre Business Improvement District (BID)
3 Conway Road, Cheapside, Hanley ST1 1HE
stokeontrentcitycentre.co.uk