A walking day is a type of church parade. Walking days are most common in the North West region of England, UK, where they are an annual event for many towns and villages.
There may be several churches involved in a local walking day. The churches hire bands to provide music: for instance brass bands, pipe bands and marching bands. The police provide an escort and control the road traffic.
Children play a big part through their churches, schools, the Scouts and the Girl Guides. Processions are often led by a young lady who has been crowned the "Rose Queen" for the year. The Queen may be particular to a church but can represent the whole village too. Indeed, some Rose Queens and May Queens have festivals of their own. For example, there is the "Lymm May Queen", "Knutsford May Queen" and the "Thelwall Rose Queen".
Walking days are particularly common in the Warrington area. They are held annually in most districts, including:
Some walking days, including those held in Warrington, Padgate and Stockton Heath, are followed by a fair.
Warrington Walking Day itself dates back to 1834, and is perhaps the largest in terms of attendance and participation. A detailed history of Warrington Walking Day can be found in the University of Sheffield National Fairground Archive
