BLOG: Fun for all the family at this year’s summer events
04 September 2023
By Tracy Hanks, Resident Engagement Officer
This summer, we held two resident events – the first in June in Sele Farm, Hertford, and the second in August in Stonebridge, London. With our proposed merger with Sovereign getting closer, we wanted to talk to you in person and hear your views whilst providing a fun day out for all the family.
Fun in the sun in Sele Farm
Our resident event in June was a huge success. We were keen to find out what local residents thought about our proposed merger with Sovereign and we had some interesting conversations about how people were feeling about the change. Our Chief Executive Helen Evans and Executive Leadership Team were there to speak to residents about the merger and hear what they felt was most important during the transition. Children and adults alike enjoyed our fantastic face painter, fresh fish and chips and massages.
The day was a lot of fun with many families from the area joining us and taking part in games like ‘hook-a-duck,' hula hooping and bean bag throwing. Many of our young competitors went home wearing medals and it was great to see them having fun.
Our contractors at MCP, Close Brothers, TCL and New Green donated generously to support residents with the rising cost of living increases and saving energy in their homes, providing prizes such as supermarket vouchers, slow cookers, air fryers and even a microwave which was well received by a family whose microwave had recently broken. We had stalls for residents to share what is most important to the local community and volunteers from Hertfordshire Health Walks attended to share information on their free and friendly walks.
More fun and great prizes in London
At our second event in August, we had a wonderful steel pan performance from Steel Pan Fusion as well as a fantastic face-painter. We also had a free massage therapist and an arts and crafts table, to create carnival masquerade accessories, which were a huge hit!
Our Welfare team came along to offer support and information on how they can help residents make sure they’re receiving all the financial support they’re entitled to. We were also joined representatives from Brent Council and Brent Early Years who shared details on the free educational courses and advice they provide and our contractors MCP were on hand to offer CV tips and information on apprenticeships.
Everyone got to enjoy some delicious Caribbean food right before the winners of the raffle were announced. Thanks to a generous donation from our contractor Pinnacle, we were able to supply over 30 back-to-school bags including pencil cases, stationary, notebooks and scientific calculators and fantastic raffle prizes. Many families came along to find out what was going on, take part and join the conversation about the local community, our services and proposed merger.
Thank you to all residents who joined us at these events! It was great to see everyone getting involved. We’ll certainly be planning more in-person events in the near future, so stay tuned to our website and check out our Get Involved section for more resident involvement opportunities.
