OL1-Oldham volunteers hosted a Christmas Party with entertainment provided by the Choir from the Brian Clarke Academy with the intention to engage with the local community and bring children of all nationalities, faith etc together to enjoy a community event.
There is a diverse mix of ethnicities in the area and few community events which are aimed at all faiths and beliefs which have the opportunity to bring people together in an informal setting.
OL1-Oldham is very active in the area and through our ongoing work we have contacts within the various sectors of the community. The party started on land adjacent to the community centre where the school Choir sang and we provided carol sheets so people could sing along, following that we moved into the centre where one of our volunteers dressed as Father Christmas and handed out age-appropriate presents.
We also provide refreshments and made sure we included vegetarian options and non-alcoholic mulled wine to cater to faith requirements.
We were aiming to foster a sense of community and belonging between the different cultures with the hope that feeling part of a community would help with social isolation and help to bring the various elements together more.
We were fortunate in being able to source a Choir from the Brian Clarke Academy and they led the singing and a member of our group, who is a retired vicar was able to provide carol sheets so everyone could join in.
Our volunteers decorated the community centre with a tree and lights and we have a small room off the hall which one of our members decorated with fairy lights and shimmering curtains to act as Santa's Grotto.
The group worked as a whole to ensure the event was a success and as we have been together for a few years we know each others strengths and weaknesses and are able to work to within those limitations.
We did leave the request for funding a little late so we had to arrange the event quite quickly, and one mistake we did make was not getting photographic permissions but we learned from this and will not make this mistake again.
With the help of funding from The One Oldham Fund for Children and Young People and facilitated by Action Together we were able to provide a variety of refreshments ensuring that we took into account the faith requirements of the attendees.
Despite the rush to plan the event it was very well attended with over 70 people consisting of children and parents of various ethnicities.
With careful budgeting we were able to bring the event in for less than the grant amount and with the permission of the The One Oldham Fund for Children and Young People we
are going to use the residual money to arrange a Sunflower competition for children in the area. We will be providing them with a plant pot, a bag of compost and some dwarf sunflower seeds which they can grow at home. In line with the groups eco ethos the plant pots and the bags for the compost will be biodegradable.