Free Christmas fun for families at Merry Hill

The free activities at the Brierley Hill shops complex launched on December 1 with the unveiling of the maze.

Over the launch weekend more than 1,000 visitors of all ages enjoyed festive fun with mischievous elf characters as they dashed through the real hedges, navigated the twists and turns, followed clues and solved Christmas riddles to crack the maze.

It can be found in the central event space on the lower mall, between M&S and Mango, and will remain open until January 3.

There is no booking required, but visitors are advised to check opening times.

Merry Hill’s Christmas megastore, Christmas House, is on the lower mall opposite Boots.

Bands will be spreading festive atmosphere across Merry Hill throughout December with local community choirs including Got 2 Sing Choir and the Rock Choir, and the Salvation Army bringing their talents to the centre.

A team of crafty wrappers from local environmental organisation Wild Earth Movement will also be on hand at the Crafty Wrapper Station on the upper mall by Pandora. The team will be ready to help wrap visitor’s gifts in an environmentally-friendly way in exchange for a small charity donation. The Crafty Wrapper Station is open from December 16 to 19 at selected times

Jonathan Poole, centre manager at Merry Hill, said: “Community is at the heart of everything we do at Merry Hill, and Christmas is always a special time to bring that to life. From working with local community choirs, to offering new surprise activities, we pride ourselves on offering our visitors a truly magical experience.

“This year we wanted to make our Christmas events as interactive as possible. Our all-new ‘Marvellous Merry Maze’ does just that, and we’ve loved seeing thousands of young visitors enjoying the maze while hopping, skipping and jumping their way into the Christmas spirit.”

Further information can be found at mymerryhill.co.uk/christmas