Stockwood Apple Pressing: more than the juice!
Apple pressing has been part of the community for many years. Local resident and our wonderful volunteer, Maureen, remembers apples always growing in Stockwood Open Space, on land that would once have been part of an old farmyard. Rather than letting them go to waste, local people started picking them and turning the harvest into a community event.
The process was simple: pick the apples, wash them, press them and share the juice. The event was held in the Square and quickly became a popular local tradition.
As the event grew, it became harder for the original organisers to manage everything themselves. Stockwood Growing Together then took on the apple pressing at their site at the Family Hub, and with support from Stockwood Community Hub, the tradition has continued.
This year’s apple pressing
Apple Pressing 2026 needed a little more teamwork than usual. After such a hot summer, it wasn’t the easiest year for apples. We collected what we could from Stockwood Open Space and put a call out for local people with spare apples to bring them along.
And people came through.
Leila from our team even tapped up her uncle, who arrived with extra supplies from his old farm in Bishop Sutton — earning himself instant local-hero status.
Once the apples arrived, our brilliant Stockwood Growing Together volunteers got to work. Ginny, Rach, Maureen, Sylvia and many more spent hours washing, sorting and chopping the apples before putting them through the press and turning the harvest into fresh apple juice.
A whole community effort
Little explorers could head off on a treasure hunt, collect stamps and explore the different activities around the Family Hub.
Tris, Lil and Liz from Trees & Tranquility Forest Therapy brought a little bit of the outdoors into the day, with nature-inspired crafts and apple roasting over the fire.
Our fantastic local volunteer face painters and crafters, Karen and Mandi, added plenty of colour, creativity and very happy faces, and Zoe from our Bristol Charities Vassal Team showed off her amazing faint painting skills too!
Charlie from Bristol Libraries even arrived by bike, bringing books and stories with him for families to enjoy. And Sam from the Family Hub was there throughout the day, welcoming local families and making sure people knew about the support available through the wider Family Hub.
Seema and Laurie from Batch Cook Club, supported by our brilliant volunteer Lucie,
served up delicious, healthy soup and treats for everyone to sample.
If you enjoyed their food, Seema and Laurie are now back at Stockwood Family Hub as part of Stockwood Shared Table. The project has already started, with free food tasters and recipe bags on Wednesday mornings, and there’s plenty more to come — including relaxed community cooking sessions and free shared meals where people can cook, eat, learn new skills and meet others locally.
Find the full dates and booking details at www.batchcookclub.com/stockwood-shared-table
Why we love keeping local traditions going
For us, days like this are about much more than the activity itself.
They give families a chance to spend time together, children a chance to try something new, and neighbours a reason to stop, chat and connect.
They also help keep local stories alive.
Apple pressing has changed over the years. Different people have taken it on, the apples have come from different places, and new activities have been added along the way. But the heart of it has stayed the same: local people coming together, sharing what we have and making something good out of it.
That’s what community is really about.
A huge thank you to everyone who picked, washed, chopped, pressed, cooked, painted, roasted, welcomed, volunteered and joined us on the day.
Many hands make light work — and in Stockwood, they make pretty good apple juice too. 🍎💚
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