As the spring drew to a close and a new season emerged, the Community Wellbeing Project welcomed a summer of activity, laughter and togetherness. Welcoming new Sufra staff members and volunteers to the space and waving goodbye to others. A time of change and gratitude.

We started the summer by welcoming some regular partners into the space. Public Health, Brent Health Matters, Shaw Trust, Brent Works and more continued to provide excellent signposting and advice to our guests with the NHS providing free Health Checks.

Our shop remained busy as ever, with our volunteers, new and longstanding, helping many members purchase essential items for their families. And our café continued to be a space for guests to enjoy food and conversation.

Books, books and more books!

In July we began working on our community library, building on a donation of books from Brent Libraries, guests and Bridge Park Leisure Centre. The only problem… where would we store them? A table for the children’s books and an up-cycled bookshelf for our adult books was just the ticket. A superb garden volunteer painted the bookshelf with bright Sufra colours, blue and yellow. What a treat for our guests and members!

Fun… out of the sun! 

We have had some scorching weather in London this summer! Sheltering from the heat at the CWP has been welcome relaxation for many of our guests and members. For others, relaxation was not on the mind: Hillside Performing Arts gave a dance and activities, and children of all ages enjoyed Arts and Crafts with Brent Libraries. The Oral Health Team came to remind us all how important it is to keep those teeth clean and Chartwells made some delicious wraps to demonstrate a superb, healthy plate

Travelling around the world with our Community Kitchen!

For all of us who spent the summer in London, our brilliant Community Chefs Jas and Nicholas had the solution! No need to travel abroad, it was all happening here at Bridge Park. From delicious Hong Kongese rice congee to homemade Mexican burrito, our guests have enjoyed a variety of cuisine.  

In addition to this multicultural treats, Chef Jas also implemented a whole new breakfast. On the menu: homemade porridge and fruits. With the summer holidays, we wanted to offer a healthy and nutritious breakfast to all the children coming in the space. Let us tell you, it’s been a success!  

Some extra help from our work experience volunteers

Finally, a huge thank you to all our young volunteers who spared some of the summer holidays to join us! Shaza, Malak, Kyan, Alex, Elsie, Amouryss, Sofia, Daanya, thank you for your hard work! You’ve filled the space with more laughter and helped us greatly during those busy months of July and August.  

Thank you! 

The staff at the project want to say a huge THANK YOU to the volunteers and guests that contribute to the feeling of warmth and community in the space. CWP at Bridge Park has had an amazing run and we wouldn’t have been able to do it without the gift of your time and presence! 

Looking to the future 

The Community Wellbeing Project will be closing at Bridge Park on 30th September 2024. Please keep an eye out on our website and social media for updates on future Sufra projects.