More than 7,000 people took part in a host of creative activities on Saturday and Sunday to mark the start of the Kent’s Coastal Week, which was attended by Amanda Cottrell, chairman of Visit Kent, and tourism representatives from Pas-De-Calais.

The two-day launch event – Creative Coast at Whitstable – included visitors making unique pebbles with the team from Whitstable Improvement Trust which will be incorporated in the sea wall; artists from Turner Contemporary assisting children in designing and producing paper costumes and whistle-blowing frogs; and a performance of a crowd-sourced poem by Dan Simpson collated via Twitter celebrating the reasons people love the Kent coast.

Amanda Cottrell, Chairman of Visit Kent, joins Kent’s Coastal Week visitors six-year-old Beau and five-year-old Roman Naylor to create “pebbles” which will be inserted in the sea wall at Whitstable

Catriona Campbell, who organised the creative extravaganza in Whitstable with the support of Visit Kent, said: “The feedback from visitors shows that there is a huge desire to enjoy creative activities in the Kent’s coastal towns and why this part of the world is increasingly being referred to as Kent’s Creative Coast.

Kent’s Coastal Week special events continue at destinations along the county’s 350-mile coastline from Dartford from Dungeness until Sunday, October 30. There are events for all the family ranging from coastal walks and ghost stories to special exhibitions and photographic workshops. To find out more go to www.kent.gov.uk/coastalweek .

The crowd-sourced poem and performance from the Coastal Week’s launch event can be enjoyed at www.kentscreativecoast.co.uk

Hawkinge Gazette and Channel Coast News 2011©