A childhood memory can begin with something small: chalk on the pavement, a favourite sweet, a bicycle or a voice calling you home for tea. Growing Up on Hessle Road celebrates those everyday moments and invites you to help build a collection of childhood stories from the main road and its neighbouring streets.
Games on the pavement
The first illustration imagines children playing hopscotch beside a row of terraced homes. What games did you play outside? Tell us the names you used, the rules you remember and the friends who joined in. Which pavement, court or street was your meeting place?
A kickabout with friends
Our courtyard scene celebrates the fun of getting a few friends and a ball together. Who did you play with, and where? Did someone organise the teams, or did the game simply begin? A photograph or a few remembered names could bring your own story to life.
Pocket-money treats
Choosing a treat can be a surprisingly vivid memory. Which shop did you visit, and what did you choose? Tell us about the sweets, the shopkeeper and the excitement of spending your pocket money. If you remember a price, include the approximate year so it has a context.
Out on our bikes
Learning to ride, getting a first bicycle or going out with friends can mark a whole chapter of childhood. Who taught you? What did your bike look like? Share the routes and places that mattered to you, with an approximate date if you can.
Making our own fun
The painted backyard scene imagines children making a pretend shop from cardboard boxes. Did you invent games, make toys or turn everyday things into something special? Tell us about your favourite homemade adventure and the people who shared it.
Home for tea
The final scene captures the welcome at a family doorway. What told you it was time to come home? Was there a favourite meal, a familiar voice or a family routine? Those small moments can help us remember what growing up in the neighbourhood felt like.
Your part of the story
What did you love about growing up here?
Send a photograph or memory, with the place, approximate date, names you know and permission to publish. A few sentences are enough to begin.
Email Info@hessleroad.com ↗Contribution guidance →Sources & illustration notes
Imagined childhood scenes, not archival photographs or records of named children or incidents. Clothing, toys and settings are not assigned to one exact historical year.
These themes invite personal memories; no external historical quotation is used. Contributions will be labelled and credited with permission.