It was a joy to see so many young families and children picnicking together and taking part in activities such the pixies hunting trail, storytelling, circus skills and games. The students also opened their School of Communication Design building to host scores of children making masks and wands. And they collected donations for Cornwall’s children charities Ellie’s Haven and Penhaligon’s Friends.

The free three hour event was staged as part of a student degree course which included setting up their own Wildshore Events company, ‘ Gofundme’ on their Little Fay Fest Facebook to pay for the story teller and workshops, and printing their boldly colourful programme with its pixies trail to hunt for golden coins in the gardens. After they had finished there were no visible signs of the event, or the presence of dogs, firmly kept on leads, who accompanied some of the families.

Fox Rosehill gardens are not as accessible or widely used as Falmouth’s Gyllyngdune and Queen Mary gardens. But gifted as a park in the 1940s by the Fox family it is the only surviving town garden created by the Foxes who also made Trebah and Glendurgan. Rosehill’s Victorian Mediterranean style planting of exotic flowering shrubs, Dracena palms and banana trees inspired the Great Western Railway to promote our county to tourists as the ‘Cornish Riviera’.

The garden should be made more visible as an historic tourist attraction today in the heart of our town. While many relish Rosehill as a peaceful oasis appropriate events such as the students’ imaginative Little Fay Fest should also be welcome’.

Jean Carr

Falmouth