Ballymena BID and local businesses make town’s 400th birthday one to remember

Ballymena’s business community has helped turn the town’s historic 400th birthday into several days of celebration, generosity and community spirit — with families entertained, shoppers surprised with gifts and prizes, and £850 raised for charity.

From a packed End of Summer Street Party on Greenvale Street to businesses creating their own giveaways, discounts and birthday surprises for the official Charter Day, Ballymena BID says the response showed just how strongly local businesses and organisations embraced the milestone.

The celebrations brought together traders, hotels, community organisations, Mid and East Antrim Borough Council and the wider Ballymena community, with hundreds of people joining the festivities.

Greenvale Street comes alive

The birthday weekend got under way on Saturday with the End of Summer Street Party on Greenvale Street, drawing families from Ballymena and further afield into the town centre for an afternoon of free entertainment.

Hosted by Kirstie Murray, the Downtown Radio Roadshow brought music, competitions and plenty of energy, while the street was transformed with carnival rides and games, face painting and balloon modelling from local favourites Glitterbug, character appearances, arts and crafts and entertainment throughout the afternoon.

Local butchers K&G McAtamney fired up the barbecue, with picnic tables lining Greenvale Street giving families somewhere to enjoy burgers and hotdogs while soaking up the atmosphere.

K&G McAtamney butchers getting ready to bring the flames and flavour with a special celebration BBQ on Greenvale Street. Ballymena

And the food came with an important added benefit.

Proceeds from the barbecue raised an impressive £850 for Autism NI, adding a charitable contribution to the town’s birthday weekend.

Big prizes and birthday surprises

There were plenty of surprises for visitors too.

The Adair Arms — itself marking a milestone anniversary this year — took to the street to hand out hotel vouchers, while Tullyglass, Leighinmohr House Hotel and Partyzone donated prizes for Downtown Radio competitions.

Alongside the selection of local prizes, Downtown Radio brought some major giveaways of its own, including tickets to see The Script and Niall Horan.

Throughout the afternoon, Kirstie Murray asked people from the stage what they loved most about Ballymena.

According to organisers, one answer kept coming back: “Everything!”

Superheroes, bubble artists, jugglers and arts and crafts kept younger visitors entertained, while a special Ballymena 400 photo opportunity provided families with a souvenir of the historic year.

Great family fun and carnival atmosphere as Ballymena BID led a day of celebration on Greenvale Street, Ballymena.

Two colourful carnival games at the entrance to Tower Centre were also free for children to enjoy.

The gift that kept on giving

The generosity extended beyond the street party itself.

Clare from Ballymena BID - always full of surprises… and smiles!

Rituals Cosmetics in Tower Centre donated 100 gifts for the Ballymena BID team to distribute during the celebrations, sending scores of visitors home with an unexpected birthday treat.

But Saturday was only the beginning.

When Ballymena’s official 400th Charter Day arrived on Tuesday 25 August, businesses across the town centre put their own stamp on the anniversary.

Ballymena businesses join in the fun and celebrations.

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There were Spin to Win competitions, special menus, free gifts, goodie bags, discounts, craft activities and giveaways worth as much as £400.

Some businesses even offered £400 holiday deals, with traders large and small finding their own way to mark four centuries since Ballymena received its town charter in 1626.

Ballymena BID takes birthday cheer to the streets

The Ballymena BID team also headed out across the town centre with a distinctly nostalgic birthday surprise.

Job well done: Ballymena BID Tesm, (L-R) Ballymena BID Manager Emma McCrea, and Business Engagement Officer Clare Moore

Party bags packed with retro sweets and famous Ballymena Rock from Diamond’s Newsagents were handed out to visitors — but some contained considerably more than sweets.

Hidden inside almost 20 bags were gift vouchers donated by Flax, Rococo, Gatto’s and the Adair Arms, giving lucky recipients an unexpected bonus.

For Ballymena BID, the response across the celebrations demonstrated something it believes has long been one of the town’s strengths: a business community willing to get behind Ballymena, join in and give something back.

Team Follow Coffee Co (L-R) Lesley McCaughan, owner of Follow Coffee and Chair of Ballymena Marketing Group, daughter Megan, Taryn Simpson and Thaila Thomas

Lesley McCaughan, owner of Follow Coffee and Chair of Ballymena Marketing Group, which helps plan and deliver town centre events, said:

“It was wonderful to see so many families enjoying Ballymena and to watch the town centre come alive with such a fantastic atmosphere. Events like this are all about bringing people together, creating reasons to spend time in the town and celebrating everything that makes Ballymena special.

“A huge thank you must go to the Department for Communities for their support, which helped us deliver such a brilliant celebration for Ballymena’s 400th year, and of course to every business, organisation and visitor who got involved. Seeing everyone embrace the occasion made it incredibly special.”

‘A genuine sense of community’

Ballymena BID Manager Emma McCrea said what stood out was the extent to which individual businesses had taken ownership of the anniversary and created their own ways of celebrating with customers.

She said:

“What stood out across the celebrations was the genuine sense of community. Businesses didn’t simply take part – they embraced Ballymena 400 and came up with their own ideas, giveaways, activities and offers to make the occasion memorable for their customers and visitors to the town.

“We’re also incredibly grateful to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, not only for their support and staff on the ground helping us deliver Saturday’s street party, but for embracing Ballymena 400 and adding to the celebrations with their own town centre activities on the official Charter Day.

Ballymena BID: Backing Ballymena.

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Smiles and surprises on the streets of Ballymena!

Emma added:

“We also have to recognise the wider Ballymena community who got behind the anniversary. James Perry, Chair of Ballymena Business Centre, was a fantastic advocate for Ballymena 400 from the outset, encouraging businesses and organisations beyond the town centre to embrace the milestone too. That support, alongside so many others who got involved, helped make this feel like a celebration for the whole of Ballymena.

“There was a real warmth around the town over the last few days. Ballymena has a brilliant ability to come together, support one another and get behind something positive – and I think these celebrations captured that perfectly.”

The festivities may have been built around a date in Ballymena’s history, but over several days the anniversary became something much more immediate: businesses giving back, a charity benefiting, families making memories and a town centre filled with people celebrating together.

Four hundred years after Ballymena received its charter, the birthday celebrations offered a reminder that the town is more than its history or its buildings — it is the businesses, organisations and people who continue to give it life.