Community spirit in bloom

Community spirit in bloom

It’s clear from chatting with Lauren that the Betws community is very close-knit. They’ve even developed a beautiful community garden, which meant neighbours had the opportunity to meet at the garden to develop plans and activities for their Big Lunch in advance.

“We decided on arts and crafts activities, face painting, and a planting area with seeds, soil and pots for people to use. Most of the materials were donated free of charge by the housing association as they were really keen to support our event. My husband decided to dress up as Spiderman too, which was a big hit – even our kids didn’t know it was him in the costume!”

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All hands on deck

The local children were also involved in the organising and had a brilliant time!

“The children distributed the invitations around the local homes – everyone asked what the cost was and nobody could believe it was free!”

For Lauren, there is no doubt that The Big Lunch has helped the community:

“It has brought the community back together and encouraged people to chat and reconnect for the first time in a long time. The garden has also benefited from plans to replant vegetables and flowers in the coming months, and we’ve talked about how to make the most of this lovely space in the community. The event has brought new energy and ideas by encouraging important conversations.”

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Plans for the future

The community is now excited about taking part in The Big Lunch in the years to come!

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“About ten families were involved in the event on the day, but in future I’m sure there will be many more! Many who couldn’t come have seen the wonderful and happy photos of the day online and are longing to be a part of it all! Next year we are aiming to create an even bigger event and I also want to get more of the elderly community involved, they will definitely benefit from mixing with the locals and seeing the children enjoying themselves.”