13.03.2025
On Monday, Ashford Place came alive with the sound of music, dancing and storytelling as part of Commonwealth Day, the annual celebration of the Commonwealth of Nations. The Commonwealth is made up of 56 independent countries – many once under the rule of the British Empire – who now voluntarily commit themselves to working together towards global peace.
We believe that it’s more important than ever to celebrate what makes us unique and empower people to share their culture proudly, be it through food, art, music or more.
As well as being a celebration of diversity, this event is a valuable social outing for our service users, many of whom experience severe mental health illnesses, providing cultural connection and a chance to hear music from their childhood once more.
Over 30 people attended the celebrations organised by our Wellbeing team in collaboration with Learning Through the Arts, a social enterprise who empower the community through creativity.
We kicked things off with an excellent Steel Band who bought a taste of the Caribbean to Ashford Place and got our guests showing off their best dance moves – so hot they set off the fire alarm!
Following this, guests were treated to humorous stories from around the world told by Eli Anderson, a professional storyteller of Jamaican heritage, who held the room mesmerised with the mischievous Anansi and other characters he brought to life.
Guests reported that the stories were “calming and interesting” and that they “learned many lessons from the stories”. One of our guests was inspired to share a story of her own and received a huge round of applause from all.
Lastly, we were lucky enough to be visited by Mora Voices, a children’s choir from a local school. Singing songs of unity and friendship, they ended with a medley of Bob Marley songs that got the whole room up and moving, much to the children’s delight.
The day was a great success and it was wonderful to hear that clients found it “important”, “interesting to know about the Commonwealth” and “nice to meet people from different cultures”, as well as enjoying the music and festivities.