On Saturday 29 March, residents of The Dings held a feast for each other to celebrate the diverse cultures represented in the area. The weather tried its best to spoil things, but we still had a great time. The day was so good, people were virtually blown away by it...

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Rain and wind lashed the marquee, which rested on the concrete surface of the local park. Gusts frequently blew in the sides, but brave helper's like Pip n Jay's Gareth Williams (above) provided extra support to help stop the whole thing blowing away.

This didn't stop residents enjoying a huge variety of food, from steak and ale pie to Indian curry, an Australian BBQ and Indian snacks. Local restaurants as well as residents helped to provide, and Pip n Jay people served it out.

The food was accompanied by entertainment from Richard "Mad Rich" Seymour (below centre, former owner of Seymour's Family Club which served the area until it was demolished for flats last year) and music from Changing Tunes (below right), who involve local prisoners in the creative arts.

Pip n Jay people also provided cakes - the plan was to have these late afternoon, after lots more music and dancing, but the bad weather and the risk of everything blowing away meant that we were advised to cancel most of the entertainment. Still, people were pretty happy with the food and the time we did spend together. Andy (below right) even seemed chuffed with his raffle prize of an extra large teddy bear!

There was also a presentation from the area's young people to their youth worker, Charlene Richardson (below, right of picture), who was leaving for new work elsewhere.

The day's organisation was led by Gayle Findlay from Community At Heart, the group which administrates the government's £50 million New Deal funding for the area (which includes The Dings and the larger Barton Hill Settlement).

Other major contributors included the guys from the Emmaus project, formerly homeless people who are now living at Shaftesbury House and working in our area, renovating and selling furniture. They gave up their free time to set up the event, moving chairs and tables from Pip n Jay to the marquee and back.

Pip n Jay's Greg Sharples was also on the organising committee and found it a great experience. He told the press, "It's a fantastic idea and has been really great fun to organise. I've met some brilliant people who are helping and I’m looking forward to meeting more on the day! I think it's a good opportunity for the community spirit that's here to really grow!"

If you'd like to know more about what is so special about our area, and the groups involved in its growth and regeneration, you can follow our web links to other community groups.