Call in for a treat at Charlotte's parlour

Banana and ginger, caramel fudge, blackcurrant ripple, pink popping bubble - plus the traditional chocolate, strawberry and a very special traditional vanilla.

Welcome to Charlotte’s Ice Cream Parlour.

We’re in Dewsbury for the day, out in North Yorkshire, and we’ve stopped to take in the incredible views over the Calder Valley at the award-winning Jersey Ice Cream attraction.

This place has it all. We started the afternoon off with some lunch homemade on site in the cafe - toasties, quiche and a children’s lunch box for Immy. Lunch presentation wasn’t all that - it’s probably not high on the list of priorities for staff at Charlotte’s, what with all that glorious ice cream to focus on - but the food was tasty and fresh and got a thumbs-up from us.

After lunch we headed out to meet the animals. Immy loved running up and down the big fields saying hello to the alpacas, wallabies, birds, rabbits, goats and cows as they grazed in this lovely natural environment. It may have been cold but there’s nothing like playing ‘chase,’ while being watched carefully by a herd of donkeys, to both warm you up and burn off lunch. For those who like more feathery creatures the site also has peacocks and rheads, a goose pond and a few different rare breeds of bird.

After the animals we headed to the site’s compact, but very nice, adventure playground where Immy loved going round and round on the giant slide. We were running out of time by then - and keen to get to the ice cream! - but there’s also the opportunity for children to ride the Charlotte’s Express train, slide the giant inflatable in the neighbouring field, or try their hand at crazy golf. There’s also the animal trailer - where visitors can take a bouncy ride around the fields on the back of a mini tractor.

Finally came the ice cream, ahhh the ice cream... Immy’s came as part of her children’s meal deal and she loved going to the counter with her ticket in hand and choosing her own flavour. After some umming and ahhing we adults also made our own selection - there is tons of sorbet too, so it’s really not an easy choice! What followed was the quietest part of the day so far, as we all sat in the parlour, enjoying the creamy homemade ice creams.

All in all, we really enjoyed our afternoon at Charlotte’s and would definitely recommend it as a nice way to while an afternoon away.

Entry is free, and you pay as you go for what you want, which we thought was a pretty good deal. Thumbs-up.

Visit www.charlottesjerseyicecream.co.uk