Q1: How does the Celebrate Festival bring the Whalley Range community together?
Q2: Why is an event that brings members of a very diverse community together important?
• An event which caters for all ages, young, old and in-between! One that has activities that are attractive to a wide range of cultures and interest groups. Something for everybody. One of the highlights of the Whalley Range year.
• By having music and stalls that appeal to several cross sections of society. Whalley Range has a diverse society, lots of religions and cultures and Celebrate Festival reflects this.
• it brings rich, poor, middle-class, working-class, young and old together and those from other ethnic minorities besides English.
• This is an opportunity for the vast number of small voluntary and community groups to showcase what they are involved in and promote theri activities. its a chance for neighbours to get together in an informal way. With so many people leading busy lives, its really wonderful to see everyone from across the community in the same place enjoying the activiteis, information sharing and each othrs company.
• Because it enables us to integrate and embrace and respect each others cultures. It also breaks down preconceived barriers by allowing us to share opinions and beliefs and make way for a harmonious society where we can all celebrate each others cultures.
• Community cohesion and integration must be encouraged to avoid people feeling isolated, abandonned and rejected. Events like this promote community cohesion.
• It gets people of all ages, backgrounds and nationalities to come together doing interesting things that they normally wouldn’t.
• People just end up in ghettos if not actively encouraged to mix at fun events like ‘Celebrate’.
• The celebrate festival is an integral part of our community. I have been going with my family since it started and my children grew up with it and now bring their children.
• Everyone I know in whalley range for years always kept may bank holiday free for the festival.
• The event brings all members of the community together and in all the years I have been there has always been a great atmosphere.
• the local young people all get involved as well and it gives them a platform
• In diverse communities like whalley range it is often not the case that people from the diverse range all get along. often the different groups are isolated from each other and never really mix. events like this are a good way to get people from the wide range of groups to talk to each other and share commonalities as well as celebrate difference.
• There’s something for everyone. It heralds the start of the summer. It reminds people that we are a community, and all equal. It offers information about events where people can work together to make Whalley Range an even better place.
• The answer is in the question. We need events like this to remind us that we all all equal and neighbours, and that Whalley Range is a great place to live, and to celebrate it.
• Groups and individuals from every part of the community get involved, and they all bring their families, friends and neighbours. It’s always busy, even if the weather’s not good.
• Because people can see that we all live in the same community, therefore we ARE the same community. Celebrate demonstrates this really well.
• It’s the only event of this scale where we really see people from different backgrounds playing and working together through the arts. Nothing else covered the whole of Whalley Range, and it’s the only chance many people get for an outdoor music festival (major ones are too far away or two expensive).
• For the continual harmony of the community. Without an event like this, I fear for future discourse through lack of joint activities; if this one goes, then what else will go next?
• It is the only opportunity to bring people together who are not connected to a particular school or religious group, and has activities and information for all sections of the community
• It helps celebrate what is good about this diversity, especially at a time of increased negative media coverage.
• The Whalley Range Celebrate festival brings together the local residents to create and showcase local and up and coming talent. It gives residents a chance to meet each other that would not normally and can result in building long lasting friendships in the local area.
• As a very diverse community, Whalley range can sometimes be quite fractured and so this event gives the locals a common focus and goal.
• It’s the only regular event that really belongs to everyone in Whalley Range. Whenever I go with my family we meet up with people we don’t often see and find out about stuff happening in the area. It’s great to see local talent performing too.
• If different groups don’t meet and speak to each other, it’s harder for the community to work together to solve problems like loneliness or antisocial behaviour.
• I think the Celebrate Festival brings people in Whalley Range community together by providing a event that is fun and enjoyable for the whole community.
• It gets people out socialising with people in there community that they may not have talked to before, allowed you to meet new friends (people with the same interests)
• It’s inclusive, everyone has a chance to get involved and it’s a chance to participate in free workshops
• Because we are all human beings and Celebrate brings human beings regardless of their shape or colour together to have fun and learn