West of England Metro Mayor and animal lover Dan Norris dropped in to a Thornbury shop and cafe which showed how it’s going the extra mile for local families during the summer holidays when it held a free animal-themed activity day for children.
The mayor met Tabi and Garry Marsh, owners of Papilio, based in Thornbury’s High Street, who introduced him to crafting children making lion, monkey and owl masks, creating fish from paper plates and getting creative with crayons and pencils on the animal colouring sheets provided by Usborne books. There were also sporty activities including hopping like a frog across the gardens.
Dan Norris said “I know our High Streets have had a really tough time. But high streets really matter. Vibrant towns need vibrant high streets and it’s that mix of local independent and quirky businesses that have a real sense of place that make communities special. What Papilio is doing is fantastic, and it was a real pleasure to drop in to meet Tabi and Gary. They’ve got an Aardvark to Zebra of innovative ideas from selling kerbside coffees, creating online videos to showcase their products, as well as their fantastic summer fun days.”