Nottingham’s Old Market Square will once again being transformed into an urban beach, from Thursday 23 July– Tuesday 1 September 2015.

The Beach attracts thousands of families, visitors and tourists from across Britain to the city and offers local people the chance to enjoy the seaside without leaving Nottingham. Now in its seventh year, the event includes a giant paddling pool, 250 tonnes of golden sand, a themed fully licensed beach bar, rides and lots of FREE activities for all the family over the summer. Look out for the great white shark!

An official opening event will be held on Thursday 23 July at 11am with the Lord Mayor in attendance.

Nottingham City Council and the Mellors Group are also proud to announce Tramlink are the official transport provider for this year’s Beach event.

Councillor Dave Trimble, Nottingham City Council’s Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture, said: “Year after year the Beach proves to be a real hit with families from across the city, and we know it also attracts visitors to Nottingham too. Once again the Beach brings the seaside to the heart of the city for everyone to enjoy. So bring your family down to the Old Market Square, pull up a deckchair and enjoy the fun. There’s something here for everyone!”

In previous years, the sand and dining areas of the beach have been smoke free zones, and this year to ensure that everyone, especially children, can enjoy themselves, the  smoke free designation is being extended to cover all parts of the beach.

Cllr Alex Norris, City Council Portfolio Holder for Adults, Health and the Community Sector said: “The Council has made the decision to make the beach completely smoke free this year. The beach is a fun, family-friendly environment and we want everyone, especially children, to be able to enjoy themselves. We’ve been working with children in our local schools and they have created drawings that are used as signs in playgrounds across the city, where children are the main audience. Some of their designs have been used to create the smoke free signs for the beach this year.

“Asking people not to smoke around children’s playgrounds has been really successful and we anticipate the same success at the beach. Hopefully lots of people will come down and enjoy it and everyone will stick to the smoke-free designation.”

James Mellors Jnr, of the Mellors Group, organisers of the Nottingham Beach, said:

“We are very happy to support this or any other initiative which encourages the public to lead a healthier lifestyle and raises awareness of the impact of smoking on young lives. The consequences of smoking places a huge strain on NHS resources but there has been an encouraging decline in the numbers of smokers over recent years. We are confident that the public will understand and respect the request that the Nottingham Beach is kept a smoke free event”.

The Beach is brought to you at no cost to the tax payer by The Mellor’s Group in partnership with Nottingham City Council.

Visit www.nottinghambeach.co.uk for more information, including the entertainment schedule.