Village in the City
Back in the days, we are told, people
on a street spoke to each other, helped each other and felt far safer than they
seem to do now.
Hallywell Crescent in Beckton E6 used
to be such a street so said residents who had lived here for some time but no
more. UNTIL...
loveLife descended upon the
neighbourhood to create our very own village in the city, by involving
residents across age groups in activities of interest and fun to get to
become a closer community.
Funded by the Youth in Action
Programme of the British Council, we worked on Hallywell Crescent from August
to November 2011 to help develop Hallywell into a friendlier, brighter and safer
street.
We spent two weeks of door
knocking with our young volunteers, finding out how residents felt about living
on the crescent and explaining what we hoped to through the Hallywell
Experience.
Sundays, during September and
October, saw Hallywellians enjoy the spectacle of some very dull wheelie bins
transformed into works of urban art; street theatre on the green patch; the
'thud thud' of teenagers getting into shape with fitness work outs and 'piggy
in the middle' bringing out the street vibe (no matter what age). The buzz from
the street filtered across to the local community centre where children and
young people enjoyed arts & crafts, fun and games, dance and drama. The
herbal workshops initially designed for adults proved a massive hit with the
young as well creating a shared activity across generations. 
When summer decided to visit London
in October, Hallywell truly came alive with a community picnic - sunshine,
munch, music and laughter. New friends were made and old ones
reconnected.
Our final Sunday ended with a
celebration. Dance and drama performances, herbal give-aways, arts and crafts
presentations and the very first ever catwalk of wheelie bins were
showcased. Bin number 28 stole the show and was awarded the coveted red ribbon.
The smiles felt throughout the
Halllywell Experience are still with us and we hope that the spirit of our
small village in the city will continue to warm us heading into the depths of
winter.
Young person's persepctive :
These last few weeks we have been gathering every Sunday with residents of Hallywell Crescent to help bring back the street vibe to the street.
After receiving the Youth In Action fund we embarked on this mission which we started off by knocking on residents doors and asking them questions about the kind of activities they would like to participate in; how safe they felt on their street and how much they trust their neighbours amongst others. Their answers sure did SURPRISE us! Seemed like TRUST leaves as one steps out of the house!
So with the young people we took to the streets again. This time to invite the residents to special Sunday sessions with different activities. This is the fourth week and this is what we have achieved:
Bins are not just for rubbish - Young people have been spray painting their dustbins on the street and creating pieces of art. They first learnt how to spray and with the help of tutors they have transformed smelly bins into smelly 'attractive' bins
Herbal Medicine - young people and parents alike have been taking part in these workshops leaning how to create things from cough medicine to moisturising cream - All from natural ingredients that you can find in your garden!! This has sparked a great enterprising idea Watch out for Winter Warmers
Fitness - and a 1 and a 2 - yep Hallywell have been getting sweaty with PT and have boxed; kicked (football) and shot (basketball) into a huff and a puff
Drama: At the end of every session we have been entertained by some spectacular acting. Not only increasing their acting skills it really has been wonderful seeing people shine and really come out of their shells
Dance: breaking, popping and locking all the way...and finally lots of fun games to keep the little ones happy.
All of this every Sunday with loveLife values and activities underlying everything we do!
Sundays will never be the same again!
RK
RK
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